Pretérito perfeito simples: falei, fiz
Pretérito perfeito simples: falei, fiz means “The everyday past for finished actions: eu falei, ele fez”. This is the tense Brazilians reach for constantly, and the one you need before any other past form. Formation: -ar → -ei/-ou/-amos/-aram · -er/-ir → -i/-eu(-iu)/-emos(-imos)/-eram(-iram)
The everyday past for finished actions: eu falei, ele fez
A2Formation
-ar → -ei/-ou/-amos/-aram · -er/-ir → -i/-eu(-iu)/-emos(-imos)/-eram(-iram)
Explanation
This is the tense Brazilians reach for constantly, and the one you need before any other past form. Regular endings: falar → falei, falou, falamos, falaram; comer → comi, comeu, comemos, comeram; partir → parti, partiu, partimos, partiram. The high-frequency irregulars have to be learnt as a block, and they pay off twice because the future subjunctive is built from their third-person plural: fazer → fiz/fez/fizemos/fizeram, ter → tive/teve/tivemos/tiveram, ser and ir share fui/foi/fomos/foram, estar → estive/esteve, poder → pude/pôde, querer → quis/quis, dizer → disse, ver → vi/viu, vir → vim/veio, trazer → trouxe. Note the accent in pôde (past) that distinguishes it from pode (present) — one of the few accents the 1990 spelling agreement kept for exactly this reason.
Examples
Note
Use this, not tenho feito, for single finished events: Já comi, never "já tenho comido".
FAQ
Pretérito perfeito simples: falei, fiz — what does it mean and how is it used?
The everyday past for finished actions: eu falei, ele fez. This is the tense Brazilians reach for constantly, and the one you need before any other past form. Regular endings: falar → falei, falou, falamos, falaram; comer → comi, comeu, comemos, comeram; partir → parti, partiu, partimos, partiram. The high-frequency irregulars have to be learnt as a block, and they pay off twice because the future subjunctive is built from their third-person plural: fazer → fiz/fez/fizemos/fizeram, ter → tive/teve/tivemos/tiveram, ser and ir share fui/foi/fomos/foram, estar → estive/esteve, poder → pude/pôde, querer → quis/quis, dizer → disse, ver → vi/viu, vir → vim/veio, trazer → trouxe. Note the accent in pôde (past) that distinguishes it from pode (present) — one of the few accents the 1990 spelling agreement kept for exactly this reason.
Pretérito perfeito simples: falei, fiz — how do you form it?
-ar → -ei/-ou/-amos/-aram · -er/-ir → -i/-eu(-iu)/-emos(-imos)/-eram(-iram)
Pretérito perfeito simples: falei, fiz — any usage notes?
Use this, not tenho feito, for single finished events: Já comi, never "já tenho comido".