Pronoun Placement Differences | Portuguese (Portugal) Grammar

If you look at a page of written Portuguese and you want to guess in under three seconds whether it was written in Lisbon or São Paulo, look at the hyphens. A page sprinkled with chamou-me, disse-lhe, dar-lhe-ei is Portuguese from Portugal. A page where object pronouns sit quietly before their verbs — me chamou, te disse — is Brazilian. This is the clitic placement divergence, and it is arguably the single most visible grammatical difference between European and Brazilian Portuguese. It touches every sentence with an object pronoun, and it is one of the features that most reliably marks a speaker as trained in one variety or the other.

This page walks through the PT-PT enclisis system, the BR-PT proclisis system, the licensers that switch PT-PT into proclisis even when enclisis is the default, and the mesoclisis curiosity that survives only in PT-PT. If you're coming from Brazilian training, this is a high-priority page: getting clitic placement right is arguably the single highest-leverage change you can make to sound European.

The headline contrast

PT-PT default: object pronouns attach after the verb with a hyphen — enclisis.

BR-PT default: object pronouns sit before the verb — proclisis.

The same sentence in each variety:

Ele chamou-me ontem à noite. (PT-PT)

He called me last night.

Ele me chamou ontem à noite. (BR)

He called me last night.

Dou-lhe o livro amanhã. (PT-PT)

I'll give him the book tomorrow.

Eu te dou o livro amanhã. (BR — note 'te' even when referring to a third person, though strictly 'lhe' is the standard)

I'll give him / you the book tomorrow.

Vejo-o todos os dias. (PT-PT)

I see him every day.

Eu vejo ele todos os dias. (BR colloquial — uses tonic 'ele' instead of clitic 'o')

I see him every day.

The PT-PT system is highly constrained: the default is enclisis, but a set of specific triggers flips the pronoun to the front (proclisis). The BR system is comparatively simple: proclisis almost always, regardless of the sentence structure. This means for each PT-PT sentence you construct, you need to check whether any trigger is present — and you need to do this automatically, because native speakers do it without thinking.

The PT-PT default: enclisis

In a neutral affirmative main clause with no special triggers, PT-PT puts the pronoun after the verb, joined by a hyphen. This applies to all clitic pronouns — direct object (o, a, os, as), indirect object (me, te, lhe, nos, vos, lhes), reflexives (me, te, se, nos, vos, se), and partitive o in constructions like faço-o ("I do it").

Lembrei-me da tua pergunta só à noite.

I only remembered your question at night.

Encontrámo-los na esplanada do café.

We met them on the café terrace.

A Ana deu-me um livro lindíssimo pelos anos.

Ana gave me a gorgeous book for my birthday.

Levantei-me cedo para ir correr.

I got up early to go running.

Notice the reflexive in lembrei-me and levantei-me — PT-PT is particularly careful to place these after the verb in main clauses, whereas BR speakers will systematically say me lembrei and me levantei (and will often drop the reflexive altogether in colloquial BR: Acordei cedo).

Spelling adjustments with enclisis

Enclisis can trigger spelling changes on both the verb and the pronoun. This is mechanical but worth noting:

Rule	Form	Example
Verb ends in -r, -s, -z	drop the consonant; o/a/os/as become lo/la/los/las	comprar + o → comprá-lo; fez + o → fê-lo
Verb ends in nasal -m, -ão, -õe	o/a/os/as become no/na/nos/nas	compraram + o → compraram-no; dão + o → dão-no
1pl -mos + nos	drop the final -s of -mos	encontrámos + nos → encontrámo-nos

Vou comprá-lo amanhã no centro.

I'm going to buy it tomorrow in the centre.

Encontrámo-nos à saída do cinema.

We met at the cinema exit.

Eles trouxeram-no connosco na viagem.

They brought him along with us on the trip.

See Direct Object Contractions for the full set of spelling rules.

