Verbs and Their Prepositions | Portuguese (Portugal) Grammar

Every Portuguese verb has an opinion about prepositions. Some demand de before their complement (gostar de, precisar de, lembrar-se de). Others insist on a (assistir a, obedecer a, responder a). A third group takes em (acreditar em, pensar em, insistir em). And a fourth group — the verbs that look like they should take a preposition but don't — is the cruellest, because English speakers will confidently insert one out of habit (quero ir, not quero de ir).

These verb–preposition pairings are lexical. You cannot deduce them from meaning, and translation from English will often mislead you. Gostar does not mean to like with de as an afterthought; it means to like of, in the same way that to believe in English doesn't quite match acreditar — it must be acreditar em alguma coisa. The verb and the preposition are a single lexical unit, stored together in your brain, retrieved together in speech.

This page gives you the 60 highest-frequency verb–preposition pairings in European Portuguese, grouped by preposition. Once you have internalized these, the majority of your preposition errors will disappear.

The structural pattern

Most Portuguese verbs that govern a preposition behave one of two ways:

Verb + preposition + noun: Gosto *de café. Preciso de ajuda. Acreditei na promessa.*
Verb + preposition + infinitive: Começou *a chover. Desisti de fumar. Insisto em pagar.*

In both cases, the preposition is obligatory. Dropping it turns the sentence ungrammatical — not casual, not colloquial, ungrammatical. Learners coming from English often assume prepositions are flexible adverbial additions; in Portuguese they are structural, and the verb selects its preposition the way English verbs select particles in phrasal verbs (look up vs look into vs look out for).

Verbs that take a

The preposition a appears after verbs of motion, attendance, response, and a large family of verb + infinitive constructions that express the start or continuation of an action. European Portuguese is especially fond of the continuar a + infinitive / começar a + infinitive pattern, where Brazilian Portuguese often prefers the gerund. This is one of the clearest dialect markers in the whole verb system.

Verb	Meaning	Example
assistir a	to attend, to watch	assistir ao jogo
chegar a	to arrive at, to reach	chegar a casa
começar a + inf	to start doing	começou a chover
continuar a + inf	to continue doing	continuo a estudar (PT-PT)
passar a + inf	to start (a new habit)	passei a trabalhar em casa
voltar a + inf	to do [X] again	voltei a ler o livro
pôr-se a + inf	to start (suddenly)	pôs-se a chorar
dar-se a + inf	to devote oneself to	deu-se a escrever
ajudar a + inf	to help to do	ajudou-me a mudar
ir a	to go to (short trip)	vou ao mercado
obrigar a + inf	to force to do	obrigou-me a sair
ensinar a + inf	to teach to	ensinou-me a conduzir
habituar-se a	to get used to	habituei-me ao clima
acostumar-se a	to get accustomed to	acostumou-se ao ruído
responder a	to answer	respondi ao email
obedecer a	to obey	obedecer às regras
sobreviver a	to survive	sobreviveu ao acidente
cheirar a	to smell like	cheira a fumo
saber a	to taste like	sabe a alho
dirigir-se a	to address, to head toward	dirigiu-se à plateia

Assistimos ao concerto de ontem no Coliseu.

We watched yesterday's concert at the Coliseu.

Já me habituei a acordar cedo todos os dias.

I've already gotten used to waking up early every day.

Este pão sabe a canela — está delicioso.

This bread tastes like cinnamon — it's delicious.

The continuar a + infinitive pattern

This deserves its own mention because it is the single most audible PT-PT trait in the verb system. Where Brazilian speakers say continuo estudando, estou estudando, fico estudando (gerund), European Portuguese prefers a + infinitive:

Continuo a estudar português à noite, depois do trabalho.

I keep studying Portuguese in the evenings, after work.

Estou a ler um romance de Saramago.

I'm reading a Saramago novel.

O João ficou a falar no telefone durante uma hora.

João stayed on the phone for an hour.

