A conditional sentence (frase condicional) links a condition to a consequence: if X, then Y. In Portuguese, the choice of tense in the se-clause and the main clause is strict and depends on how real or remote the condition is. Get the pattern right and the sentence writes itself; get it wrong and you'll produce something a native speaker would rephrase for you.
This page is a map. It shows you the three main types of conditional sentences, the tense pairings each one requires, and the one rule that distinguishes Portuguese from most languages English speakers have met: the future subjunctive is obligatory in se-clauses referring to the future. You cannot use the present indicative there, even though English (and most learners) will want to. The individual types are covered in more detail on the pages linked at the bottom.
The three types at a glance
Portuguese, like English and most Romance languages, sorts conditionals into three main patterns based on the reality of the condition.
| Type | Reality | Se-clause | Main clause | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type 1 | Real / likely | future subjunctive | present indicative / future / imperative | Se tiver tempo, vou. |
| Type 1 (general truth) | Real / generic | present indicative | present indicative | Se chove, não saio. |
| Type 2 | Hypothetical (unreal present/future) | imperfect subjunctive | conditional (or imperfect indicative) | Se tivesse tempo, iria / ia. |
| Type 3 | Counterfactual (unreal past) | pluperfect subjunctive | conditional perfect (or pluperfect indicative) | Se tivesse tido tempo, teria ido / tinha ido. |
Learn the row, not just the cells. The tenses come in matched pairs: a Type 2 se-clause pairs with a Type 2 main clause, never with a Type 1 main clause. Mixing across types creates the "that's not quite right" effect.
Type 1: Real conditions — "if it happens, it will"
Type 1 covers conditions the speaker treats as genuinely possible: if you have time, come visit. These are the workhorses of everyday conversation — most "if" sentences you say in a day are Type 1.
In Portuguese, Type 1 splits into two sub-patterns depending on whether the condition refers to the future or to a general truth.
Future reference: future subjunctive
This is the rule that defines Portuguese conditionals. When the se-clause refers to something in the future, you must use the future subjunctive — not the present indicative, not the future tense. This is different from English (if you have), different from French (si tu as), different from Spanish in its most natural colloquial form.
Se tiveres tempo, vem jantar connosco.
If you have time, come have dinner with us.
Se chover amanhã, ficamos em casa.
If it rains tomorrow, we'll stay home.
Se não fores, eu também não vou.
If you don't go, I won't go either.
The main clause can be in the present indicative (vem, ficamos), the future (irei, ficaremos), or the imperative (diz-lhe, vem) — the choice depends on the feel of the sentence, not on the condition.
General truth: present indicative on both sides
When the se-clause expresses a general truth — a recurring pattern rather than a specific future event — Portuguese uses the present indicative in both clauses, just like English.
Se chove, a roupa não seca.
If it rains, the laundry doesn't dry.
Se o meu filho come muito açúcar, fica agitado.
If my son eats too much sugar, he gets hyperactive.
The distinction is subtle but real. Se chover amanhã is about a specific possible event tomorrow (future subjunctive); se chove is a generic pattern (present indicative).
Type 2: Hypothetical — "if it were the case"
Type 2 conditionals express situations the speaker treats as unlikely or purely hypothetical in the present or future. In English: if I had time, I would go. In Portuguese: imperfect subjunctive in the se-clause + conditional in the main clause.
Se tivesse tempo, iria contigo.
If I had time, I would go with you.
Se eu fosse rico, compraria uma casa na praia.
If I were rich, I'd buy a house at the beach.
Se soubesses a verdade, não dirias isso.
If you knew the truth, you wouldn't say that.
Se ela ganhasse o Euromilhões, o que faria?
If she won the lottery, what would she do?
The colloquial substitute: imperfect indicative for conditional
In everyday spoken European Portuguese, native speakers very often replace the conditional (iria, compraria, faria) with the imperfect indicative (ia, comprava, fazia). The meaning is identical; the register shifts toward informal.
Se tivesse tempo, ia contigo.
If I had time, I'd go with you. (colloquial)
Se eu fosse rico, comprava uma casa na praia.
If I were rich, I'd buy a house at the beach. (colloquial)
Se pudesses, o que fazias?
If you could, what would you do? (colloquial)
Both versions — iria and ia, compraria and comprava — are perfectly correct. In writing, especially anything formal, the conditional (iria) is preferred. In speech, the imperfect (ia) dominates and sounds more natural.
Type 3: Counterfactual — "if it had been, it would have been"
Type 3 conditionals refer to the past and its unrealized consequences. Something didn't happen; the speaker is imagining what would have followed if it had. In English: if I had known, I would have told you. In Portuguese: pluperfect subjunctive (tivesse + particípio) in the se-clause + conditional perfect or pluperfect indicative in the main clause.
Se tivesse sabido, ter-te-ia avisado.
If I had known, I would have warned you. (formal)
Se tivesses chegado mais cedo, tinhas apanhado o comboio.
If you had arrived earlier, you would have caught the train. (colloquial)
Se eles não tivessem esquecido as chaves, teríamos entrado em casa.
If they hadn't forgotten the keys, we would have gotten into the house.
Se ela me tivesse ligado, teria ido buscá-la ao aeroporto.
If she had called me, I would have picked her up at the airport.