PT-PT proclisis triggers

The default shifts to proclisis when the verb is preceded by any of a specific set of licensers. Getting this list internalised is the key to sounding native in PT-PT writing and formal speech.

Negation

The single most frequent trigger. Any negative particle (não, nunca, jamais, nem, nada, ninguém, nenhum) in front of the verb pulls the pronoun forward.

Ele não me viu quando entrei.

He didn't see me when I came in.

Nunca lhe disse a verdade sobre aquilo.

I never told him the truth about that.

Ninguém nos avisou que a reunião tinha sido cancelada.

Nobody warned us that the meeting had been cancelled.

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Negation is the proclisis trigger you will encounter most often. As a learner, make it a reflex: the moment you write or say não, the next pronoun goes before the verb, not after. Vejo-o ("I see him") but Não o vejo ("I don't see him"). Get this one right and you have solved maybe 40% of real-world clitic placement cases.

Subordinating conjunctions

Clauses introduced by que, se, quando, onde, porque, embora, apesar de que, para que, etc. trigger proclisis throughout the subordinate clause.

Disseram-me que ele te conhece há muitos anos.

They told me that he has known you for many years.

Se me avisares a tempo, consigo chegar.

If you warn me in time, I can make it.

Não sei quando o vi pela última vez.

I don't know when I last saw him.

Estava a pensar em ti quando me telefonaste.

I was thinking about you when you called me.

Certain adverbs

Some adverbs — especially short, frequent ones that sit right before the verb — trigger proclisis: já, ainda, também, sempre, só, apenas, talvez, provavelmente, bem, mal, muito, pouco.

Já te disse mil vezes para fechares a porta.

I've already told you a thousand times to close the door.

Também me lembro dela, mas só vagamente.

I also remember her, but only vaguely.

Talvez nos encontremos outra vez no verão.

Maybe we'll meet again in the summer.

Sempre o achei simpático, apesar de tudo.

I've always found him pleasant, despite everything.

Certain indefinite and universal subjects

Subjects built from quantifiers — todos, alguns, ninguém, alguém, cada um, muita gente, poucos — trigger proclisis.

Todos nos perguntavam o que tinha acontecido.

Everyone was asking us what had happened.

Alguém te chamou ao telefone enquanto estavas fora.

Someone called you on the phone while you were out.

Poucos me conhecem tão bem como ela.

Few people know me as well as she does.

Interrogative and exclamative words

Quem, o que, quando, onde, como, porquê, quanto, qual — and exclamative que, como — all trigger proclisis.

Quem te contou essa história?

Who told you that story?

Onde o deixaste na última vez?

Where did you leave it last time?

Como te chamas?

What's your name? (literally: How do you call yourself?)

Que saudades me deixou aquela viagem!

What longing that trip left in me!

Summary of triggers

Trigger type	Examples	Effect
Negation	não, nunca, nem, ninguém, nada, nenhum	proclisis
Subordinators	que, se, quando, onde, porque, embora, para que	proclisis throughout the subordinate clause
Short adverbs	já, ainda, também, sempre, só, talvez, bem, mal	proclisis
Quantifier subjects	todos, alguns, ninguém, poucos, muita gente	proclisis
Wh-words	quem, o que, quando, onde, como, porquê, qual	proclisis
Exclamative words	que, como (in exclamations)	proclisis

When none of these is present, PT-PT defaults to enclisis. See Proclisis Triggers for the definitive list.

Mesoclisis — the PT-PT oddity

PT-PT preserves a third placement option that does not exist in any other modern Romance language: mesoclisis. The pronoun goes inside the verb — specifically, between the infinitive stem and the future or conditional ending.

Dar-te-ei uma resposta amanhã de manhã.

I will give you an answer tomorrow morning. (formal, with future tense)

Dir-lhe-ia que isso não é verdade, se tivesse oportunidade.

I would tell him that that isn't true, if I had the chance. (formal, with conditional)

Mesoclisis happens when:

The verb is in the future indicative or the conditional, AND
No proclisis trigger is present.