If you write estou lendo or continuo estudando, a reader will immediately peg your Portuguese as Brazilian. In PT-PT, always use a + infinitive.

Verbs that take de

De is the hardest-working preposition for verbs. It covers origin, separation, cause, and a large group of pronominal verbs (verbs ending in -se) that denote mental or emotional relations.

Verb	Meaning	Example
gostar de	to like	gosto de café
precisar de	to need	preciso de ajuda
lembrar-se de	to remember	lembro-me de ti
esquecer-se de	to forget	esqueci-me do encontro
rir-se de	to laugh at	rimo-nos da piada
queixar-se de	to complain about	queixou-se do barulho
depender de	to depend on	depende do tempo
cuidar de	to take care of	cuido dos meus pais
tratar de	to deal with	trato disso amanhã
despedir-se de	to say goodbye to	despedi-me dos colegas
aproximar-se de	to approach	aproximei-me da janela
aproveitar-se de	to take advantage of	aproveitou-se da situação
livrar-se de	to get rid of	livrei-me do carro velho
servir-se de	to make use of, help oneself to	serve-te do bolo
parar de + inf	to stop doing	parei de fumar
acabar de + inf	to have just done	acabei de chegar
deixar de + inf	to stop doing, to cease	deixei de comer carne
desistir de	to give up	desisti do curso
vir de	to come from	venho do Porto
sair de	to leave (a place)	saí de casa cedo
fugir de	to flee from	fugiu da polícia
afastar-se de	to move away from	afastei-me da multidão
envergonhar-se de	to be ashamed of	envergonhou-se da resposta
arrepender-se de	to regret	arrependi-me da decisão
morrer de	to die of / be dying of	morro de fome
sofrer de	to suffer from	sofre de asma

Gosto muito deste café — é o melhor do bairro.

I really like this café — it's the best in the neighbourhood.

Preciso de falar contigo sobre uma coisa importante.

I need to talk to you about something important.

Lembro-me perfeitamente do dia em que nos conhecemos.

I remember perfectly the day we met.

Ela acabou de sair — se quiseres, apanha-a no elevador.

She just left — if you hurry, you'll catch her in the lift.

Precisar de — critical PT-PT feature

Brazilian Portuguese, especially in speech, frequently drops the de after precisar: preciso falar com você, preciso ir. European Portuguese does not permit this. In PT-PT, precisar always takes de before its complement, whether noun or infinitive:

Preciso de dormir mais, tenho andado exausta.

I need to sleep more, I've been exhausted.

Precisamos de mais tempo para terminar o projeto.

We need more time to finish the project.

If you write preciso falar or preciso ir in PT-PT, it will read as a Brazilian mistake. Keep the de.

Gostar de — the textbook case

Gostar is the verb where English speakers most reliably forget the preposition, because I like coffee is so direct. In Portuguese, the object of gostar is always introduced by de, and the de contracts obligatorily with any definite article.

Gostamos muito do bairro onde vivemos.

We really like the neighbourhood where we live.

Não gosto nada de andar de metro na hora de ponta.

I don't like riding the metro at rush hour at all.

Watch also for the double contraction with demonstratives: gosto deste filme, gostas dessa ideia?, gostam daquele restaurante.

Verbs that take em

Em appears with mental verbs (think, believe), verbs of entering or inserting, and a scattered group of insistence and fixation verbs.

Verb	Meaning	Example
acreditar em	to believe in	acredito em ti
crer em	to believe in (slightly formal)	creio em Deus
pensar em	to think about	penso em ti
reparar em	to notice	reparei no anel
tocar em	to touch	não toques na porta
mexer em	to mess with, touch	não mexas nisso
entrar em	to enter	entrei na sala
transformar-se em	to turn into	transformou-se em sapo
converter-se em	to convert to / into	converteu-se ao islão
insistir em	to insist on	insistiu em pagar
persistir em	to persist in	persiste em negar
fixar-se em	to fix one's attention on	fixou-se no detalhe
concentrar-se em	to concentrate on	concentra-te no trabalho
basear-se em	to be based on	o filme baseia-se num livro
pôr em	to put in / into	põe em cima da mesa
meter em	to stick / put into	mete isso no saco
investir em	to invest in	investimos em imóveis
especializar-se em	to specialize in	especializou-se em cardiologia

Nunca pensei nisso, mas tens razão.

