This page drills the full mesoclitic paradigms in the simple future (futuro simples or futuro do presente). Once you can produce dar-te-ei / dar-te-ás / dar-te-á / dar-te-emos / dar-te-ão without hesitation, the whole construction becomes mechanical. The endings are exactly the endings of the ordinary future (-ei, -ás, -á, -emos, -ão); the clitic simply slides in front of them.
The page is built around sample clitics. We use te ("you" indirect or direct, tu singular) and lhe ("him / her / you formal" indirect) as the default illustrations because they are the highest-frequency cases in real texts. Once the pattern is clear with te and lhe, it extends cleanly to every other clitic.
The formation recipe
For any verb, take the simple future form (infinitive + future endings), then split it between the stem and the ending and insert the clitic.
| Step | Example (falar + te) |
|---|---|
| falarei |
| falar + ei |
| falar-te-ei |
The stem is the infinitive in the vast majority of verbs. Only three verbs have a contracted stem in the future and conditional — dir- (dizer), far- (fazer), trar- (trazer) — and those same contracted stems appear in mesoclise. The endings of the future are invariant across all verbs: -ei, -ás, -á, -emos, -ão.
Paradigm 1: fazer + te ("I'll do something to/for you")
Fazer has the contracted stem far-. The endings behave exactly as in farei / farás / fará / faremos / farão.
| Subject | Future | Mesoclitic form |
|---|---|---|
| eu | farei | far-te-ei |
| tu | farás | far-te-ás |
| ele / ela / você | fará | far-te-á |
| nós | faremos | far-te-emos |
| eles / elas / vocês | farão | far-te-ão |
Far-te-ei um café quando acabar de escrever este e-mail.
I will make you a coffee when I finish writing this email. (formal, perhaps humorous)
Far-te-ás homem nesta viagem, rapaz.
You will make a man of yourself on this trip, my boy. (literary register)
O treinador far-te-á treinar o dobro a partir de amanhã.
The coach will make you train twice as much from tomorrow.
Far-te-emos um desconto se comprares em quantidade.
We will give you a discount if you buy in quantity. (formal commercial correspondence)
Note the written accents. Far-te-ás keeps the acute on -ás (as in farás). Far-te-á keeps the acute on -á. Far-te-ão keeps the tilde on -ão. These accents never disappear under mesoclise — they belong to the ending, and the ending is still there; it has merely been shoved one hyphen away.
Paradigm 2: dar + lhe ("I'll give him/her something")
Dar has a regular stem; the future is darei / darás / dará / daremos / darão.
| Subject | Future | Mesoclitic form |
|---|---|---|
| eu | darei | dar-lhe-ei |
| tu | darás | dar-lhe-ás |
| ele / ela / você | dará | dar-lhe-á |
| nós | daremos | dar-lhe-emos |
| eles / elas / vocês | darão | dar-lhe-ão |
Dar-lhe-ei a resposta assim que puder, senhor diretor.
I will give you the answer as soon as I can, Mr. Director. (polite formal)
Dar-lhe-ás os parabéns da minha parte, quando a vires.
You will give her my congratulations when you see her.
O notário dar-lhe-á uma cópia do contrato dentro de oito dias.
The notary will give you a copy of the contract within eight days. (legal)
Os meus advogados dar-lhe-ão os esclarecimentos necessários.
My lawyers will give you the necessary clarifications. (formal)
Because lhe is unambiguous in register (it carries its own formal tone, addressing o senhor / a senhora / você politely), it harmonises naturally with the formal weight of mesoclise. You will see dar-lhe-ei in legal briefs, petitions, official letters, and high-register speeches.
Paradigm 3: dizer + te ("I'll tell you")
Dizer has the contracted stem dir-. The irregular future is direi / dirás / dirá / diremos / dirão.
| Subject | Future | Mesoclitic form |
|---|---|---|
| eu | direi | dir-te-ei |
| tu | dirás | dir-te-ás |
| ele / ela / você | dirá | dir-te-á |
| nós | diremos | dir-te-emos |
| eles / elas / vocês | dirão | dir-te-ão |
Dir-te-ei a verdade quando for o momento certo.
I will tell you the truth when the moment is right.
O advogado dir-te-á exatamente o que deves responder.
The lawyer will tell you exactly what you should answer.
Dir-te-ão que é impossível, mas não acredites.
They will tell you it's impossible, but don't believe them.
Dir-te-emos o resultado do exame na quinta-feira.
We will tell you the exam result on Thursday.
Paradigm 4: trazer + te ("I'll bring you something")
Trazer has the contracted stem trar-. The future is trarei / trarás / trará / traremos / trarão.
| Subject | Future | Mesoclitic form |
|---|---|---|
| eu | trarei | trar-te-ei |
| tu | trarás | trar-te-ás |
| ele / ela / você | trará | trar-te-á |
| nós | traremos | trar-te-emos |
| eles / elas / vocês | trarão | trar-te-ão |
Trar-te-ei um presente quando voltar de Paris.
I will bring you a present when I come back from Paris.
A Câmara Municipal trar-te-á os documentos pelo correio.
