Limpar means to clean. Its conjugation is fully regular -ar — no surprises in any tense. The one feature worth a whole page is its double participle: it has both a regular form limpado and a short, irregular form limpo. Portuguese has a small family of verbs like this (pagar → pago, aceitar → aceito, ganhar → ganho), and there is a clean rule for which form to use when. Master limpado vs. limpo here and you'll understand the whole pattern — see double participles.
The double participle: limpado vs. limpo
The rule is about which auxiliary the participle sits with:
- With ter (and haver) — the compound-tense auxiliaries — use the regular form limpado.
- With ser and estar — the passive and stative auxiliaries — use the short form limpo.
- As a plain adjective, also use limpo (and it agrees in gender/number: limpo, limpa, limpos, limpas).
The underlying logic: ter forms a verbal tense (you did the action), so it takes the verb-flavored regular participle. Ser/estar describe a resulting state (the thing is clean), so they take the adjective-flavored short form. This split runs through the whole double-participle family.
Eu já tinha limpado a cozinha quando você chegou.
I had already cleaned the kitchen when you arrived.
A cozinha foi limpa pela diarista hoje de manhã.
The kitchen was cleaned by the cleaner this morning.
A casa está limpa, pode entrar.
The house is clean, come on in.
Notice the agreement: a cozinha está limpa, os pratos estão limpos. The regular form limpado never agrees — it's locked as -ado after ter.
Meaning and usage
Limpar covers all senses of English "clean": clean a room, clean a surface, wipe, tidy up. The reflexive limpar-se means to clean/wipe oneself. A few collocations: limpar a casa (clean the house), limpar a boca (wipe your mouth), limpar o nome (clear one's name/credit record — very common in BR consumer life).
Preciso limpar o banheiro antes da visita chegar.
I need to clean the bathroom before the guests arrive.
Limpa a boca, você tá com molho no canto.
Wipe your mouth, you've got sauce in the corner.
Indicative tenses
Presente do indicativo
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limpo |
| tu | limpas |
| você / ele / ela | limpa |
| nós | limpamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limpam |
Note that the eu form limpo is spelled identically to the short participle/adjective limpo — but they're different words: one is "I clean," the other is "clean(ed)." Context separates them instantly.
Eu limpo a casa toda sexta-feira.
I clean the house every Friday.
Pretérito perfeito
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limpei |
| tu | limpaste |
| você / ele / ela | limpou |
| nós | limpamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limparam |
Limpei o carro inteiro no fim de semana.
I cleaned the whole car over the weekend.
Pretérito imperfeito
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limpava |
| tu | limpavas |
| você / ele / ela | limpava |
| nós | limpávamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limpavam |
Note the acute on limpávamos.
Antigamente a gente limpava a casa toda no sábado.
We used to clean the whole house on Saturdays.
Futuro do presente
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limparei |
| tu | limparás |
| você / ele / ela | limpará |
| nós | limparemos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limparão |
In speech, vou limpar is the everyday choice.
Futuro do pretérito (conditional)
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limparia |
| tu | limparias |
| você / ele / ela | limparia |
| nós | limparíamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limpariam |
Eu limparia o quintal hoje, mas tá chovendo.
I'd clean the backyard today, but it's raining.
Subjunctive
Presente do subjuntivo
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limpe |
| tu | limpes |
| você / ele / ela | limpe |
| nós | limpemos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limpem |
Quero que vocês limpem o quarto antes do almoço.
I want you to clean the room before lunch.
Imperfeito do subjuntivo
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limpasse |
| tu | limpasses |
| você / ele / ela | limpasse |
| nós | limpássemos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limpassem |
Note the acute on limpássemos.
Se cada um limpasse a própria bagunça, seria mais fácil.
If everyone cleaned up their own mess, it'd be easier.
Futuro do subjuntivo
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | limpar |
| tu | limpares |
| você / ele / ela | limpar |
| nós | limparmos |
| vocês / eles / elas | limparem |
Quando você limpar a mesa, a gente serve o jantar.
Once you clear the table, we'll serve dinner.
Imperative
| Pronoun | Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| tu | limpa | não limpes |
| você | limpe | não limpe |
| nós | limpemos | não limpemos |
| vocês | limpem | não limpem |
Limpa esse chão direito, ainda tá sujo.
Clean that floor properly, it's still dirty.
Non-finite forms
| Form | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Infinitivo pessoal — eu | limpar |
| Infinitivo pessoal — tu | limpares |
| Infinitivo pessoal — você/ele/ela | limpar |
| Infinitivo pessoal — nós | limparmos |
| Infinitivo pessoal — vocês/eles/elas | limparem |
| Gerúndio | limpando |
| Particípio (regular) | limpado |
| Particípio (curto) | limpo / limpa / limpos / limpas |
Passei a manhã limpando a garagem.
I spent the morning cleaning the garage.
Comparison with English
English has no double-participle system — "cleaned" does all the jobs: "I have cleaned," "it was cleaned," "the clean room" (well, English uses clean there, a separate adjective). Portuguese instead reuses one verb but splits its participle by function. The closest English parallel is irregular pairs like "I have proven it" vs. "a proven fact" — but in Portuguese the split is systematic and grammatically required, not a stylistic preference.
Common Mistakes
❌ A casa está limpada.
Incorrect — with estar use the short form, which agrees: limpa.
✅ A casa está limpa.
The house is clean.
❌ Eu tinha limpo a cozinha.
Disfavored — with ter the standard form is the regular limpado.
✅ Eu tinha limpado a cozinha.
I had cleaned the kitchen.
❌ Os pratos estão limpo.
Incorrect — the short participle must agree: limpos.
✅ Os pratos estão limpos.
The dishes are clean.
❌ Quero que você limpa o quarto.
Incorrect — after 'quero que' use the subjunctive limpe.
✅ Quero que você limpe o quarto.
I want you to clean the room.
Now practice Portuguese
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Portuguese→Related Topics
- Double Past Participles (chego/chegado, ganho/ganhado)B1 — The Brazilian Portuguese verbs that keep two past participles — a regular one for ter and an irregular one for ser/estar — and how that prescriptive split is breaking down in modern speech.
- Past Participle as AdjectiveA2 — How Brazilian Portuguese past participles work as adjectives — agreeing in gender and number with the noun they describe — and how recognizing them as participles expands your vocabulary.
- Present Indicative: Regular -ar VerbsA1 — How to conjugate regular -ar verbs in the Brazilian Portuguese present indicative — plus the mandatory 'de' after gostar.
- Past Participle as AdjectiveA2 — How Portuguese past participles work as agreeing adjectives, and the double-participle pairs where the short form is the adjective and the regular form pairs with ter.