Brazilian Portuguese Grammar
Verb 1 + verb 2 in the gerund
This verb phrase represents the progressive aspect in Portuguese: verb estar + main verb in the gerund:
| verb estar | translation |
| Tu estás aprendendo português. | You are learning Portuguese. |
| Ele estava dormindo. | He was sleeping. |
The use of the gerund is common when verb 1 is verb ver, ouvir or ficar:
| verb | example | translation |
| ver | Eu a vi sorrindo. | I saw her smiling. |
| ouvir | Ele me ouviu cantando. | He heard me singing. |
| ficar | Eles ficaram conversando. | They kept on talking. |
The use of the gerund is also common when verb 1 is a verb of movement and verb 2 denotes the manner (how) the movement occurred:
| examples of verbs of movement | example | translation |
| sair | Ele saiu correndo. | He went out running. |
| vir | Eles vieram caminhando lentamente. | They came walking slowly. |
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