The Town Hall will bring you the documents by post. (formal, administrative)
These three verbs — dizer, fazer, trazer — are the only verbs with contracted stems in the future and conditional. Every other verb keeps the full infinitive as its stem, including notorious irregulars like ser, ir, ter, vir, pôr, haver, saber, poder, all of which build their future and conditional regularly (serei, irei, terei, virei, porei, haverei, saberei, poderei).
Paradigm 5: pôr + me ("it will put me...")
Pôr is the textbook example of a verb that looks irregular everywhere else but is entirely regular in the future. The stem is por-, and the form is porei / porás / porá / poremos / porão. (The circumflex of pôr does not carry into the future.)
| Subject | Future | Mesoclitic form |
|---|---|---|
| eu | porei | por-me-ei |
| tu | porás | por-me-ás |
| ele / ela / você | porá | por-me-á |
| nós | poremos | por-me-emos |
| eles / elas / vocês | porão | por-me-ão |
Este trabalho por-me-á à prova como nunca antes.
This work will put me to the test like never before.
O meu chefe por-me-á a dirigir a equipa a partir de janeiro.
My boss will put me in charge of the team starting in January.
Reflexive verbs: a special case
Reflexive verbs carry a clitic built in — the reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, vos, se). When a reflexive verb appears in the simple future with no proclisis trigger, mesoclise applies with the reflexive pronoun in the middle slot.
Paradigm: arrepender-se ("to regret")
Because the reflexive pronoun changes with person, every cell has a different clitic (me, te, se, nos, se). Observe the rhythm:
| Subject | Reflexive clitic | Mesoclitic future |
|---|---|---|
| eu | me | arrepender-me-ei |
| tu | te | arrepender-te-ás |
| ele / ela / você | se | arrepender-se-á |
| nós | nos | arrepender-nos-emos |
| eles / elas / vocês | se | arrepender-se-ão |
Arrepender-nos-emos se não comprarmos a casa este ano.
We will regret it if we don't buy the house this year.
Arrepender-te-ás de teres mentido.
You will regret having lied.
Ele arrepender-se-á quando descobrir a verdade.
He will regret it when he discovers the truth.
More reflexive examples
Encontrar-nos-emos à porta do teatro às oito.
We will meet at the theatre door at eight.
Habituar-se-ão ao novo horário.
They will get used to the new schedule.
Lembrar-me-ei deste dia para sempre.
I will remember this day forever.
Despedir-me-ei do emprego no fim do mês.
I will resign from the job at the end of the month.
Notice the consistent pattern: infinitive + reflexive clitic + future ending, with two hyphens. The nós form is particularly characteristic — arrepender-nos-emos, encontrar-nos-emos — and its length and rhythm are part of why mesoclise feels so bookish.
Written accents: the details
The accents that appear on the ordinary future survive mesoclise. They always sit on the ending, never on the clitic, never on the stem:
| Ending | Accent | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -ei (1sg) | none | dar-te-ei |
| -ás (2sg) | acute | dar-te-ás |
| -á (3sg) | acute | dar-te-á |
| -emos (1pl) | none | dar-te-emos |
| -ão (3pl) | tilde | dar-te-ão |
The 2sg (-ás) and 3sg (-á) accents carry over without fail: falar-te-ás, falar-te-á, comer-te-ás, comer-te-á. Leaving them off is a spelling error, not a stylistic option.
When the stem ends in a consonant: no further changes
Regular -ar, -er, -ir verbs end their infinitives in -r, and that -r stays put in the mesoclitic form: dar-te-ei, comer-te-ei, partir-te-ei. The only time -r drops is when the clitic is o, a, os, as — and that is covered in Mesoclise with Different Pronouns, because it involves a small cascade of spelling and accent changes. For te, lhe, se, me, nos, vos, the stem stays intact.
Escrever-te-ei assim que chegar.
I will write to you as soon as I arrive.
Ouvir-nos-ão na reunião de amanhã.
They will hear us at tomorrow's meeting.
Permitir-se-á a entrada apenas aos sócios.
Entry will be permitted only to members. (impersonal se, formal)
A gallery of examples by verb class
To internalise the rhythm of mesoclise in the future, read through these by verb class.
-ar verbs
Explicar-te-ei tudo quando nos virmos.
I will explain everything to you when we see each other.
Convidar-te-emos para o casamento no próximo mês.
We will invite you to the wedding next month.
Mostrar-lhe-ei as fotografias da viagem.
I will show her the photos from the trip.
-er verbs
Receber-te-ei de braços abertos.
I will receive you with open arms.
Vender-lhes-emos a quinta por um bom preço.
We will sell them the farm for a good price.
Meter-se-ão em apuros se continuarem assim.
They will get into trouble if they carry on like that. (reflexive)
-ir verbs
Abrir-te-ei a porta assim que bateres.
I will open the door for you as soon as you knock.
Permitir-lhe-ei que decida.
I will permit him to decide.
Despedir-te-ás do teu chefe amanhã.
You will say goodbye to your boss tomorrow.
