Vir means to come — movement toward the speaker or the point of reference, the exact mirror image of ir (to go). It is one of the half-dozen most irregular verbs in Portuguese, with a unique present (venho / vem / vêm), a strong preterite (vim / veio / vieram), and a participle (vindo) that is identical to its own gerund. On top of that, vir collides with ver (to see) in three different forms — vimos, vir, and vindo — so this page also untangles those overlaps.
Why vir is so irregular
Vir comes from Latin venīre and kept an unusually rich set of stems: venh- in the eu-present and subjunctive, vi-/veio- in the strong preterite, vinh- in the imperfect, and vier- in the future subjunctive. There's no tidy rule — vir is a verb you simply commit to memory. The payoff is that ter (to have) and other -ir/-er irregulars echo some of these shapes (tenho/venho, vinha/tinha), so learning vir well makes its neighbors easier.
Presente do indicativo
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | venho |
| tu | vens |
| você / ele / ela | vem |
| nós | vimos |
| vocês / eles / elas | vêm |
Four things to lock in. The eu form is venho (the venh- stem, /venyu/). The third-person singular is vem (no accent) and the third-person plural is vêm with a circumflex — this accent is the only thing distinguishing "he comes" from "they come" in writing, and unlike ver, vir's 3pl keeps its circumflex under AO90. And the nós form is vimos — yes, the same vimos that is the preterite of ver ("we saw"). So vimos means "we come" (vir) or "we saw" (ver), decided entirely by context.
Eu venho aqui toda semana, já sou cliente antigo.
I come here every week, I'm already a regular.
O ônibus vem de quinze em quinze minutos.
The bus comes every fifteen minutes.
Meus primos vêm passar o Natal com a gente.
My cousins are coming to spend Christmas with us.
Pretérito perfeito
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | vim |
| tu | vieste |
| você / ele / ela | veio |
| nós | viemos |
| vocês / eles / elas | vieram |
This strong preterite is full of traps. The eu form is vim (I came) — short, with an m. The third-person singular is veio (he/she came) and it is never spelled "veiu," even though so many learners write it that way by analogy with viu/saiu. Viemos (we came) is the nós form, and vieram (they came) the plural. Note how the eu-preterite vim sits right next to the present venho and the nós-present vimos — three different forms, three different meanings.
Eu vim de ônibus porque o carro quebrou.
I came by bus because the car broke down.
Ela veio correndo quando ouviu a notícia.
She came running when she heard the news.
Eles vieram de longe só para te ver.
They came from far away just to see you.
Pretérito imperfeito
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | vinha |
| tu | vinhas |
| você / ele / ela | vinha |
| nós | vínhamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | vinham |
The imperfect uses the vinh- stem: vinha, vínhamos, vinham (note the accent on vínhamos). This is irregular — a regular -ir verb would give "viia," which doesn't exist.
Antigamente ele vinha jantar aqui todo domingo.
He used to come over for dinner every Sunday.
Futuro do presente & futuro do pretérito (conditional)
Both are built on the infinitive vir- and are regular.
| Pronoun | Futuro do presente | Futuro do pretérito |
|---|---|---|
| eu | virei | viria |
| tu | virás | virias |
| você / ele / ela | virá | viria |
| nós | viremos | viríamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | virão | viriam |
In speech the ir + infinitive future dominates — and here it produces the slightly comic-sounding but perfectly normal vou vir ("I'm going to come"). (informal)
Eu viria com vocês, mas estou de plantão hoje.
I'd come with you, but I'm on call today.
Presente do subjuntivo
Built on the venh- stem.
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | venha |
| tu | venhas |
| você / ele / ela | venha |
| nós | venhamos |
| vocês / eles / elas | venham |
Espero que você venha à minha festa de aniversário.
I hope you come to my birthday party.
Imperfeito & futuro do subjuntivo
| Pronoun | Imperfeito do subjuntivo | Futuro do subjuntivo |
|---|---|---|
| eu | viesse | vier |
| tu | viesses | vieres |
| você / ele / ela | viesse | vier |
| nós | viéssemos | viermos |
| vocês / eles / elas | viessem | vierem |
Both are built on the vier-/vie- preterite stem. The future subjunctive vier / vierem is the form Brazilians use constantly in "if/when" clauses about the future. Crucially, vir's future subjunctive is vier — not "vir." (The bare form vir is vir's infinitive; it is also, confusingly, the future subjunctive of ver. See the homograph note below.)
Se você vier amanhã, a gente almoça junto.
If you come tomorrow, we'll have lunch together.
Quando eles vierem, avisa que o portão está aberto.
When they come, let them know the gate is open.
Se ele viesse mais cedo, pegaria o jantar quente.
If he came earlier, he'd catch dinner warm.
