Frequency adverbs answer the question com que frequência? — how often? Brazilian Portuguese organizes them on a scale running from sempre (always) down through geralmente / normalmente (usually), às vezes / de vez em quando (sometimes), raramente / quase nunca (rarely), all the way to nunca (never). Most of these are single words, but two of the most common ones — às vezes and de vez em quando — are fixed phrases, and Portuguese also expresses rates ("twice a week," "once a month") with little phrases where English uses a or per.
The frequency scale
Think of it as a vertical line. At the top, the action is total; at the bottom, it never happens.
| Portuguese | English | Rough frequency |
|---|---|---|
| sempre | always | 100% |
| quase sempre | almost always | ~90% |
| geralmente / normalmente | usually, generally | ~75% |
| frequentemente | frequently, often | ~70% |
| às vezes | sometimes | ~50% |
| de vez em quando | now and then, occasionally | ~30% |
| raramente | rarely, seldom | ~10% |
| quase nunca | almost never, hardly ever | ~5% |
| nunca / jamais | never | 0% |
Eu sempre tomo café antes de sair.
I always have coffee before leaving.
Geralmente almoço por aqui mesmo, perto do trabalho.
I usually have lunch right around here, near work.
A gente vai ao cinema de vez em quando, quando dá tempo.
We go to the movies now and then, when there's time.
sempre, nunca, jamais
Sempre is the unmarked "always." It usually sits right before the verb, but it can also follow it for emphasis or rhythm.
Ela sempre chega atrasada nas reuniões.
She's always late to meetings.
Te amo e vou te amar sempre.
I love you and I'll always love you.
Nunca and jamais both mean "never." Nunca is the everyday word; jamais is more emphatic and a touch more literary — it's the "never ever" of the pair. Crucially, when nunca or jamais comes after the verb, you must add não before the verb (double negation is required in Portuguese — see the note below). When it comes before the verb, no não is needed.
Eu nunca fui a Salvador.
I've never been to Salvador.
Não fui nunca a Salvador.
I've never been to Salvador. (nunca after the verb requires não)
Jamais faria isso com você.
I would never do that to you. (emphatic, slightly literary)
às vezes — two words, and mobile
The single most useful "sometimes" is às vezes — literally "at the times." Note the orthography: it is two words, the a carries a grave accent (the crase: a + as → às), and vezes is plural. Learners constantly write it as one word or drop the accent; both are errors.
Às vezes is highly mobile. It can open the sentence, sit before the verb, or close it:
Às vezes eu acordo no meio da noite sem motivo.
Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night for no reason.
Eu às vezes esqueço onde deixei o celular.
I sometimes forget where I left my phone.
A gente discute, mas se entende bem, às vezes.
We argue, but we get along well, sometimes.
Its quieter cousin de vez em quando ("from time to time") is also a fixed phrase and works in the same slots.
Frequency phrases: rates with por and a
English uses a or per for rates: "twice a week," "three times per month." Portuguese builds these with por (per) or sometimes a/na, and uses vez / vezes (time/times) for the count.
| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
| uma vez por semana | once a week |
| duas vezes por mês | twice a month |
| três vezes ao dia | three times a day |
| todo dia / todos os dias | every day |
| toda semana / todas as semanas | every week |
Eu malho três vezes por semana, de segunda, quarta e sexta.
I work out three times a week — Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
O remédio é uma vez ao dia, em jejum.
The medicine is once a day, on an empty stomach.
Note that "every day" is todo dia (singular) in casual speech and todos os dias in more careful register — both are correct. Don't confuse todo dia ("every day") with o dia todo ("the whole day"); word order flips the meaning entirely.
de novo — "again"
De novo ("again") is technically a frequency/repetition phrase and is far more common in speech than the single word novamente (formal/written).
Você pode repetir, de novo? Não entendi.
Can you repeat that again? I didn't catch it.
O ônibus atrasou novamente nesta manhã.
The bus was late again this morning. (formal/written)
Common Mistakes
❌ Eu vou as vezes ao mercado.
Incorrect — missing the grave accent on às
✅ Eu vou às vezes ao mercado.
I sometimes go to the market.
❌ Eu nunca não vi esse filme.
Incorrect — não comes BEFORE the verb, not after nunca
✅ Eu nunca vi esse filme.
I've never seen that movie.
❌ Eu corro duas vezes uma semana.
Incorrect — 'a week' as a rate uses por, not uma
✅ Eu corro duas vezes por semana.
I run twice a week.
❌ Geralmente eu não acordo cedo. (meaning 'usually I don't wake up')
Fine grammatically, but watch placement — see below
✅ Eu geralmente acordo tarde.
I usually wake up late.
A subtler trap: English speakers often place frequency adverbs after the verb out of habit ("I go always"). In Portuguese, single-word frequency adverbs like sempre, geralmente, nunca, raramente most naturally come before the verb ("Eu sempre vou," not "Eu vou sempre" — though the latter is possible for emphasis). The phrasal ones (às vezes, de vez em quando) are the freely mobile ones.
Key Takeaways
- The scale runs sempre → geralmente/normalmente → às vezes/de vez em quando → raramente/quase nunca → nunca/jamais.
- às vezes is two words with a grave accent on à, and it moves freely in the sentence.
- Single-word frequency adverbs prefer the slot before the verb.
- Nunca/jamais after the verb force a não before it: "não vou nunca."
- Rates use por (or ao/à): "duas vezes por semana," "três vezes ao dia."
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Start learning Portuguese→Related Topics
- Adverbs of TimeA1 — The core Brazilian Portuguese time adverbs — hoje, ontem, amanhã, agora, já, ainda, sempre, nunca, jamais — including the tricky já (already/right now) and ainda (still/yet).
- Adverb PlacementA2 — Where adverbs go in a Brazilian clause — flexible frequency and sentence adverbs, the fixed position of 'não' before the verb, and focus adverbs (só, até, mesmo) that scope over the element they precede.
- Adverbs: OverviewA2 — What adverbs are in Brazilian Portuguese, why they never agree, the main semantic types, and how -mente formation and flexible placement work.
- Adverbs of QuantityA1 — Degree and quantity adverbs in Brazilian Portuguese — muito, pouco, mais, bastante, demais, tão, meio, bem — all invariable as adverbs, contrasted with their agreeing determiner uses; with a focus on the meio trap.