English uses a small set of time prepositions (in, on, at, for, since, until, from, during) in overlapping ways, and learners often assume Portuguese divides up the semantic space the same way. It doesn't. Portuguese has its own logic for time, and some of its distinctions — especially the desde / há / faz system for "since" and "for" — carry no neat English equivalent. This page breaks the entire time-preposition system into semantic slots: points in time, durations, starting points, endpoints, deadlines, frequencies, and approximate times. Once you see which preposition goes in which slot, the whole system falls into place.
A brief orientation before we start. Portuguese, unlike English, does not have dedicated time prepositions like ago. Instead it repurposes há — the third-person singular of the verb haver — to mean "it has been [X time since]". This is a purely temporal use and once you stop trying to translate it, it becomes intuitive. We'll cover it in detail below.
Points in time
For a specific moment — an hour, a date, a month, a season — Portuguese reaches for three prepositions depending on the unit of time.
| Time unit | Preposition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Hour of the day | a (às) | às oito da manhã |
| Part of the day (fixed events) | a (à) | à tarde, à noite |
| Generic "in the morning/afternoon" | de | de manhã, de tarde, de noite |
| Day of the week | em (no/na) | no sábado |
| Month | em | em janeiro |
| Year | em | em 1998 |
| Season | em (no) | no verão |
| Holiday | em (no/na) | no Natal, na Páscoa |
| Decade / era | em (na/nos) | nos anos 80 |
| Specific date | em / a | no dia 3 de maio / a 3 de maio |
A reunião é às nove, não às dez.
The meeting is at nine, not ten.
O João nasceu em 1992, em pleno verão.
João was born in 1992, right in the middle of summer.
O concerto é no sábado, às nove da noite, no Coliseu.
The concert is on Saturday, at nine p.m., at the Coliseu.
Vamos a Paris no Natal este ano.
We're going to Paris at Christmas this year.
De manhã versus à tarde versus à noite
This is the trap that catches every beginner. Portuguese uses two different prepositions for parts of the day, and the choice is not random:
- De manhã / de tarde / de noite — habitual or imprecise reference. "In the morning (generally)", "at night (as a rule)". Used with habits, typical actions, and when the specific day is not in focus.
- À noite / à tarde — specific time, often referring to a particular evening or afternoon. Used with concrete events.
De manhã bebo um café, de tarde um chá, de noite só água.
In the morning I drink a coffee, in the afternoon a tea, at night only water. (habits)
Vamos jantar à noite, por volta das oito.
We're going to have dinner tonight, around eight. (specific)
À tarde o sol fica intenso, é melhor ficar à sombra.
In the afternoon the sun gets intense, it's better to stay in the shade. (general behaviour)
In practice, the line is fluid. De manhã is the one you hear most, especially for routines. À noite is the one you hear most for tonight or that night specifically. But some overlap is normal and neither will ever sound wrong if the meaning is clear.
No dia versus a dia
For a specific day of the month, both are possible:
O exame é no dia 15 de junho.
The exam is on the 15th of June. (everyday)
A carta data de 3 de maio de 1974.
The letter is dated 3 May 1974. (formal / legal)
A 3 de maio (without dia) tends to appear in formal writing — legal documents, journalistic dates, historical events. Conversational Portuguese prefers no dia 3 de maio.
Durations (how long)
"For how long" something lasted calls for a duration preposition. Portuguese has four — durante, por, em, and bare há — each carrying a slightly different nuance.
| Preposition | Nuance | Example |
|---|---|---|
| durante | throughout, for the duration of | durante três horas |
| por | for (a period, often with future or planned duration) | por dois anos |
| em | within, in the span of | em dois dias |
| há + present | for (and still continuing) | moro aqui há três anos |
Estive a falar ao telefone durante uma hora.
I was on the phone for an hour. (the whole hour was filled by the call)
Vou ficar no Porto por duas semanas.
I'm going to stay in Porto for two weeks. (planned future duration)
Acabei o relatório em duas horas.
I finished the report in two hours. (completion within that span)
Trabalho nesta empresa há cinco anos.
I've been working at this company for five years. (and I still do)
Há + present: "for X and still going"
This is where English speakers get stuck. English forces you to choose between I've been living here for three years (perfect progressive) and I lived here for three years (simple past — finished). Portuguese makes the distinction by tense, not by preposition:
- Present + há — still ongoing: Moro aqui há três anos = "I've been living here for three years (and still do)."
- Imperfect or perfeito + durante / por — finished duration: Vivi lá durante três anos = "I lived there for three years (and don't any more)."
Conheço a Ana há vinte anos — éramos colegas na universidade.
I've known Ana for twenty years — we were classmates at university.
Estudei francês durante cinco anos, mas já esqueci quase tudo.
I studied French for five years, but I've already forgotten almost everything.
