Introduction

Estar means “to be”, and this page covers exactly one thing: estar in the pretérito perfeito. The pretérito perfeito is the tense Portuguese speakers reach for when they talk about one finished action in the past, especially in conversation. On this page you will find the full pretérito perfeito table for estar, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the pretérito imperfeito, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about estar in the pretérito perfeito. It is the verb of location, temporary states and feelings: you use it to say where someone is and how someone is feeling right now. It is different from ser, which is for identity and permanent qualities — estou em casa is a location, sou professor is an identity. Estar also builds the progressive with the gerund, the Portuguese way of saying what someone is doing right now. For example: “Ele esteve em casa ontem.” — “He was at home.” Everything on this page uses the forms of estar exactly as they are conjugated in the pretérito perfeito, so you can trust every form you see here.

Estar in the Pretérito perfeito — full table

Person Form
eu estive
tu estiveste
ele/ela esteve
nós estivemos
vós estivestes
eles/elas estiveram
Gerund: estando · Past participle: estado
The gerund is estando, which you use with estar to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Estando em casa, aprendo muito.” — “While being at home, I learn a lot.” The past participle is estado, which you use with ter in the perfect tenses: tenho estado is the pretérito perfeito composto, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the pretérito perfeito is only one part of how estar is used.
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for estar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

How the pretérito perfeito of estar is formed

The pretérito perfeito of estar has six forms: eu estive, tu estiveste, ele esteve, nós estivemos, vós estivestes, eles estiveram. The participle is given here in the masculine singular form, exactly as it appears in the verified dump; agreement with the subject is a separate step that depends on the sentence, not on the verb table. estar is irregular in the pretérito perfeito, so the six forms have to be learnt as a set instead of derived from the infinitive. The stem changes completely in this tense, and no rule predicts the forms — learn them whole, starting with eu and ele, the two forms you will use most.

Two things about the pretérito perfeito of estar are worth noticing. First, it is the tense of finished events with a clear result, so it pairs naturally with time words such as ontem, esta semana and no ano passado — those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense. Second, it is a simple tense, built from one word, unlike the pretérito perfeito composto, which needs ter plus the participle estado: tenho estado. When the action is one finished event, reach for the simple form first.

Because the pretérito perfeito of estar is one word per person, it is cheap to learn once the six forms are fixed. Learn them in order — eu, tu, ele, nós, vós, eles — and say each one with a time word, so the tense and its time words are learnt together.

When to use the pretérito perfeito of estar

The pretérito perfeito is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use estar in the pretérito perfeito most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.

1. One finished action

The pretérito perfeito describes a single action that is finished, especially in spoken Portuguese. When the action has a clear end, the pretérito perfeito is the natural choice. Example: “Eu estive em casa ontem.” — “I was at home.”

2. Recent events

Use the pretérito perfeito for things that happened recently — today, this week, this morning — where the result is still visible in the present. Example: “Ele esteve em casa ontem.” — “He was at home.”

3. A sequence of events

When you tell what happened first, second and third, each step takes the pretérito perfeito. The tense moves the story forward one finished action at a time. Example: “Nós estivemos em casa ontem.” — “We were at home.”

4. An experience in your life

Use the pretérito perfeito for things you have done in your life, with or without a time expression. It is the tense of experience as much as of yesterday. Example: “Tu estiveste em casa ontem.” — “You were at home.”

5. News and results

When you report news or a result, the pretérito perfeito carries it: something happened, and now the situation is different. The result matters more than the process. Example: “Eles estiveram em casa ontem.” — “They were at home.”

Pretérito Perfeito vs Pretérito Imperfeito: how to choose

The closest tense to the pretérito perfeito is the pretérito imperfeito, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the pretérito perfeito describes one finished action, while the pretérito imperfeito describes an ongoing or habitual action in the past, or the background of a scene. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the pretérito perfeito sentences use words such as ontem or esta semana, while the pretérito imperfeito sentences use antigamente or todos os dias.

