Fechar (To Close) — Full Conjugation

Fechar means to close — the natural counterpart of abrir (to open). Every door, shop, window, account, or deal that opens must at some point close, and fechar is the verb that does it. It is a completely regular first-conjugation (-ar) verb with no irregular forms and no spelling changes, which makes it a reliable model for any -ar verb. The interesting part of fechar is not its morphology but its semantic range: beyond the literal closing of physical objects, it extends to abstract closures (fechar uma conta, fechar um negócio), locking (fechar à chave), and even emotional withdrawal (fechar-se em copas, fechar-se em si mesmo).

In European Portuguese, fechar is what you hear on every shop door at the end of the day (Fechado / Encerrado), in every weather report when the sky darkens (o tempo está a fechar), and in every business context when a deal gets sealed (fechámos o contrato).

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Present indicative — presente do indicativo

Imperfect indicative — pretérito imperfeito

Preterite indicative — pretérito perfeito simples

European Portuguese keeps the acute on the nós preterite fechámos — distinguishing it from the present fechamos. Compare:

• Nós fechamos a loja às sete (present) = We close the shop at seven.
• Nós fechámos a loja às sete (preterite) = We closed the shop at seven.

The one-accent difference is the whole tense distinction in writing. Brazilian Portuguese dropped this accent; EP keeps it.

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

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:

Personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal

Compound personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal composto

Usage: physical closing

The core meaning — shutting a physical object so it no longer lets things through.

Usage: fechar à chave — to lock

Locking a door adds à chave (literally, "to the key"). Without à chave, fechar just means pulling it shut.

There is also the more specific verb trancar (to lock, to bolt), which is stronger than fechar à chave. In everyday speech fechar à chave is more common.

Usage: closing businesses, accounts, deals

In Portugal, the sign on a closed shop is usually Fechado or Encerrado (the latter is slightly more formal; you often see it on holidays and permanent closures). Encerrar is a near-synonym of fechar for institutional contexts (concerts, sessions, accounts, the stock exchange at the end of the day).

Usage: fechar-se — emotional withdrawal and reflexive closing

The reflexive fechar-se covers both physical and emotional meanings.

The idiom fechar-se em copas (literally "to close oneself up in hearts/cups" — a card-game metaphor) means to refuse to say anything, to clam up.

Example sentences in context

Common mistakes

Key takeaways

• Fechar is a fully regular -ar verb. No irregularities, no spelling changes, no double participles. It is a reliable model verb.
• EP preserves the acute accent on the 1pl preterite: fechámos (preterite) vs fechamos (present). Mind this in writing.
• Literal: fechar a porta/janela/loja. Locking: fechar à chave (weaker) or trancar (stronger).
• For businesses and institutions, encerrar is a near-synonym with a slightly more formal register. You will see both on signs.
• Fechar-se covers physical self-closing (flowers, eyes) and emotional withdrawal.
• The past participle fechado agrees in gender and number when used with ser, estar, or as an adjective: fechado, fechada, fechados, fechadas.
• Fechar and abrir are semantic opposites and conjugate as a matched pair — except that abrir has the irregular participle aberto, while fechar keeps its regular fechado.