Auxiliary Verbs: The Pillars of Conjugation

Auxiliary verbs are fundamental elements of the Portuguese language, functioning as true pillars in the construction of compound tenses and in expressing various temporal and aspectual nuances. Mastering their use is essential for achieving fluency and precision in communication.

What are Auxiliary Verbs?

Auxiliary verbs are those that combine with other verbs (main verbs) to form verbal phrases or compound tenses. They lose part of their original meaning to help construct new verbal forms and meanings.

Main Characteristics

Grammatical function: Assist in forming compound tenses
Semantic loss: Lose part of their original meaning
Inflection: Are conjugated while the main verb remains in participle, gerund, or infinitive
Essentiality: Fundamental for expressing time, mood, and verbal aspect

Main Auxiliary Verbs

1. TER and HAVER

The most important for forming compound tenses:

Compound Tense	Formation	Example
Present Perfect	ter/haver + participle	Tenho estudado muito (I have been studying a lot)
Past Perfect	ter/haver (imperfect) + participle	Tinha/Havia estudado (I had studied)
Future Perfect	ter/haver (future) + participle	Terei estudado (I will have studied)
Conditional Perfect	ter/haver (conditional) + participle	Teria estudado (I would have studied)

💡 Note: In modern Brazilian Portuguese, “ter” is preferred over “haver” as an auxiliary.

2. SER and ESTAR

Fundamental for passive voice and durative aspects:

SER - Passive Voice

Punctual action: O livro foi escrito por Machado de Assis (The book was written by Machado de Assis)
Resulting state: A porta está fechada (The door is closed - was closed)

ESTAR - Durative Aspect

Action in progress: Estou lendo um livro (I am reading a book)
Temporary state: Está chovendo (It is raining)

3. IR

Expresses futurity and movement:

Immediate future: Vou estudar amanhã (I’m going to study tomorrow)
Intention: Vamos resolver este problema (Let’s solve this problem)
Movement + action: Vou correndo para casa (I’m running home)

Verbal Phrases

Structure of Verbal Phrases

Verbal phrases follow specific patterns:

Auxiliary + Infinitive
- Devo estudar (I must study)
- Posso ajudar (I can help)
- Quero aprender (I want to learn)
Auxiliary + Gerund
- Estou estudando (I am studying)
- Venho trabalhando (I have been working)
- Ando pensando (I’ve been thinking)
Auxiliary + Participle
- Tenho estudado (I have studied)
- Foi aprovado (Was approved)
- Está resolvido (It is resolved)

Semi-Auxiliary Verbs

Some verbs function as semi-auxiliaries in phrases:

Verb	Function	Example
Poder	Possibility	Pode chover hoje (It might rain today)
Dever	Obligation/Probability	Deve estudar mais (Should study more)
Querer	Desire	Quero viajar (I want to travel)
Precisar	Necessity	Preciso trabalhar (I need to work)
Costumar	Habit	Costumo acordar cedo (I usually wake up early)
Começar a	Beginning of action	Começou a chover (It started to rain)
Continuar a	Continuity	Continua estudando (Continues studying)
Acabar de	Recently completed action	Acabei de chegar (I just arrived)

Compound Tenses and Their Uses

Present Perfect

Expresses repeated or continuous action until the present:

Repetition: Tenho ido ao cinema toda semana (I have been going to the movies every week)
Continuity: Tenho trabalhado muito ultimamente (I have been working a lot lately)

Past Perfect

Action prior to another in the past:

Quando chegou, já tinha saído (When he arrived, I had already left)
Havia terminado o trabalho antes do prazo (Had finished the work before the deadline)

Future Perfect

Future action prior to another:

Quando você chegar, já terei terminado (When you arrive, I will have finished)
Teremos resolvido tudo até lá (We will have solved everything by then)

Passive Voice with Auxiliaries

Formation of Passive Voice

Active Voice	Passive Voice
João leu o livro	O livro foi lido por João
(João read the book)	(The book was read by João)
Estão construindo a casa	A casa está sendo construída
(They are building the house)	(The house is being built)
Tinham vendido o carro	O carro tinha sido vendido
(They had sold the car)	(The car had been sold)

Passive with SER vs ESTAR

SER: Action or process
- A carta foi escrita (The letter was written - action)
ESTAR: Resulting state
- A carta está escrita (The letter is written - result)

Verbal Aspects

Auxiliaries help express different aspects:

Perfective Aspect

Completed action: Já li o livro (I already read the book)

Imperfective Aspect

Action in progress: Estou lendo o livro (I am reading the book)

Iterative Aspect

Repeated action: Tenho lido muito (I have been reading a lot)

Inchoative Aspect

Beginning of action: Começou a ler (Started to read)

Regional Differences

Brazil vs Portugal

Brazil	Portugal
Estou fazendo	Estou a fazer
(I am doing)	(I am doing)
Vou fazer	Vou fazer / Hei de fazer
(I’m going to do)	(I’m going to do / I shall do)
Tinha feito	Tinha feito / Havia feito
(Had done)	(Had done)

Variations in Brazil

South: Greater use of “haver” as auxiliary
Northeast: Preference for gerund constructions
Southeast: Predominance of “ter” over “haver”

Common Errors

1. Agreement with “Haver”

❌ Haviam muitos problemas
✅ Havia muitos problemas (There were many problems)

2. Double Participle

❌ Tinha tinha feito
✅ Tinha feito (Had done)

3. Gerundism

❌ Vou estar enviando
✅ Enviarei / Vou enviar (I will send)

Importance in Communication

Mastering auxiliary verbs allows:

✅ Expressing temporal nuances with precision
✅ Constructing more elaborate sentences
✅ Communicating subtle verbal aspects
✅ Correctly forming the passive voice
✅ Avoiding common grammatical errors

Conclusion

Auxiliary verbs are true architects of the Portuguese language, building bridges between ideas and allowing the expression of complex temporal and aspectual concepts. Their mastery is fundamental for any serious student of Portuguese, as they are what give life and dynamism to communication, transforming simple verbs into expressions rich with meaning and nuance.