The há + present pattern has no direct English preposition equivalent. English speakers often want to say por in this case (moro aqui por três anos), but that sounds wrong — it reads as if your stay is scheduled to end. Use há for any ongoing duration.
Starting points (since / from)
When you want to anchor a time at its beginning — the moment from which something has been true — Portuguese uses desde or a partir de.
| Preposition | Nuance |
|---|---|
| desde | since (a specific past moment, continuing to now) |
| a partir de | from [X] onwards (usually future or from a general starting point) |
| de | from (as one end of a range: das 8 às 10) |
Conhecemo-nos desde a escola primária.
We've known each other since primary school.
A partir de segunda-feira, os escritórios abrem às oito.
From Monday onwards, the offices open at eight.
Trabalho das nove às cinco, de segunda a sexta.
I work from nine to five, Monday to Friday.
Desde versus há: the classic contrast
This contrast is the heart of Portuguese temporal grammar. Both can translate English for / since / ago, but they do different structural jobs:
- Desde takes a starting point — a date, a specific moment. Desde 2020, desde janeiro, desde a manhã. Answers "since when?"
- Há takes a duration — a period of time. Há dois anos, há cinco minutos, há muito tempo. Answers "for how long?" or "how long ago?"
Moro em Lisboa desde 2020.
I've lived in Lisbon since 2020. (starting point)
Moro em Lisboa há cinco anos.
I've lived in Lisbon for five years. (duration)
Both sentences express the same ongoing situation; they just frame it differently. Desde anchors the start; há measures the span.
Endpoints (until)
For the endpoint of a period or action, Portuguese uses até, and in PT-PT it almost always contracts with the following article.
| Construction | Example |
|---|---|
| até + time (no article) | até amanhã |
| até ao / até à + noun | até ao fim, até às cinco, até à noite |
| até que + subjunctive | até que chegues |
A loja está aberta até às sete da tarde.
The shop is open until seven p.m.
Fica aqui até ao fim do mês, depois vê onde vais.
Stay here until the end of the month, then see where you go.
Até amanhã, descansa bem!
See you tomorrow, rest well!
European Portuguese is strict: até ao Porto, até à estação, até às nove. Brazilian Portuguese often drops the a, saying até o Porto, até as nove. If you write até o fim in PT-PT, a Portuguese reader will hear it as Brazilian.
Deadlines (by / for)
When you need to specify a point by which something should happen, Portuguese uses para.
Preciso deste relatório para sexta-feira.
I need this report by Friday.
Para o ano vamos mudar de casa.
Next year we're going to move house.
Tens o trabalho pronto para amanhã?
Do you have the work ready for tomorrow?
This para is the same para you use for purpose — it carries a forward-looking sense of "aimed at, intended for". Para o ano is a classic PT-PT idiom for "next year" (not to be confused with the date em 2026).
Approximate time
When you want to round off — "around", "about", "roughly" — Portuguese has several options.
| Expression | Meaning | Register |
|---|---|---|
| por volta de | around, roughly | Neutral |
| cerca de | about, approximately | Slightly more formal |
| lá pelas | around (colloquial PT-PT) | Casual |
| perto de | close to | Neutral |
| sobre as | around (literary / old-fashioned) | Dated |
Chegamos por volta das oito, mais coisa menos coisa.
We'll arrive around eight, give or take.
Passei lá pelas três da tarde, mas já não estavas.
I stopped by around three in the afternoon, but you were already gone. (colloquial)
A conferência teve cerca de duzentos participantes.
The conference had about two hundred participants.
Lá pelas is one of the most audibly Portuguese expressions in the language — Brazilian speakers don't typically use it. If you want your approximations to sound local, drop it in.
Frequency
For how often something happens, Portuguese uses two main patterns.
| Pattern | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a + periodic (articled) | "per" (rate) | à semana, ao mês, ao ano, à hora |
| por + periodic (bare) | "per" / "times per" | duas vezes por semana |
| todos os / todas as + unit | every | todos os dias |
| de [unit] em [unit] | every X (at intervals) | de dois em dois dias |
Vou ao ginásio três vezes por semana.
I go to the gym three times a week.
Ganha duzentos euros à hora como consultora.
She earns two hundred euros an hour as a consultant.
Tomo o remédio de seis em seis horas.
I take the medicine every six hours.
Todos os dias faço uma caminhada antes do pequeno-almoço.
Every day I go for a walk before breakfast.
Note the subtle split: à semana (with article) is the rate — so much per week. Por semana (without article) is the count — so many times per week. Both translate as "a week" in English, but you will hear por semana with a count of times and à semana with an hourly or periodic rate.
Past time: ago
English has a dedicated word for this — ago — which Portuguese simply doesn't. Instead, Portuguese uses há with a verb in the past:
Ela saiu há cinco minutos — se calhar ainda a apanhas.
She left five minutes ago — maybe you can still catch her.