  • Pretérito Perfeito: “Ele esteve em casa ontem.” — “He was at home”
  • Pretérito Imperfeito: “Ele estava em casa antigamente.” — “He used to be at home”
  • The pretérito perfeito sentence is one finished event; the pretérito imperfeito sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ontem points to the pretérito perfeito, antigamente points to the pretérito imperfeito.
  • Pretérito Perfeito: “Eu estive em casa ontem.” — “I was at home”
  • Pretérito Imperfeito: “Eu estava em casa antigamente.” — “I used to be at home”
  • The pretérito perfeito sentence is one finished event; the pretérito imperfeito sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ontem points to the pretérito perfeito, antigamente points to the pretérito imperfeito.
  • Pretérito Perfeito: “Tu estiveste em casa ontem.” — “You were at home”
  • Pretérito Imperfeito: “Tu estavas em casa antigamente.” — “You used to be at home”
  • The pretérito perfeito sentence is one finished event; the pretérito imperfeito sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ontem points to the pretérito perfeito, antigamente points to the pretérito imperfeito.

Example sentences: estar in the pretérito perfeito

Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions and the objects — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.

  1. “Eu estive em casa ontem.” — “I was at home”
  2. “Tu estiveste em casa ontem.” — “You were at home”
  3. “Ele esteve em casa ontem.” — “He was at home”
  4. “Nós estivemos em casa ontem.” — “We were at home”
  5. “Vós estivestes em casa ontem.” — “You were at home”
  6. “Eles estiveram em casa ontem.” — “They were at home”
  7. “Eu estive em casa ontem.” — “I was at home”
  8. “Ele esteve em casa ontem.” — “He was at home”

Common mistakes

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Eu estou em casa ontem.” Right: “Eu estive em casa ontem.” Why: Ontem points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the pretérito perfeito estive for a finished action yesterday.
  • Wrong: “Eu estava em casa ontem.” Right: “Eu estive em casa ontem.” Why: The pretérito imperfeito describes an ongoing or habitual past action, not one finished event. For a single finished action yesterday, use the pretérito perfeito estive.
  • Wrong: “Eu estiveste em casa.” Right: “Eu estive em casa ontem.” Why: The eu form is estive, not estiveste. estiveste is the tu form. Match the verb to the subject every time.
  • Wrong: “Eu estar em casa.” Right: “Eu estive em casa ontem.” Why: The infinitive estar never takes a subject and never forms a past tense on its own. After eu you need the conjugated pretérito perfeito form estive.

Quiz: test yourself

Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.

  1. What is the eu form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estiveste
    • B) estive
    • C) esteve
    • D) estivemos

  2. What is the tu form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estive
    • B) esteve
    • C) estiveste
    • D) estivemos

  3. What is the ele/ela form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estive
    • B) estiveste
    • C) estivemos
    • D) esteve

  4. What is the nós form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estivemos
    • B) estive
    • C) estiveste
    • D) esteve

  5. What is the vós form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estive
    • B) estivestes
    • C) estiveste
    • D) esteve

  6. What is the eles/elas form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estive
    • B) estiveste
    • C) estiveram
    • D) esteve

  7. What is the eu form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estiveste
    • B) esteve
    • C) estivemos
    • D) estive

  8. What is the tu form of estar in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) estiveste
    • B) estive
    • C) esteve
    • D) estivemos

Answer key

  1. B) estive — the correct form is estive. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) estiveste — the correct form is estiveste. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) esteve — the correct form is esteve. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) estivemos — the correct form is estivemos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) estivestes — the correct form is estivestes. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) estiveram — the correct form is estiveram. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) estive — the correct form is estive. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) estiveste — the correct form is estiveste. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does estar mean in English?

estar means “to be”. It is a irregular -ar verb.

How is the pretérito perfeito of estar formed?

The six pretérito perfeito forms are: eu estive, tu estiveste, ele esteve, nós estivemos, vós estivestes, eles estiveram.

When do I use the pretérito perfeito instead of the pretérito imperfeito?

Use the pretérito perfeito for one finished action in the past. Use the pretérito imperfeito for an ongoing or habitual past action, or for background description. The time words are your best clue: ontem points to the pretérito perfeito, antigamente points to the pretérito imperfeito.

What are the gerund and past participle of estar?

The gerund is estando and the past participle is estado. The perfect tenses use ter + estado.

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