The verb gostar
In Portuguese, the verb gostar (to like) is a regular -ar verb. However, it has one very important rule: it must ALWAYS be followed by the preposition de.
| Pronoun | Gostar (Present) |
|---|---|
| Eu | gosto |
| Tu | gostas |
| Ele / Ela / Você | gosta |
| Nós | gostamos |
| Eles / Elas / Vocês | gostam |
Liking an activity
To say you like doing an activity, simply use gostar de followed by an infinitive verb (such as ler, viajar, or cantar).
| I like to read in the bedroom. | Eu gosto de ler no quarto. |
| We like to travel to Lisbon. | Nós gostamos de viajar para Lisboa. |
To make a sentence negative, place não immediately before the verb gostar.
| She does not like to travel by airplane. | Ela não gosta de viajar de avião. |
Liking things and people
When you talk about liking general categories, subjects, or materials, you use gostar de followed directly by the noun.
| I like music. | Eu gosto de música. |
| The student likes chocolate a lot. | A aluna gosta muito de chocolate. |
However, if you are talking about a specific thing or person, you will usually need a definite article (o, a, os, as). In Portuguese, the preposition de merges with these articles to form new mandatory contractions:
- de
- o = do
- de
- a = da
- de
- os = dos
- de
- as = das
| We like the chocolate cake. | Nós gostamos do bolo de chocolate. |
| My mother likes the black tea. | A minha mãe gosta do chá preto. |
| The brothers like the airplanes. | Os irmãos gostam dos aviões. |
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