Expressing 'have to' — Brazilian Portuguese Grammar

To express obligation or necessity, equivalent to the English "have to" or "must," the verb (to have) is used in a specific structure. It is conjugated to match the subject and followed by and the main verb in its infinitive form.

The formula is: Conjugated + + infinitive verb.

Conjugating in the Present Tense

In the present tense, the verb is conjugated as follows. Note the written accent on to distinguish the plural form from the singular .

(I have to...)
(You/He/She/We have to...)
(We have to...)
(You all/They have to...)

Eu tenho que trabalhar amanhã.
I have to work tomorrow.
Ela tem que estudar para a prova.
She has to study for the test.
Eles têm que limpar a casa.
They have to clean the house.

Using 'Ter Que' in Other Tenses

This structure works in any tense. Only the verb changes its form, while and the infinitive verb remain the same.

Past Tense (Pretérito Perfeito)

Used for a completed obligation in the past.

Eu tive que sair mais cedo ontem.
I had to leave earlier yesterday.
Nós tivemos que cancelar a viagem.
We had to cancel the trip.

Imperfect Tense (Pretérito Imperfeito)

Used for a habitual or ongoing obligation in the past.

Quando eu era criança, eu tinha que arrumar meu quarto todo sábado.
When I was a child, I had to tidy my room every Saturday.

Future Tense (Futuro do Presente)

Used for an obligation that will occur in the future.

Você terá que esperar um pouco.
You will have to wait a bit.
Eles terão que tomar uma decisão.
They will have to make a decision.

Forming Negative Sentences

To say that someone does not have an obligation, place the word before the conjugated form of .

Eu não tenho que trabalhar no domingo.
I don't have to work on Sunday.
Você não teve que pagar nada.
You didn't have to pay anything.

Alternative: 'Precisar'

The verb (to need) is often used with a similar meaning. While implies a stronger, often external obligation, suggests more of a personal necessity. In many everyday contexts, they are interchangeable.

The structure is: Conjugated + infinitive verb. In Brazilian Portuguese, the preposition is usually dropped before a verb.

Eu preciso falar com você.
I need to talk to you.
Nós precisamos comprar mais leite.
We need to buy more milk.

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Brazilian Portuguese course

8 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 8. A few of them, with the words “Expressing 'have to'” is about in bold:

Tenho que andar de bicicleta até comprar um carro novo.
I have to ride my bike until I get a new car.
Lesson 301

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