The tinha + particípio form (pluperfect indicative) replaces the conditional perfect in colloquial speech, just as the imperfect indicative replaces the conditional in Type 2.
| Register | Main clause form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Formal / written | teria + particípio | ...teria ido buscá-la. |
| Neutral | teria + particípio | ...teria ido buscá-la. |
| Colloquial | tinha + particípio | ...tinha ido buscá-la. |
Beyond se: other subordinators that take the future subjunctive
The future subjunctive isn't just for se. A whole family of time conjunctions trigger it whenever the reference is to the future. If you learn to recognize this family as a unit, a lot of Portuguese syntax falls into place at once.
| Conjunction | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| se | if | Se puderes, liga-me. |
| quando | when | Quando chegares, avisa-me. |
| logo que | as soon as | Logo que souberes, diz-me. |
| assim que | as soon as | Assim que terminares, saímos. |
| enquanto | while, as long as | Enquanto estiveres doente, não saias. |
| sempre que | whenever | Sempre que precisares, chama-me. |
| conforme | as, depending on | Farei conforme decidires. |
| como | as, however (future) | Faz como quiseres. |
Quando chegares a casa, liga-me por favor.
When you get home, call me please.
Assim que souber da data, aviso-te.
As soon as I know the date, I'll let you know.
Enquanto tiveres dúvidas, não tomes a decisão.
As long as you have doubts, don't make the decision.
All of these clauses share the logic of a conditional's se-clause: they describe something that has not yet happened but is expected or possible. Portuguese marks that with the future subjunctive.
Unless: a não ser que, a menos que, salvo se
Negative conditionals — "unless" in English — are expressed through compound subordinators. These require the present subjunctive (not the future subjunctive), because the reference is to a general condition:
Não vou à festa, a não ser que tu também vás.
I'm not going to the party, unless you go too.
Ligo-lhe amanhã, salvo se acontecer algo urgente.
I'll call him tomorrow, unless something urgent comes up.
Word order: se-clause first or second
The se-clause can come before or after the main clause. When it comes first, it's separated by a comma; when it comes after, the comma is optional and often dropped.
Se tiver tempo, passo lá à tarde.
If I have time, I'll stop by in the afternoon.
Passo lá à tarde se tiver tempo.
I'll stop by in the afternoon if I have time.
Both are natural; which to use is a matter of emphasis and rhythm. Fronting the se-clause emphasizes the condition; placing it after emphasizes the main event.
Negative conditions
To negate the se-clause, put não immediately before the subjunctive verb. The pattern is identical.
Se não chover, vamos à praia.
If it doesn't rain, we'll go to the beach.
Se não tivesse chovido, teríamos ido à praia.
If it hadn't rained, we would have gone to the beach.
Common mistakes
❌ Se tenho tempo, vou contigo.
Incorrect for future reference — the present indicative cannot be used in se-clauses about the future.
✅ Se tiver tempo, vou contigo.
If I have time, I'll go with you.
❌ Se tinha dinheiro, comprava um carro.
Tense mismatch — imperfect indicative doesn't fit a hypothetical se-clause.
✅ Se tivesse dinheiro, comprava um carro.
If I had money, I'd buy a car.
❌ Quando eu vou a Lisboa, visito-te.
Incorrect for future reference — 'quando' + future event takes the future subjunctive.
✅ Quando eu for a Lisboa, visito-te.
When I go to Lisbon, I'll visit you.
❌ Se eu teria tempo, iria contigo.
Incorrect — the conditional never appears inside a se-clause.
✅ Se eu tivesse tempo, iria contigo.
If I had time, I'd go with you.
❌ Se ele tivesse chegado mais cedo, tinha apanhava o comboio.
Malformed main-clause verb — mixes pluperfect with imperfect.
✅ Se ele tivesse chegado mais cedo, tinha apanhado o comboio.
If he had arrived earlier, he would have caught the train.
Key takeaways
- Type 1 (real future): future subjunctive in the se-clause, present/future/imperative in the main clause.
- Type 1 (general truth): present indicative on both sides.
- Type 2 (hypothetical): imperfect subjunctive
- conditional (or colloquial imperfect indicative).
- Type 3 (counterfactual): pluperfect subjunctive
- conditional perfect (or colloquial tinha + particípio).
- The future subjunctive is obligatory in se-, quando-, logo que-, assim que-, and related future-referring clauses. This is the single biggest difference between Portuguese conditionals and English ones.
- In speech, the imperfect indicative and pluperfect indicative commonly replace the conditional forms in the main clause. Both registers are correct; the conditional is more formal.
- Don't mix across types: a Type 2 se-clause goes with a Type 2 main clause.
For the full grammar of each type, see the linked pages below.
Related Topics
- Future Subjunctive with Se (Open Conditionals)B1 — How European Portuguese builds open conditional sentences with se + future subjunctive, the three-way conditional typology (open / hypothetical / counterfactual), and why English speakers consistently get this wrong.
- If-Clauses with the Imperfect SubjunctiveB1 — Se + imperfeito do conjuntivo + conditional (or imperfect indicative): the core Portuguese pattern for hypothetical and counterfactual conditions — plus the three-way contrast between open, hypothetical, and past-impossible conditions.
- Future Subjunctive with Quando and Temporal ConjunctionsB1 — How European Portuguese uses the future subjunctive (futuro do conjuntivo) after quando, assim que, logo que, enquanto, sempre que, mal, depois que, and até — the tense that anchors unrealised future events in time clauses.
- Conditional Tense OverviewB1 — Formation and uses of the conditional (futuro do pretérito)
- Conditional in Hypothetical SentencesB1 — How the conditional pairs with the imperfect subjunctive to describe hypothetical, counterfactual, and unreal situations.
- Complex SentencesA2 — Main clauses with dependent subordinate clauses joined by que, quando, se, porque, embora, and other subordinators.