How to say “I must”

Today we’re going to learn how to say “I must” or “I have to” in Portuguese.

If you want to say “I must” or “I have to” you only have to use the verb “ter” (to have) in the present plus the preposition “de”.

TER

Eu tenho

Tu tens

Você tem

Ele tem

Ela tem

Nós temos

Vocês têm

Eles têm

Elas têm

Examples:

• I must eat this.

(Eu) tenho de comer isto.

• We have to study Portuguese.

(Nós) temos de estudar português.

Although is not grammatically correct, we can nowadays also use the expression “ter que”. This expression has become even more common than “ter de”. So, it’s also possible to say:

• (Eu) tenho que comer isto.
• (Nós) temos que estudar Português.