Receber Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Portuguese

receber — to receive — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Portuguese. It is a regular -er verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to receive something, and it is completely regular: recebo, recebes, recebe, recebemos, recebeis, recebem. Its pretérito perfeito is recebi, recebeste, recebeu, and its participle is recebido. It is the verb for receiving letters, messages, guests and gifts. On this page you will find receber in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself. The full conjugation tables are on the receber conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the receber present tense page.

Example sentences with receber

In the present tense

  • “Eu recebo uma carta todos os dias.” — “I receive a letter”
  • “Tu recebes uma carta todos os dias.” — “You receive a letter”
  • “Ele recebe uma carta todos os dias.” — “He receives a letter”
  • “Nós recebemos uma carta todos os dias.” — “We receive a letter”
  • “Vós recebeis uma carta todos os dias.” — “You receive a letter”
  • “Eles recebem uma carta todos os dias.” — “They receive a letter”

In the pretérito perfeito

  • “Eu recebi uma carta ontem.” — “I received a letter”
  • “Tu recebeste uma carta ontem.” — “You received a letter”
  • “Ele recebeu uma carta ontem.” — “He received a letter”
  • “Nós recebemos uma carta ontem.” — “We received a letter”
  • “Vós recebestes uma carta ontem.” — “You received a letter”
  • “Eles receberam uma carta ontem.” — “They received a letter”

In other tenses

The same verb in the pretérito imperfeito, the futuro do presente, the futuro do pretérito, the presente do subjuntivo and the imperative — the tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “Eu recebia uma carta antigamente.” — “I used to receive a letter”
  • “Tu receberás uma carta amanhã.” — “You will receive a letter”
  • “Ele receberia uma carta um dia.” — “He would receive a letter”
  • “É importante que nós recebamos uma carta.” — “It is important that we receive a letter”
  • “Recebe uma carta!” — “Receive a letter!”

How receber is used

The first thing to know about receber is its core meaning: to receive. It means to receive something, and it is completely regular: recebo, recebes, recebe, recebemos, recebeis, recebem. Its pretérito perfeito is recebi, recebeste, recebeu, and its participle is recebido. It is the verb for receiving letters, messages, guests and gifts. In everyday speech it appears most often in the present and the pretérito perfeito, the two tenses on this page, because most of what we say is either what we do every day or what we have just done. Learn those two tenses first and the rest of the conjugation becomes a matter of adding forms one at a time. The second thing to know is the company receber keeps. The present eu form is recebo, and it pairs naturally with the time words todos os dias and sempre for habits, and with agora for what is happening right now. The pretérito perfeito composto eu form is tenho recebido, and it pairs with ontem and esta semana for finished actions. When you learn a verb form, learn its time words with it, and choosing the tense becomes automatic. The third thing to know is what receber does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after eu you need recebo, never receber. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the pretérito perfeito composto is tenho recebido, built with ter, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle recebido is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Receber in context

Eu recebo uma carta todos os dias. Tu recebes uma carta todos os dias. Ele recebe uma carta todos os dias. Nós recebemos uma carta todos os dias. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of receber is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — recebo, recebes, recebe, recebemos — while the meaning stays the same: to receive. Eu recebi uma carta ontem. Tu recebeste uma carta ontem. Ele recebeu uma carta ontem. Nós recebemos uma carta ontem. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the pretérito perfeito of receber appears constantly: a finished action, a precise moment, and the story goes on. Compare these sentences with the present ones above: the verb changes tense, but the basic meaning — to receive — does not change. That is the difference between a habit and a finished event.

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Eu receber uma carta.”

✓ Right: “Eu recebo uma carta todos os dias.”

The infinitive receber never takes a subject. After eu you need the conjugated present form recebo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Eu recebes uma carta.”

✓ Right: “Eu recebo uma carta todos os dias.”

recebes is the tu form, not the eu form. The eu form is recebo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Eu recebo uma carta ontem.”

✓ Right: “Eu recebi uma carta ontem.”

Ontem points to the past, so use the pretérito perfeito recebi here, not the present recebo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Eu sou recebido uma carta.”

✓ Right: “Eu tenho recebido uma carta esta semana.”

receber takes ter in the pretérito perfeito composto. The eu form is tenho recebido — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on receber across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

  1. What is the tu form of receber in the Present indicative (presente)?

    • A) recebo
    • B) recebes
    • C) recebe
    • D) recebemos

  2. What is the eu form of receber in the Pretérito perfeito composto?

    • A) tens recebido
    • B) tem recebido
    • C) tenho recebido
    • D) temos recebido

  3. What is the ele/ela form of receber in the Pretérito imperfeito?

    • A) recebias
    • B) recebíamos
    • C) recebíeis
    • D) recebia

  4. What is the nós form of receber in the Futuro do presente?

    • A) receberemos
    • B) receberei
    • C) receberás
    • D) receberá

  5. What is the tu form of receber in the Futuro do pretérito?

    • A) receberia
    • B) receberias
    • C) receberíamos
    • D) receberíeis

  6. What is the eu form of receber in the Pretérito mais-que-perfeito simples?

    • A) receberas
    • B) recebéramos
    • C) recebera
    • D) recebéreis

  7. What is the nós form of receber in the Presente do subjuntivo?

    • A) receba
    • B) recebas
    • C) recebais
    • D) recebamos

  8. What is the gerund of receber?

    • A) recebendo
    • B) recebido
    • C) receber
    • D) recebo

  9. What is the past participle of receber?

    • A) recebendo
    • B) recebido
    • C) receber
    • D) recebo

  10. What does receber mean in English?

  • A) to ask for
  • B) to pay
  • C) to receive
  • D) to buy

Answer key

  1. B) recebes — the correct form is recebes. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) tenho recebido — the correct form is tenho recebido. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) recebia — the correct form is recebia. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) receberemos — the correct form is receberemos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) receberias — the correct form is receberias. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) recebera — the correct form is recebera. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) recebamos — the correct form is recebamos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) recebendo — the correct form is recebendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) recebido — the correct form is recebido. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to receive — the correct form is to receive. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does receber mean in English?

receber means “to receive”. You use it whenever you talk about to receive in Portuguese, in the present, the past and the future.

Is receber regular or irregular?

receber is regular. receber is regular: every form follows the standard -er endings, so once you know the pattern you can build every tense from the stem.

What are the gerund and past participle of receber?

The gerund is recebendo and the past participle is recebido. The perfect tenses use ter + recebido.

Where can I see the full conjugation of receber?

On the receber conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The receber present tense page goes deeper into its most practised tense.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for receber, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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