The Portuguese Present Progressive: Estou Falando and Everyday Actions — Practice

Form estar plus the gerund

The common Brazilian Portuguese pattern for an action in progress is estar + a verb ending in -ndo. For regular -ar verbs, change -ar to -ando: falar becomes falando. For -er and -ir verbs, change the ending to -endo or -indo: comer becomes comendo and abrir becomes abrindo.

Conjugate estar for the subject, then leave the second verb in its gerund form: eu estou lendo, você está lendo, nós estamos lendo. The gerund does not change for gender or number.

Choose between an action in progress and a routine

The simple present can describe a habit or a general fact: trabalho de casa às sextas (I work from home on Fridays). The progressive highlights an activity underway or a temporary situation: estou trabalhando de casa hoje (I’m working from home today). Context can make either tense possible when you ask what someone is doing.

Brazilian Portuguese commonly uses the gerund after estar. Learners may also hear estar a falar in some varieties of Portuguese outside Brazil; for a Brazilian conversation, estou falando is the practical pattern to recognize and use.

Remember: Use estar + gerund to bring an action into progress: estou falando, está comendo, estamos aprendendo. Use the simple present for routines and general statements.

Check your understanding

Choose the English meaning of each Portuguese example. Answer before looking back at the tables. These questions check the written examples in this guide; they are not a listening or proficiency test.

Recall the Portuguese, then say it

Read the English prompt and say a Portuguese version before opening the answer. The answer shows the example from the lesson; other natural translations may also work. Compare the meaning and the situation rather than counting a different word as automatically wrong.

1. I’m waiting for the bus.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Estou esperando o ônibus.

2. Bia is making dinner.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   A Bia está preparando o jantar.

3. What are you all watching?

   Show a Portuguese answer

   O que vocês estão assistindo?

4. She studies at night.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Ela estuda à noite.

5. She is studying now.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Ela está estudando agora.

6. We’re learning Portuguese together.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Estamos aprendendo português juntos.

Make the phrase useful to you

Choose one example you could actually use. Say it once from memory, then change one detail that fits your life, such as the person, place, time, or object. Check whether your change also needs a different verb form, article, or adjective ending. If it does, compare it with the pattern in the explanation.

Use estar + gerund to bring an action into progress: estou falando, está comendo, estamos aprendendo. Use the simple present for routines and general statements.

Return to two prompts tomorrow without opening the answers first. If a phrase still feels difficult, shorten it to a useful chunk and build the complete sentence again.

Sources and your next lesson

This I Speak Portuguese practice guide builds on our The Portuguese Present Progressive: Estou Falando and Everyday Actions lesson on Real Life Portuguese, with written recall tasks and additional speaking practice. The explanations and examples are teaching material; the practice questions are exercises, not a transcript of a recording.

To add Brazilian audio to your routine, choose a lesson in the Real Life Portuguese app. The app offers its own lessons and practice; this page does not imply that every example here has an app recording.