If a proclisis trigger is present, the pronoun moves to the front and the verb stays unbroken:

Não lhe direi nada sobre este assunto.

I won't tell him anything about this matter. (proclisis — 'não' triggers it)

Quando te vir, dir-te-ei tudo.

When I see you, I'll tell you everything. (main clause with no trigger — mesoclisis)

Mesoclisis is largely formal / written / literary. In colloquial PT-PT, speakers avoid the construction by using a periphrastic future (vou dizer-te) or by rephrasing the sentence. But it is alive in legal writing, journalism, political speech, and formal letters, and Portuguese speakers read and understand it automatically. BR does not use mesoclisis at all in speech — only prescriptive writing classes in schools teach it, and it appears almost exclusively in older formal texts.

See Mesoclise: Modern Usage for when to use mesoclisis and when to reach for ir + infinitive instead.

The BR-PT system: proclisis almost everywhere

Brazilian Portuguese has simplified the clitic placement system radically. In ordinary BR speech and writing, the object pronoun sits before the verb regardless of whether a classical proclisis trigger is present.

BR: Ele me chamou. / Ele me viu. / Ele te ajudou.

He called me. / He saw me. / He helped you. — all with proclisis by default, no trigger needed.

BR: Me liga mais tarde. / Me diz uma coisa. / Se senta aqui.

Call me later. / Tell me something. / Sit here. — proclisis even at the start of imperative sentences.

The last example — a BR-PT speaker starting a sentence with a clitic pronoun (Me liga, Se senta) — is actually prescriptively forbidden in both varieties' traditional grammar books. No Romance language is supposed to begin a sentence with an unstressed clitic. But modern BR does this freely in speech, and it is now fully naturalised in the spoken language. In PT-PT it is ungrammatical: you cannot start Me diz or Se senta; you have to say Diz-me or Senta-te.

✅ BR: Me empresta dez reais?

Can you lend me ten reais? (natural BR colloquial)

❌ PT-PT: Me empresta dez euros?

Cannot begin a PT-PT sentence with 'me'. Reads as Brazilian or as ungrammatical.

✅ PT-PT: Emprestas-me dez euros?

Can you lend me ten euros? (PT-PT enclisis)

BR also often drops object clitics entirely (leaving a null object) or replaces them with tonic pronouns — Vi ele for "I saw him", Conheço ela for "I know her". These uses are stigmatised in formal BR writing but are everywhere in spoken BR. PT-PT does not do this: PT-PT uses the proper clitic (Vi-o, Conheço-a) even in casual speech.

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When switching from BR to PT-PT, watch three specific habits: (1) the sentence-initial clitic (me disse, te vi) — replace with enclisis; (2) the tonic replacement (vi ele, conheço ela) — replace with clitic (vi-o, conheço-a); (3) the systematic proclisis in main affirmative clauses — replace with enclisis. These three changes alone will make your written PT-PT look native.

Compound tenses and clitic climbing

Both varieties allow the pronoun to "climb" to an auxiliary when the clause contains more than one verb (ter/haver + participle, modal + infinitive, ir/estar/andar + infinitive or gerund). Here PT-PT and BR diverge on exactly where the pronoun lands.

PT-PT: Tenho-te dito sempre a verdade.

I have always told you the truth. (clitic on auxiliary)

PT-PT: Tenho dito-te sempre a verdade.

(same meaning, clitic on participle — less common, slightly formal)

BR: Tenho te dito sempre a verdade.

(proclitic on auxiliary — proclisis by default)

With modals and ir-futures:

PT-PT: Vou-te contar uma coisa. / Vou contar-te uma coisa.

I'm going to tell you something. (both positions possible; first is more frequent in speech)

BR: Vou te contar uma coisa. / Vou contar para você uma coisa.

(proclitic on auxiliary or rephrased with tonic pronoun)

See Clitic Climbing for the full picture, including when climbing is blocked.

