The future perfect tense in Portuguese, similar to its use in English, describes events that will happen and be completed in the future by a certain time or happen after another event is completed in the future.
The future perfect tense also uses the auxiliary verb “ter” or “haver,” but in the future tense followed by a past participle.
In Portuguese, the auxiliary “ter” or “haver” in future tense serves a similar function to the auxiliary “will have” in English, e.g., “I will have done my homework by the time they come.”
Remember that both “ter” and “haver” are grammatically correct and can be used interchangeably. However, the use of “haver” is usually limited to writing. In everyday language, the verb “ter” is often used.
Conjugation
The future perfect tense in Portuguese is structured as follows:
| -ar ending e.g., falar | -er ending e.g., comer | -ir ending e.g., partir | ||
| eu | terei/haverei | falado | comido | partido |
| ele/ela/você | terá/haverá | |||
| nós | teremos/haveremos | |||
| eles/elas/vocês | terão/haverão |
As we studied in Level III, Lesson 5 on Present Perfect Tense, some verbs have irregular past participle forms in Portuguese.
Examples
Let us look at some examples in context:
| Terei visitado o Egito em janeiro. | I will have visited Egypt in January. |
| Você terá bebido o café. | You will have drunk the coffee. |
| Ela terá falado com a mãe. | She will have spoken to her mother. |
| Nós teremos comido. | We will have eaten. |
| Vocês terão chegado. | You will have arrived. |
| Eles terão vivido aqui. | They will have lived here. |
Next: Imperative Mood & Giving Commands
Other lessons in Level IV:
Level IV – Intermediate
2. Past Tense: Preterite vs. Imperfect
