Sentir (To Feel) — Full Conjugation

Sentir covers everything English does with feel — physical sensations (sinto frio — I feel cold), emotional states (sinto-me triste — I feel sad), perceptions (sinto um cheiro estranho — I can smell something strange), and intuitions (sinto que algo não está bem — I feel something's not right). It is one of the most frequent verbs in everyday Portuguese, and the form you will hear adults and children use every single day.

Sentir is a third-conjugation (-ir) verb with the characteristic e → i stem change that it shares with mentir, preferir, servir, ferir, divertir, and a handful of others. The change appears in the eu-present (sinto) and throughout the present subjunctive (sinta, sintas, sintamos, sintam). Everywhere else, the stem stays senti-. Learn this pattern once and you have it for the whole group.

Alongside the verb itself, there is a useful piece of vocabulary to notice: the past participle sentido also exists as a noun meaning sense, meaning, or direction. So o sentido da palavra (the meaning of the word), os cinco sentidos (the five senses), rua de sentido único (one-way street). This is not a separate word — it is the participle that has drifted into nominal use, and context makes the role clear.

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Present indicative — presente do indicativo

The eu form is sinto (e → i). Every other form keeps e in the stem.

Imperfect indicative — pretérito imperfeito

Regular; stem is senti- throughout.

Preterite indicative — pretérito perfeito simples

Regular throughout. No stem change in the preterite.

The nós form sentimos is identical in the present and preterite; context disambiguates.

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

Literary; everyday speech uses the compound.

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

Present perfect — pretérito perfeito composto

Repeated or continuous action up to now. Tenho-me sentido cansado ultimamente — I've been feeling tired lately.

Simple future — futuro do indicativo simples

Future perfect — futuro perfeito

Conditional — condicional (futuro do pretérito)

Conditional perfect — condicional composto

Present subjunctive — presente do conjuntivo

Built from the eu-present sinto. Every form carries the i.

Imperfect subjunctive — imperfeito do conjuntivo

Regular; built on the preterite stem senti-.

Future subjunctive — futuro do conjuntivo

Regular; identical to the personal infinitive.

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 (subjunctive with não):

The most common everyday imperatives: sente-te em casa! = make yourself at home!, sinta-se à vontade = feel at ease / make yourself comfortable (formal). Não te sintas mal = don't feel bad (about it).

Personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal

Compound personal infinitive — infinitivo pessoal composto

Usage notes

Sentir (transitive) vs. sentir-se (reflexive)

The two constructions carry different meanings and different grammar:

• sentir + noun = to feel (something): sinto dor, sinto calor, sinto medo, sinto saudades.
• sentir-se + adjective/adverb = to feel (a certain way): sinto-me bem, sinto-me cansado, sinto-me em casa, sinto-me feliz.

Sentir vs. ter — states like fear, hunger, cold

For basic physical and emotional states (fear, hunger, thirst, cold, heat, sleepiness), European Portuguese prefers ter over sentir in everyday speech: tenho fome, tenho frio, tenho medo, tenho sono. Using sentir here is grammatical but sounds more literary or emphatic.

• Natural everyday: tenho fome (I'm hungry), tenho medo (I'm afraid), tenho frio (I'm cold).
• More literary / emphatic: sinto fome, sinto medo, sinto frio — usually said when the sensation is strong or noteworthy.

Sentir a falta de / sentir saudades de — to miss

Portuguese has two main ways to express I miss you/him/something:

• sentir a falta de — a neutral, everyday construction: sinto a falta dela (I miss her).
• ter saudades de — the famously untranslatable Portuguese emotion: a deep, bittersweet longing for someone or something absent. Tenho saudades da minha avó (I miss my grandmother, with a warmth and ache that miss only partly captures).

You can also say sentir saudades (less common than ter saudades but acceptable).

Sentir pena de — to feel sorry for

Sentir pena de alguém means to feel sorry for someone, with a tinge of pity. In the sense of apology ("I'm sorry" = desculpa, lamento, peço desculpa), use a different verb. In condolences, European Portuguese typically prefers lamento or os meus sentimentos; the construction sentir muito followed by a noun (sinto muito a sua perda) is accepted in formal speech but the bare sinto muito as "I'm sorry" is heard more in Brazilian Portuguese.

Sentir + object + infinitive/gerund = to sense someone doing something

Like ver and ouvir, sentir can introduce a small-clause construction: senti a casa tremer (I felt the house shake), senti-o chegar (I sensed him arriving). This is the verb's perceptual sense.

Past participle as noun: sentido

The past participle sentido is also a noun:

• o sentido da palavra — the meaning of the word
• os cinco sentidos — the five senses
• no sentido de — in the direction of / meaning (as a phrase: no sentido de que... = in the sense that...)
• rua de sentido único — one-way street
• fazer sentido — to make sense

Example sentences in context

Common mistakes

Key takeaways

• Sentir belongs to the e → i stem-change group (with mentir, preferir, servir). The change shows up in the eu-present (sinto) and throughout the present subjunctive (sinta, sintas, sintamos, sintam). Everywhere else the stem is senti-.
• Sentir + noun = feel (something): sinto dor, sinto saudades. Sentir-se + adjective = feel (a certain way): sinto-me bem, sinto-me triste. Match the grammar to the meaning.
• For basic states (hungry, thirsty, cold, afraid, sleepy), everyday European Portuguese prefers ter over sentir: tenho fome, tenho medo, tenho frio. Sentir for these is grammatical but more literary.
• To miss someone: ter saudades de (deep, warm longing) or sentir a falta de (neutral, everyday). Sentir saudades is also heard but less common than ter saudades.
• Sentir muito
  • noun (sinto muito a sua perda) is formal condolence language; bare sinto muito as a stand-alone "I'm sorry" is more common in Brazilian than European Portuguese — in EP, prefer lamento or os meus sentimentos. Sentir pena de alguém = to feel sorry for someone.
• The past participle sentido doubles as a noun meaning sense, meaning, or direction: fazer sentido (make sense), os cinco sentidos (the five senses), sentido único (one-way).