A side-by-side reference

Eight everyday sentences, each in both varieties:

PT-PT	BR	Meaning
Chamo-te daqui a bocado.	Eu te chamo daqui a pouco.	I'll call you in a bit.
Não me apetece nada hoje.	Não tô a fim de nada hoje.	I don't feel like anything today.
Lembrei-me do teu aniversário.	Me lembrei do seu aniversário.	I remembered your birthday.
Dá-me o telefone, por favor.	Me dá o telefone, por favor.	Give me the phone, please.
Diz-lhe que eu já vou.	Fala pra ela que eu já vou.	Tell her I'm coming.
Sentei-me no café a ler o jornal.	Sentei no café pra ler o jornal.	I sat in the café to read the paper.
Deram-me uma boa notícia ontem.	Me deram uma boa notícia ontem.	They gave me good news yesterday.
Nunca te esquecerei, prometo.	Nunca vou te esquecer, prometo.	I'll never forget you, I promise.

Common mistakes

Mistake 1: Starting a PT-PT sentence with a clitic.

❌ Me chamo Ana.

Cannot start a PT-PT sentence with a clitic pronoun.

✅ Chamo-me Ana.

My name is Ana.

This is one of the most frequent errors for BR-trained learners. If nothing precedes the verb, the clitic must follow it with a hyphen.

Mistake 2: Using proclisis in affirmative main clauses without a trigger.

❌ Ele me disse que não vem.

BR word order, ungrammatical for PT-PT in a neutral affirmative clause.

✅ Ele disse-me que não vem.

He told me he isn't coming.

The subordinate que não vem does use proclisis for the next clitic it contains (because que is a trigger), but the main clause needs enclisis.

Mistake 3: Using enclisis after negation.

❌ Não vi-o hoje.

Negation must trigger proclisis.

✅ Não o vi hoje.

I didn't see him today.

Negation and other triggers override the default. This is the trigger you will encounter most often — get it automatic.

Mistake 4: Forgetting mesoclisis in formal future/conditional without a trigger.

❌ Darei-te uma resposta amanhã.

In formal PT-PT, future + pronoun requires mesoclisis.

✅ Dar-te-ei uma resposta amanhã.

I will give you an answer tomorrow. (formal, literary)

✅ Vou dar-te uma resposta amanhã.

I'm going to give you an answer tomorrow. (spoken alternative)

In speech, just avoid the whole issue by using the periphrastic vou + infinitive future. In formal writing, learn the mesoclitic forms.

Mistake 5: Using a tonic pronoun where a clitic is required.

❌ Eu vi ele ontem na rua.

BR colloquial pattern — ungrammatical in PT-PT.

✅ Eu vi-o ontem na rua.

I saw him yesterday on the street.

PT-PT requires the object clitic (o, a, os, as) in this position. Tonic ele, ela, eles, elas follow prepositions (com ele, para ela), not direct-object positions after the verb.

Key takeaways

PT-PT default is enclisis: pronoun after the verb with a hyphen (chamou-me).
BR-PT default is proclisis: pronoun before the verb, no hyphen (me chamou).
PT-PT switches to proclisis after triggers: negation, subordinators (que, se, quando), short adverbs (já, ainda, também, sempre, só), quantifier subjects (todos, ninguém), wh-words.
PT-PT preserves mesoclisis — the pronoun inside future / conditional verbs (dar-te-ei, dir-lhe-ia). Formal and written; in speech, replace with ir + infinitive.
BR-PT uses proclisis systematically, including sentence-initial (Me liga, Se senta) which is ungrammatical in PT-PT.
BR-PT often drops clitics or replaces them with tonic pronouns (vi ele instead of vi-o). PT-PT keeps the proper clitic form.
The three high-leverage changes for BR-to-PT learners: stop starting sentences with clitics, stop using tonic ele/ela as direct objects, and apply enclisis by default in affirmative main clauses.