Conheci-o há muitos anos, num congresso em Coimbra.
I met him many years ago, at a conference in Coimbra.
Há uma semana ainda estávamos na praia.
A week ago we were still at the beach.
The structural difference between há + past ("ago") and há + present ("for") is purely tense:
- Há + past tense — it was then, looking back from now. Saí *há cinco minutos* = "I left five minutes ago."
- Há + present tense — it started then and continues. Moro aqui *há três anos* = "I've lived here for three years."
Brazilian Portuguese also uses faz for "ago": faz cinco minutos que saí, faz três anos que moro aqui. Both are grammatical, but European Portuguese strongly prefers há. Use há throughout and you will sound unmistakably PT-PT.
Durante versus por: a subtle contrast
Both can translate as "for" (a duration), but they split on aspect:
- Durante — emphasizes that the period was filled by the activity. It answers "how long was the activity going on?"
- Por — emphasizes that the period is a planned or allocated duration. It answers "how long is it scheduled for?"
Durante o concerto, ninguém se mexeu do lugar.
During the concert, no one moved from their seat.
Aluguei o carro por uma semana.
I rented the car for a week. (duration of rental)
In everyday speech, durante is far more common. Por with duration has a slightly bookish feel and is sometimes replaced by durante even where both would work. Brazilian Portuguese uses por with duration more freely than PT-PT does.
Common mistakes
❌ Estudo português por três anos.
Incorrect for ongoing duration — use há + present.
✅ Estudo português há três anos.
I've been studying Portuguese for three years.
❌ Em o sábado vamos ao cinema.
Incorrect — em must contract with o to form no.
✅ No sábado vamos ao cinema.
On Saturday we're going to the cinema.
❌ A festa é em cinco da tarde.
Incorrect — hours take a, not em.
✅ A festa é às cinco da tarde.
The party is at five in the afternoon.
❌ Faz três anos que moro aqui.
Understandable but Brazilian — PT-PT prefers há.
✅ Há três anos que moro aqui.
I've lived here for three years.
❌ A loja fica aberta até o fim do mês.
Incorrect in PT-PT — até must contract with o.
✅ A loja fica aberta até ao fim do mês.
The shop stays open until the end of the month.
❌ Vou uma vez a semana.
Incorrect — frequency count takes por, not a.
✅ Vou uma vez por semana.
I go once a week.
❌ Chegámos em oito da manhã.
Incorrect — hours of the day take a (às).
✅ Chegámos às oito da manhã.
We arrived at eight in the morning.
Decision guide
When you need to pick a time preposition, ask which slot you're filling:
| Question | Preposition |
|---|---|
| At what hour? | a (às) |
| In what year / month / day of the week / season? | em |
| In the morning / afternoon / night (routine)? | de |
| Tonight / this afternoon specifically? | à |
| For how long (ongoing)? | há + present |
| For how long (finished)? | durante + past |
| For how long (planned)? | por |
| Since when? | desde |
| Starting from when (future)? | a partir de |
| Until when? | até (ao/à) |
| By when (deadline)? | para |
| Around what time? | por volta de / lá pelas |
| How many times per week? | por + unit |
| At what rate per unit? | à + articled unit |
| How long ago? | há + past |
Key takeaways
Portuguese time prepositions are best learned by semantic slot, not by English equivalence. Three specifically PT-PT features deserve the most drilling: até ao / até à for endpoints (never até o), há for both "ago" and "for" (not faz), and the de manhã / à tarde / à noite split between habitual and specific. Get these three right and your time expressions will read as unmistakably European Portuguese.
The rest of the system — em for dates and days, a for hours, desde for starting points, durante for filled durations, por for planned durations and frequency counts — is learnable from examples and usage. Once you have heard enough conversation to feel the rhythm, picking the right preposition becomes automatic.
Related Topics
- Portuguese Prepositions OverviewA1 — Introduction to Portuguese prepositions and their uses, including the obligatory contractions that set European Portuguese apart.
- The Preposition emA1 — Uses of the preposition em — static location, time, and state — and why Portuguese uses de (not em) for transport.
- The Preposition aA1 — Uses of the preposition a — direction, indirect objects, time, manner, and the crucial PT-PT até ao construction.
- The Preposition paraA1 — Uses of the preposition para — purpose, destination, recipient, deadline, comparison, and the para vs. por distinction.
- The Preposition porA2 — Uses of the preposition por — agent, cause, means, route, duration, and its obligatory contractions pelo/pela.
- The Preposition atéA2 — Uses of the preposition até — spatial up to, temporal until, the emphatic even, and the PT-PT até ao construction.
- Prepositions of Place: em, a, para, de, por, sobre, entre, junto aA2 — A complete map of Portuguese spatial prepositions — static location, motion toward, motion from, through, between, next to, in front of, behind, on, below, inside, outside, and around.