Recognising mesoclise in the wild
Because mesoclise is rare in speech but frequent in serious writing, building a reading ear for it is the main practical goal. When you see a verb with two hyphens in a Portuguese text, the pattern to check is always the same:
- What is the stem? Is it an infinitive? Is it dir-, far-, or trar-? Any of those means the tense is future or conditional.
- What is the ending? -ei / -ás / -á / -emos / -ão → future. -ia / -ias / -ia / -íamos / -iam → conditional.
- What clitic is in the middle? Unpack it: direct object, indirect object, reflexive, or combined portmanteau.
'Chamar-nos-ão de visionários dentro de vinte anos.' (opinion piece)
'They will call us visionaries within twenty years.' (chamar + nos + ão → future)
'Atender-se-á o público das nove às treze.' (notice on an office door)
'The public will be attended to from nine to one.' (atender + se + á → future, impersonal se)
'Proceder-se-á à leitura da sentença.' (courtroom)
'The sentence will be read.' (proceder + se + á → future, impersonal se)
These formulaic expressions — atender-se-á, proceder-se-á, entender-se-á — are the living fossils of bureaucratic Portuguese. Office signs, judicial announcements, academic regulations: every one of them is a small mesoclise lab.
Common Mistakes
❌ Far-te-ei um café? Não far-te-ei nada!
Incorrect second clause — negation triggers proclisis; mesoclise disappears.
✅ Far-te-ei um café? Não te farei nada!
Shall I make you a coffee? I won't make you anything! (informal, rhetorical)
When não appears, the clitic jumps before the verb and the future reverts to its ordinary whole form (farei). Mesoclise and a proclisis trigger cannot coexist in the same clause.
❌ Dir-lhe-rei a verdade.
Incorrect — *dizer* has the contracted stem dir-, not direr-; the ending is -ei, and the r belongs to the stem only.
✅ Dir-lhe-ei a verdade.
I will tell him the truth.
Dizer in the future is direi, not direrei. The stem is dir-, no extra -r-. Keep the mesoclitic form short: dir-lhe-ei, not dir-lhe-rei.
❌ Arrepender-nos-hemos se não comprarmos a casa.
✅ Arrepender-nos-emos se não comprarmos a casa.
We will regret it if we don't buy the house.
The ending -emos is written without h. You may occasionally see -hemos in very old texts (where haver still showed through), but modern spelling does not allow it.
❌ Far-te-a um café.
Incorrect — 3sg of fazer is fará (acute on á); mesoclise keeps the acute: far-te-á.
✅ Far-te-á um café.
He/she will make you a coffee.
The 3sg ending -á carries an acute accent. Leaving it off is a spelling error. The same applies to the 2sg -ás and 3pl -ão.
❌ Dar-te-ão o livro amanhã (meaning: I will give you the book tomorrow).
Subject mismatch — dar-te-ão is 3pl (they will give you); 1sg is dar-te-ei.
✅ Dar-te-ei o livro amanhã.
I will give you the book tomorrow.
Every form in the paradigm agrees with a different subject, just as in the ordinary future. Choose the ending for the person you mean, then insert the clitic.
Key takeaways
- The mesoclitic paradigm in the future is always stem + clitic + future ending, joined by two hyphens.
- The stem is the infinitive for every verb except dizer (dir-), fazer (far-), and trazer (trar-).
- The endings are the ordinary future endings: -ei, -ás, -á, -emos, -ão, and their accents (acute on -ás, -á; tilde on -ão) survive mesoclise.
- Reflexive verbs use the reflexive clitic in the middle: arrepender-me-ei, arrepender-nos-emos.
- Mesoclise is mandatory in formal written European Portuguese whenever the clause is affirmative and has no proclisis trigger. It is extremely rare in speech.
- For the conditional counterpart, see Mesoclise in the Conditional.
- For the special behaviour with direct-object clitics o, a, os, as (where the stem loses its -r and a -l- is inserted), see Mesoclise with Different Pronouns.
Related Topics
- Mesoclise: OverviewB2 — The distinctively Portuguese construction of wedging a clitic pronoun between the stem and ending of the synthetic future or conditional — why it exists, when it is triggered, and why it lives almost entirely on the page.
- Mesoclise in the ConditionalB2 — Full mesoclitic paradigms in the simple conditional (condicional) — regular verbs, the three irregular stems, the accented nós form, and the natural habitats of dar-te-ia in literary, polite, and hypothetical registers.
- Mesoclise with Different PronounsC1 — How mesoclise behaves with each class of clitic — direct objects (o, a, os, as) with stem adjustments; indirect objects (lhe, lhes); combined portmanteau forms (mo, to, lho, no-lo, vo-lo); and reflexives. The full catalogue with paradigms and worked examples.
- Simple Future (Futuro do Presente)A2 — Formation and uses of the synthetic future tense in European Portuguese
- Irregular Future FormsB1 — Dizer, fazer, trazer and their contracted future stems
- Mesoclise in Modern Usage and RegisterC1 — Where mesoclise lives today — legal codes, literary fiction, newspaper editorials, formal speech — and the four avoidance strategies educated speakers use to sidestep it in everyday conversation. Sample texts for recognition practice.