Usar means to use — and that alone makes it one of the highest-frequency verbs you will ever need. But Brazilian Portuguese hands usar a second, equally everyday job: to wear. Clothes, glasses, perfume, makeup, accessories — all of them you usar. This second meaning surprises English speakers, who keep one verb ("use") for tools and another ("wear") for clothing, while Portuguese is happy to let usar cover both. The conjugation is the easy part: usar is a fully regular -ar verb.
A clean regular -ar verb
Usar takes the stem us- plus the standard -ar endings. There are no stem changes; the s stays /z/ between vowels (so uso sounds like "OO-zoo") but the spelling never shifts. It conjugates exactly like falar or amar.
Presente do indicativo
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | uso |
| tu | usas |
| você / ele / ela | usa |
| nós | usamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | usam |
Eu uso óculos para dirigir à noite.
I wear glasses to drive at night.
Que aplicativo você usa para pedir comida?
What app do you use to order food?
Pretérito perfeito
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | usei |
| tu | usaste |
| você / ele / ela | usou |
| nós | usamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | usaram |
The nós form usamos is identical in present and preterite, as with every -ar verb.
Usei o vestido da minha mãe no casamento.
I wore my mom's dress to the wedding.
Eles usaram o dinheiro da rifa para reformar a quadra.
They used the raffle money to renovate the court.
Pretérito imperfeito
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | usava |
| tu | usavas |
| você / ele / ela | usava |
| nós | usávamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | usavam |
Na adolescência eu usava aparelho nos dentes.
As a teenager I used to wear braces.
Futuro do presente & futuro do pretérito (conditional)
Built on the full infinitive usar-.
| Pronoun | Futuro do presente | Futuro do pretérito |
|---|---|---|
| eu | usarei | usaria |
| tu | usarás | usarias |
| você / ele / ela | usará | usaria |
| nós | usaremos | usaríamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | usarão | usariam |
In conversation, vou usar replaces usarei. (informal)
Vou usar o terno azul na entrevista de amanhã.
I'm going to wear the blue suit to tomorrow's interview.
Eu nunca usaria salto tão alto, ia cair na hora.
I'd never wear such high heels, I'd fall over instantly.
Presente do subjuntivo
-ar verbs take -e endings in the subjunctive.
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | use |
| tu | uses |
| você / ele / ela | use |
| nós | usemos |
| vocês / eles / elas | usem |
É essencial que você use protetor solar todos os dias.
It's essential that you wear sunscreen every day.
Imperfeito & futuro do subjuntivo
| Pronoun | Imperfeito do subjuntivo | Futuro do subjuntivo |
|---|---|---|
| eu | usasse | usar |
| tu | usasses | usares |
| você / ele / ela | usasse | usar |
| nós | usássemos | usarmos |
| vocês / eles / elas | usassem | usarem |
Se você usasse capacete, eu ficaria bem mais tranquila.
If you wore a helmet, I'd be a lot more at ease.
Quando você usar o carro, devolve com o tanque cheio.
When you use the car, return it with a full tank.
Imperativo
| Pronoun | Afirmativo | Negativo |
|---|---|---|
| tu | usa | não uses |
| você | use | não use |
| nós | usemos | não usemos |
| vocês | usem | não usem |
Não use o celular enquanto dirige.
Don't use your phone while driving.
Non-finite forms
| Form | Result |
|---|---|
| Infinitivo | usar |
| Infinitivo pessoal (eu / você / ele) | usar |
| Infinitivo pessoal (nós) | usarmos |
| Infinitivo pessoal (vocês / eles) | usarem |
| Gerúndio | usando |
| Particípio | usado |
The two meanings: use and wear
usar = to use. The straightforward, English-matching meaning. The thing used is a plain direct object (no preposition).
Posso usar o seu carregador? O meu sumiu.
Can I use your charger? Mine disappeared.
usar = to wear. Here is where Portuguese diverges. Clothing, footwear, glasses, jewelry, perfume, makeup, even a beard or a certain hairstyle — Brazilians usar all of them. Note that this describes the state of wearing, not the moment of putting on.
Ela usa um perfume incrível, sempre pergunto qual é.
She wears an amazing perfume, I always ask what it is.
Meu avô usava bigode a vida inteira.
My grandfather wore a mustache his whole life.
A false-friend warning
English "use" sometimes appears where Portuguese would not use usar. In particular, English "I used to..." (a past habit) is not usar — it is the imperfect tense (eu costumava or just the plain imperfect). The look-alike is a trap. Likewise, "to be used to" (accustomed) is estar acostumado a, never a form of usar.
Eu costumava acordar cedo, mas agora durmo até tarde.
I used to wake up early, but now I sleep in.
There is also a noun connection worth flagging: a usuário is a user (of a system, a drug, a service), and usado as an adjective means used / second-hand. Both come from this verb.
Common Mistakes
❌ Eu visto óculos para ler.
Incorrect — for glasses (and most clothing as a state) use usar, not vestir.
✅ Eu uso óculos para ler.
I wear glasses to read.
❌ Eu usei acordar cedo.
Incorrect — English 'used to' is the imperfect (costumava / acordava), not usar.
✅ Eu costumava acordar cedo.
I used to wake up early.
❌ Posso usar de o seu carregador?
Incorrect — the thing used is a direct object; usar takes no preposition.
✅ Posso usar o seu carregador?
Can I use your charger?
❌ Estou usado a esse barulho.
Incorrect — 'to be used to' is estar acostumado a, not usar.
✅ Estou acostumado a esse barulho.
I'm used to this noise.
❌ É importante que você usa capacete.
Incorrect — after que (with é importante) you need the subjunctive use.
✅ É importante que você use capacete.
It's important that you wear a helmet.
Key Takeaways
- Usar is a fully regular -ar verb; the stem us- never changes.
- It covers both to use (tools, apps, things) and to wear (clothes, glasses, perfume, accessories).
- usar is the steady state of wearing; vestir/colocar = put on, tirar = take off.
- Beware false friends: English "used to" = the imperfect (costumava), and "to be used to" = estar acostumado a.
- The thing used or worn is a plain direct object — no preposition.
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- First Conjugation: -ar VerbsA1 — The largest and most regular Brazilian Portuguese verb class — endings across the main tenses, high-frequency verbs, and the gostar de trap.
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- ComprarA1 — How to conjugate and use comprar (to buy) in Brazilian Portuguese — a fully regular -ar verb — including the de/para constructions for buying from and buying for.
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