I never thought about that, but you're right.

Acreditas em sorte ou achas que tudo é acaso?

Do you believe in luck, or do you think it's all chance?

Ela insiste em pagar o almoço, mas hoje pago eu.

She insists on paying for lunch, but today I'm paying.

Note the contrast between pensar em (to think about — mental contemplation) and pensar de (to think of — to hold an opinion about): o que pensas da nova proposta? = "what do you think of the new proposal?" The de version asks for an evaluation; the em version asks what occupies your mind.

Verbs that take com

Com — "with" — appears with verbs of accompaniment, reliance, concern, and resemblance.

Verb	Meaning	Example
preocupar-se com	to worry about	preocupo-me contigo
importar-se com	to mind, care about	importas-te com isto?
contar com	to count on	conto contigo
sonhar com	to dream about	sonhei contigo
falar com	to talk with	falei com a minha chefe
casar-se com	to marry	casou-se com a Ana
dar-se com	to get along with	dou-me bem com os vizinhos
parecer-se com	to look like	parece-se com o pai
entender-se com	to get along / come to an agreement with	entende-se com toda a gente
zangar-se com	to get angry with	zanguei-me com ele
contentar-se com	to be content with	contenta-te com pouco
conformar-se com	to come to terms with	conformou-se com a perda
acabar com	to finish / put an end to	acabei com a relação
ficar com	to keep, to end up with	fiquei com o troco
lidar com	to deal with	lidamos com clientes difíceis

Não te preocupes com isso, eu trato do assunto.

Don't worry about it, I'll handle it.

Podes contar comigo para levar as crianças à escola.

You can count on me to take the kids to school.

O meu filho parece-se muito com o avô.

My son looks a lot like his grandfather.

Note the special contractions comigo, contigo, connosco, convosco — com fuses with the personal pronouns rather than standing next to them.

Verbs that take por

Por — "for, by, through" — shows up with verbs of preference, substitution, struggle, and certain emotional orientations.

Verb	Meaning	Example
interessar-se por	to be interested in	interessa-se por história
apaixonar-se por	to fall in love with	apaixonou-se por ela
esperar por	to wait for	espero por ti à entrada
ansiar por	to long for	anseio pelas férias
optar por	to opt for	optei por ficar
substituir por	to replace with	substituiu-o por mim
trocar por	to swap for	trocou o carro por uma mota
lutar por	to fight for	lutamos pelos nossos direitos
começar por + inf	to begin by doing	comecemos por apresentar
acabar por + inf	to end up doing	acabei por aceitar
pagar por	to pay for	paguei por isso
responsabilizar-se por	to take responsibility for	responsabilizo-me por tudo

Sempre me interessei por línguas, desde pequena.

I've always been interested in languages, since I was little.

Espera por mim à porta do café, chego em cinco minutos.

Wait for me at the door of the café, I'll be there in five minutes.

Acabei por concordar, embora não gostasse da ideia.

I ended up agreeing, even though I didn't like the idea.

The distinction between começar a + inf ("to start doing") and começar por + inf ("to begin by doing — as the first step") is worth memorizing. Comecei a estudar means you started studying; comecei por estudar means studying was your first step before doing something else.

Verbs that take para

Para appears with verbs of orientation, purpose, and certain objects of attention.

Verb	Meaning	Example
servir para	to be used for	serve para cortar
olhar para	to look at	olhei para o céu
tender para	to tend toward	tende para o vermelho
contribuir para	to contribute to	contribuiu para o sucesso
preparar-se para	to prepare for	preparo-me para o exame
ir para	to go to (long-term)	vou para Londres
caminhar para	to walk toward	caminha para o sucesso
apontar para	to point at	apontou para o mapa

Olha para isto — é incrível.

