Correr (To Run) — Full Conjugation

Correr means to run, in both its physical sense (moving quickly on foot) and a surprising number of figurative ones: how things go (tudo correu bem), how time passes (o tempo corre depressa), to risk (correr risco), to chase (correr atrás de). It is a fully regular second-conjugation (-er) verb, so the conjugation itself holds no surprises — the interest lies in its idiomatic reach.

This page gives every conjugated form and then maps out the most frequent uses, from jogging in the park to chasing dreams.

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Present indicative — presente do indicativo

Imperfect indicative — pretérito imperfeito

Preterite indicative — pretérito perfeito simples

Note: the nós form corremos is identical in the present and preterite for -er verbs. Context tells you which is meant.

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

A literary form. In speech use the compound (tinha corrido).

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 (futuro do pretérito)

Conditional perfect — condicional composto

Present subjunctive — presente do conjuntivo

Imperfect subjunctive — imperfeito do conjuntivo

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

Affirmative:

Negative (identical to the present subjunctive with não):

Personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal

Compound personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal composto

Usage notes

Correr is overwhelmingly intransitive — you run somewhere, or something runs. The main uses are:

1. Physical running

• correr na praia, no parque, na passadeira — run on the beach, in the park, on the treadmill
• correr uma maratona — run a marathon (here the distance/race is a kind of direct object)
• correr atrás de — to chase, to run after — O cão correu atrás do gato.

2. Flowing / passing

• o rio corre — the river runs / flows
• o tempo corre depressa — time passes quickly
• a água corre — the water runs / flows

3. Going well or badly (figurative — how something turns out)

• correr bem / mal — to go well / badly — A reunião correu bem.
• como correu o exame? — how did the exam go?
• tudo correu como planeado — everything went as planned

4. Risking

• correr risco / perigo — to run a risk / to be in danger — Corremos o risco de chegar tarde.
• correr o risco de + infinitivo — to run the risk of doing something

5. Traveling / circulating

• correr mundo — to travel the world (literary/elevated)
• corre por aí que... — the word going around is that... (informal)
• a notícia correu depressa — the news spread fast

Example sentences in context

Common mistakes

Key takeaways

• Correr is a fully regular -er verb. No stem changes, no irregular forms.
• The 1pl corremos is identical in present and preterite — rely on context.
• Beyond physical running, correr covers how things go (correr bem/mal), how time flows, and risks you run (correr risco).
• Do not use correr for running a business — that is gerir or dirigir.
• The tu affirmative imperative is corre; the negative switches to não corras (subjunctive).
• Correr atrás de (chase) always takes the preposition de.