The Present Perfect (Pretérito Perfeito Composto)
The Portuguese Present Perfect (Pretérito Perfeito Composto) describes actions that started in the past and continue into the present. It translates closer to the English "have been doing" than "have done".
To form it, combine the present indicative of ter (to have) with the past participle of the main verb. For regular verbs, drop the infinitive ending and add -ado (-ar verbs) or -ido (-er and -ir verbs).
| Pronoun | Ter | Past Participle |
|---|---|---|
| eu | tenho | trabalhado |
| tu | tens | trabalhado |
| ele / ela / você | tem | trabalhado |
| nós | temos | trabalhado |
| eles / elas / vocês | têm | trabalhado |
Because this tense emphasizes ongoing, recent action, it is often paired with time markers like ultimamente (lately) and recentemente (recently).
| I have been working on the farm lately. | Eu tenho trabalhado na quinta ultimamente. |
| We have been picking the grapes lately. | Temos apanhado as uvas ultimamente. |
| You have been bringing the olives on the tractor. | Tens trazido as azeitonas no trator. |
To make the Present Perfect negative, place não immediately before the auxiliary verb ter.
| The farmers have not rested during the harvest. | Os agricultores não têm descansado durante a colheita. |
Common Participles: Regular and Irregular
The verb estar (to be) follows the regular -ar pattern to become estado.
| The farmer has been very tired recently. | O agricultor tem estado muito cansado recentemente. |
However, some essential verbs have irregular past participles. For example, ser (to be) becomes sido.
| The work on the farm has been hard recently. | O trabalho na quinta tem sido duro recentemente. |
The verb fazer (to do/make) is also highly irregular, becoming feito. Remember that Portuguese uses fazer in many weather expressions, which applies here too.
| It has been hot on the farm lately. | Tem feito calor na quinta ultimamente. |