Conhecer (To Know/Meet) — Full Conjugation

Conhecer covers two meanings that English collapses into different parts of its vocabulary: it means to know (in the sense of being familiar with a person, place, or thing) and to meet (for the first time, when the acquaintance begins). In grammatical terms conhecer is a regular second-conjugation (-er) verb — every ending is standard — but it has a single orthographic quirk: the c of the stem becomes ç before the vowels a and o, to preserve the soft /s/ sound. The most conspicuous result is the first-person present conheço, never conheco.

The bigger reason conhecer deserves a full page, though, is the conhecer / saber distinction. English "to know" matches two completely different Portuguese verbs, and choosing the wrong one is perhaps the single most common vocabulary mistake learners make. This page gives you the full conjugation plus a deep guide to when conhecer is right and when saber is needed instead.

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Present indicative — presente do indicativo

The spelling change appears in the eu form. The ending -o starts with a back vowel, so the soft /s/ at the end of the stem must be written with ç: conheço, never conheco. The other forms keep c because they are followed by e.

Imperfect indicative — pretérito imperfeito

All endings start with -i, so c is kept (no spelling change).

Preterite indicative — pretérito perfeito simples

All endings start with -i or -e, so c is kept.

The preterite is where conhecer takes on its "met" meaning: Conheci a Ana em Lisboa = I met Ana in Lisbon (for the first time). The imperfect conhecia = I knew / was acquainted with.

Pluperfect indicative, simple — pretérito mais-que-perfeito simples

Pluperfect indicative, compound — pretérito mais-que-perfeito composto

Present perfect — pretérito perfeito composto

Simple future — futuro do indicativo simples

Future perfect — futuro perfeito

Conditional — condicional

Conditional perfect — condicional composto

Present subjunctive — presente do conjuntivo

The spelling change applies throughout. All endings start with -a, so every form is written with ç: conheça, conheças, conheça, conheçamos, conheçam.

Imperfect subjunctive — imperfeito do conjuntivo

Endings start with -e, so c is kept.

Future subjunctive — futuro do conjuntivo

Present perfect subjunctive — pretérito perfeito do conjuntivo

Pluperfect subjunctive — pretérito mais-que-perfeito do conjuntivo

Future perfect subjunctive — futuro perfeito do conjuntivo

Imperative — imperativo

All forms drawn from the subjunctive keep the ç spelling.

Affirmative:

Negative:

Personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal

Compound personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal composto

Usage: the conhecer / saber divide

Both verbs translate into English as "to know," but they divide the semantic territory cleanly in Portuguese. Use conhecer for acquaintance — being familiar with something or someone through experience. Use saber for factual knowledge or know-how.

Side-by-side comparisons

The preterite difference

Both verbs take on special meanings in the preterite:

• conheci = I met (for the first time)
• soube = I found out, I learned

The imperfect keeps the stative meaning: conhecia = used to know / was acquainted with; sabia = used to know / knew (already).

Common uses and expressions

• conhecer alguém — to know someone, to meet someone (for the first time, in the preterite)
• conhecer de vista — to know by sight (recognize a person's face but not really know them)
• conhecer de nome — to know by name only (without having met)
• conhecer bem / mal — to know well / badly
• conhecer-se por — to be recognizable / known as. Conhece-se pela voz. = You can tell him by his voice.
• dar-se a conhecer — to introduce oneself, to make oneself known
• conhecer como a palma da mão — to know like the back of one's hand
• conhecer como ninguém — to know like no one else, to know intimately
• prazer em conhecer — "pleased to meet you" (reduction of prazer em conhecê-lo/la/te)

Example sentences in context

Common mistakes

Key takeaways

• Conhecer has regular -er endings but adds an orthographic ç before a or o: conheço (1sg present), the entire present subjunctive (conheça, conheças, conheça, conheçamos, conheçam), and the imperative forms drawn from the subjunctive.
• Conhecer = be familiar with (people, places, works, topics); saber = know a fact or know how. English "to know" is both; Portuguese keeps them apart.
• In the preterite, conheci shifts to mean "I met" (first encounter), while soube means "I found out."
• The past participle conhecido is regular.
• Use conhecer-se (reciprocally) when two people meet each other: Eles conheceram-se em 2010.
• The standard polite greeting "Prazer em conhecê-lo/la/te" uses this verb — literally "pleasure in meeting you."