Imperativo
Affirmative você/negatives come from the subjunctive (venh-); affirmative tu comes from the present (vem).
| Pronoun | Afirmativo | Negativo |
|---|---|---|
| tu | vem | não venhas |
| você | venha | não venha |
| nós | venhamos | não venhamos |
| vocês | venham | não venham |
The single most common spoken imperative is vem cá ("come here") — technically the tu form, but used universally in Brazil regardless of pronoun. (informal)
Vem cá, preciso te contar uma coisa.
Come here, I need to tell you something.
Non-finite forms
| Form | Result |
|---|---|
| Infinitivo | vir |
| Infinitivo pessoal (eu / você / ele) | vir |
| Infinitivo pessoal (nós) | virmos |
| Infinitivo pessoal (vocês / eles) | virem |
| Gerúndio | vindo |
| Particípio | vindo |
Vir is rare in that its gerund and participle are identical: both are vindo. So está vindo = "is coming" (gerund) and tinha vindo = "had come" (participle). And vindo is yet another homograph it shares with ver, whose gerund is vendo — different vowel, but easy to mix up. Watch the difference: vir → vindo, ver → vendo.
The vir / ver homographs — a survival guide
Because vir and ver are both tiny, ancient verbs, they overlap in three written forms. Keep this table handy:
| Form | vir (to come) | ver (to see) |
|---|---|---|
| vimos | present "we come" | preterite "we saw" |
| vir | infinitive "to come" | future subjunctive "(when I) see" |
| vindo / vendo | vindo (ger. & part. "coming/come") | vendo (gerund "seeing") |
The distinctions: vir's gerund/participle is vindo with an i; ver's gerund is vendo with an e (and is itself a homograph of "I sell"). The form vir as future subjunctive belongs to ver, while as an infinitive it's vir — context (and the fact that "to see" takes a direct object) tells you which.
Está vindo um temporal, fecha as janelas.
A storm is coming, close the windows.
Meaning and the "vir a + infinitive" construction
The core sense is to come (toward the speaker). Two patterns worth knowing:
- vir a + infinitive — "to come to / eventually do," marking an outcome reached over time. Veio a se tornar presidente = "He eventually became president."
- vir de — "to come from" (origin): Ela vem do interior = "She's from the countryside."
Aquele projeto pequeno veio a virar a maior empresa da cidade.
That little project eventually became the biggest company in town.
De onde vem essa palavra? Vem do tupi.
Where does that word come from? It comes from Tupi.
Common Mistakes
❌ Eu veño / venio amanhã.
Incorrect — the eu-form is venho.
✅ Eu venho amanhã.
I'm coming tomorrow.
❌ Eles vem amanhã. (meaning 'they')
Incorrect — the 3rd-person plural needs the circumflex: vêm.
✅ Eles vêm amanhã.
They're coming tomorrow.
❌ Ela veiu ontem.
Incorrect — the 3rd-person preterite is veio, never 'veiu'.
✅ Ela veio ontem.
She came yesterday.
❌ Se você virá amanhã, me avisa. (after 'se', future)
Incorrect — future 'if' clauses take the future subjunctive: vier.
✅ Se você vier amanhã, me avisa.
If you come tomorrow, let me know.
❌ Está vendo a chuva. (meaning 'rain is coming')
Incorrect — that's ver's gerund 'seeing'; vir's gerund is vindo.
✅ Está vindo chuva.
Rain is coming.
Key Takeaways
- Present: venho, vens, vem, vimos, vêm — eu-form venho; 3pl vêm keeps its circumflex (AO90); vimos = vir's "we come" = ver's "we saw."
- Preterite: vim, vieste, veio, viemos, vieram — 3sg is veio, never "veiu."
- Imperfect uses vinh- (vinha, vínhamos); future subjunctive uses vier- (vier, vierem).
- Gerund and participle are the same word, vindo — and don't confuse it with ver's vendo.
- "Vem cá" is the everyday imperative; "vir a + infinitive" means "to come to / eventually do."
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
- Present Indicative of VirA1 — How to conjugate vir (to come) in the Brazilian Portuguese present, the vem/vêm spelling trap, and why Brazilians often prefer chegar.
- VerA1 — How to conjugate and use ver (to see/watch) in Brazilian Portuguese — a highly irregular -er verb — including the tricky vejo/vê/veem forms, the participle visto, and the future subjunctive 'vir' that collides with the verb 'to come'.
- ViajarA1 — How to conjugate and use viajar (to travel) in Brazilian Portuguese — a fully regular -ar verb — including the prepositions para/a (destination) and de (means of transport).
- UsarA1 — How to conjugate and use usar in Brazilian Portuguese — a regular -ar verb that means both to use and, just as commonly, to wear (clothes, glasses, perfume) — the everyday Brazilian verb for clothing.