Introduction

Sentir means “to feel”, and this page covers exactly one thing: sentir 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 sentir, 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 sentir in the pretérito perfeito. It means to feel, and it is a stem-change verb: the present eu form is sinto, with i, while the tu form keeps e — sentes, sente, sentimos, sentis, sentem. Its pretérito perfeito is senti, sentiste, sentiu, and its participle is sentido. It covers feeling cold, feeling happy and feeling pain. For example: “Ele sentiu frio ontem.” — “He felt the cold.” Everything on this page uses the forms of sentir exactly as they are conjugated in the pretérito perfeito, so you can trust every form you see here.

Sentir in the Pretérito perfeito — full table

Person Form
eu senti
tu sentiste
ele/ela sentiu
nós sentimos
vós sentistes
eles/elas sentiram
Gerund: sentindo · Past participle: sentido
The gerund is sentindo, which you use with estar to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Sentindo frio, aprendo muito.” — “While feeling the cold, I learn a lot.” The past participle is sentido, which you use with ter in the perfect tenses: tenho sentido 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 sentir is used.
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for sentir, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

How the pretérito perfeito of sentir is formed

The pretérito perfeito of sentir has six forms: eu senti, tu sentiste, ele sentiu, nós sentimos, vós sentistes, eles sentiram. 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. sentir is regular in the pretérito perfeito: the -ar endings are -ei, -aste, -ou, -ámos, -astes, -aram, and the -er and -ir endings are -i, -este, -eu, -emos, -estes, -eram. Learn the six forms as a set and the tense is yours — the endings never change for a regular verb.

Two things about the pretérito perfeito of sentir 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 sentido: tenho sentido. When the action is one finished event, reach for the simple form first.

Because the pretérito perfeito of sentir 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 sentir

The pretérito perfeito is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use sentir 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 senti frio ontem.” — “I felt the cold.”

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 sentiu frio ontem.” — “He felt the cold.”

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 sentimos frio ontem.” — “We felt the cold.”

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 sentiste frio ontem.” — “You felt the cold.”

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 sentiram frio ontem.” — “They felt the cold.”

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 sentiu frio ontem.” — “He felt the cold”
  • Pretérito Imperfeito: “Ele sentia frio antigamente.” — “He used to feel the cold”
  • 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 senti frio ontem.” — “I felt the cold”
  • Pretérito Imperfeito: “Eu sentia frio antigamente.” — “I used to feel the cold”
  • 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 sentiste frio ontem.” — “You felt the cold”
  • Pretérito Imperfeito: “Tu sentias frio antigamente.” — “You used to feel the cold”
  • 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: sentir 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 senti frio ontem.” — “I felt the cold”
  2. “Tu sentiste frio ontem.” — “You felt the cold”
  3. “Ele sentiu frio ontem.” — “He felt the cold”
  4. “Nós sentimos frio ontem.” — “We felt the cold”
  5. “Vós sentistes frio ontem.” — “You felt the cold”
  6. “Eles sentiram frio ontem.” — “They felt the cold”
  7. “Eu senti frio ontem.” — “I felt the cold”
  8. “Ele sentiu frio ontem.” — “He felt the cold”

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 sinto frio ontem.” Right: “Eu senti frio ontem.” Why: Ontem points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the pretérito perfeito senti for a finished action yesterday.
  • Wrong: “Eu sentia frio ontem.” Right: “Eu senti frio 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 senti.
  • Wrong: “Eu sentiste frio.” Right: “Eu senti frio ontem.” Why: The eu form is senti, not sentiste. sentiste is the tu form. Match the verb to the subject every time.
  • Wrong: “Eu sentir frio.” Right: “Eu senti frio ontem.” Why: The infinitive sentir never takes a subject and never forms a past tense on its own. After eu you need the conjugated pretérito perfeito form senti.

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 sentir in the Pretérito perfeito?

    • A) sentiste
    • B) senti
    • C) sentiu
    • D) sentimos

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

    • A) senti
    • B) sentiu
    • C) sentiste
    • D) sentimos

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

    • A) senti
    • B) sentiste
    • C) sentimos
    • D) sentiu

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

    • A) sentimos
    • B) senti
    • C) sentiste
    • D) sentiu

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

    • A) senti
    • B) sentistes
    • C) sentiste
    • D) sentiu

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

    • A) senti
    • B) sentiste
    • C) sentiram
    • D) sentiu

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

    • A) sentiste
    • B) sentiu
    • C) sentimos
    • D) senti

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

    • A) sentiste
    • B) senti
    • C) sentiu
    • D) sentimos

Answer key

  1. B) senti — the correct form is senti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) sentiste — the correct form is sentiste. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) sentiu — the correct form is sentiu. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) sentimos — the correct form is sentimos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) sentistes — the correct form is sentistes. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) sentiram — the correct form is sentiram. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) senti — the correct form is senti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) sentiste — the correct form is sentiste. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does sentir mean in English?

sentir means “to feel”. It is a regular -ir verb.

How is the pretérito perfeito of sentir formed?

The six pretérito perfeito forms are: eu senti, tu sentiste, ele sentiu, nós sentimos, vós sentistes, eles sentiram.

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 sentir?

The gerund is sentindo and the past participle is sentido. The perfect tenses use ter + sentido.

Related pages