Look at this — it's incredible.

Estamos a preparar-nos para a viagem ao Japão.

We're getting ready for the trip to Japan.

Verbs that take contra

A small but distinct group for opposition and resistance.

Verb	Meaning	Example
lutar contra	to fight against	luta contra a doença
revoltar-se contra	to rebel against	revoltaram-se contra o regime
protestar contra	to protest against	protestaram contra a lei
votar contra	to vote against	votei contra a proposta

Os manifestantes protestaram contra o aumento das propinas.

The demonstrators protested against the tuition fee increase.

Verbs that take NO preposition (trap list)

English speakers insert prepositions where Portuguese doesn't use them. These are the verbs to watch.

Portuguese verb	English translation	Trap
querer	to want (to)	No preposition: quero ir, not quero de ir
poder	to be able to	No preposition: posso ajudar
dever	must, ought to	No preposition: devo ir
tentar	to try	No preposition: tentei fazer, not tentei de fazer
conseguir	to manage to	No preposition: consegui acabar
decidir	to decide	No preposition: decidi ficar (or decidi-me a ficar — reflexive form takes a)
pedir	to ask for	No preposition: pedi um café, not pedi por um café
procurar	to look for	No preposition: procuro emprego
esperar	to expect, to hope	No preposition: espero vê-lo amanhã. (Esperar por = "wait for")
agradecer	to thank	No preposition for the person: agradeço-te, not agradeço a ti

Quero ir à praia no fim de semana.

I want to go to the beach this weekend.

Pedi um galão e uma torrada.

I asked for a large milky coffee and toast.

Tentei ligar-te várias vezes ontem à noite.

I tried to call you several times last night.

The trap is that English uses ask for and look for — it feels wrong to drop the for. But in Portuguese, the para or por that you want to insert is simply not there. Just say pedi um café, procuro emprego.

Common mistakes

❌ Gosto muito Portugal.

Incorrect — gostar requires de.

✅ Gosto muito de Portugal.

I really like Portugal.

❌ Preciso falar contigo.

Incorrect in PT-PT — precisar requires de (BR allows dropping it, PT-PT does not).

✅ Preciso de falar contigo.

I need to talk to you.

❌ Assisti o jogo ontem.

Incorrect — assistir requires a.

✅ Assisti ao jogo ontem.

I watched the game yesterday.

❌ Estou lendo um livro.

Incorrect in PT-PT — gerund is BR; PT-PT uses estar a + inf.

✅ Estou a ler um livro.

I'm reading a book.

❌ Acredito em que ele tem razão.

Incorrect — before a que-clause, drop em: acredito que.

✅ Acredito que ele tem razão.

I believe that he's right.

❌ Pedi por uma sumo de laranja.

Incorrect — pedir takes no preposition.

✅ Pedi um sumo de laranja.

I asked for an orange juice.

❌ Lembro-me o dia.

Incorrect — lembrar-se requires de.

✅ Lembro-me do dia.

I remember the day.

❌ Quero de ir ao cinema.

Incorrect — querer takes no preposition.

✅ Quero ir ao cinema.

I want to go to the cinema.

Key takeaways

Verb-preposition pairings are lexical, not logical. Learn each verb bundled with its preposition: not gostar alone but gostar de, not precisar alone but precisar de, not assistir alone but assistir a. Treat the preposition as an inseparable part of the verb, and your Portuguese will sound idiomatic rather than stitched together from English.

Three PT-PT specifics are worth drilling repeatedly. First, precisar always takes de in European Portuguese. Second, the continuar a / estar a / começar a + infinitive pattern is how Portugal handles progressive and inceptive aspect — never use the gerund. Third, a small set of high-frequency verbs take no preposition at all (querer, poder, dever, tentar, conseguir, pedir, procurar) — and it is these that English speakers most often over-preposition.

Once the top 60 pairings are automatic, you can use any preposition dictionary or corpus to flesh out the rest as you meet them.