Introduction
Querer is one of the first verbs Portuguese learners meet because it expresses desire, requests, and polite wants. In Brazilian Portuguese, querer appears in everyday speech, menus, signs, and short messages. This article explains how to use querer at the beginner level, with clear conjugations, practical examples, useful vocabulary, common mistakes, and simple tips for real-life conversations.
- What does querer mean?
- Present tense: pedir or querer?
- Conjugation of querer: present simple
- Using querer with infinitives
- Polite requests: making querer softer
- Past and future basics for beginners
- Negative form and negation
- Common vocabulary and phrases with querer
- Practical tips for beginners
- Common beginner mistakes and how to avoid them
- Short practice dialogue for beginners
- Mini exercises
- Resources for continued practice
- Conclusion
What does querer mean?
Querer means want, to want, or to desire. It is used to express wishes, requests, preferences, and intentions in many contexts: ordering food, asking for directions, making plans, or expressing likes and dislikes.
Basic meaning and uses
Use querer to say you want something now or in the near future. It can be direct and casual, and in polite situations you can use querer with por favor or a conditional form to sound softer.
Present tense: pedir or querer?
Beginner learners often confuse pedir and querer. Pedir means to request or ask for something and is used when requesting an action or a service. Querer focuses on desire or wanting an object, action, or outcome.
Examples to compare:
Quero água.
Translation: I want water. Use this to state desire for an item.
Posso pedir água?
Translation: Can I ask for water? Use pedir to request something from someone.
Conjugation of querer: present simple
Memorize the present tense forms of querer for basic conversational ability. These are the most common for beginners.
Eu quero — I want
Você quer — You want (formal and informal in Brazil you can use você in most situations)
Ele/ela quer — He/she wants
Nós queremos — We want
Vocês querem — You (plural) want
Eles/elas querem — They want
Examples:
Eu quero um café.
Translation: I want a coffee.
Você quer ir ao cinema?
Translation: Do you want to go to the movies?
Nós queremos estudar português.
Translation: We want to study Portuguese.
Pronunciation tip
Quero is pronounced KEH-roo. The r in Brazilian Portuguese at the start of a syllable like quero sounds softer than the English r; listen and repeat with native speakers for accuracy.
Using querer with infinitives
To say you want to do something, follow querer with an infinitive verb. This structure is essential for beginner conversations about plans and actions.
Structure: querer + infinitive
Quero comer.
Translation: I want to eat.
Ela quer aprender.
Translation: She wants to learn.
Queremos viajar para o Brasil.
Translation: We want to travel to Brazil.
Common beginner phrases with infinitives
Quero comer agora. — I want to eat now.
Você quer aprender português? — Do you want to learn Portuguese?
Eu quero viajar. — I want to travel.
Polite requests: making querer softer
Querer can sound direct. To be polite, add por favor or use the conditional quereria for extra politeness in service situations like restaurants or shops.
Quero o cardápio, por favor.
Translation: I want the menu, please.
Queria o cardápio, por favor.
Translation: I would like the menu, please. This is softer and more polite.
Queria uma água com gás.
Translation: I would like a sparkling water.
Tip for travelers
Use queria instead of quero when speaking to servers, receptionists, or strangers to sound respectful and natural in Brazil.
Past and future basics for beginners
As a beginner, focus on a few simple past and future forms used often in conversation.
Past: Eu quis — I wanted
Example: Eu quis aprender ontem.
Translation: I wanted to learn yesterday.
Future: Eu vou querer — I will want
Example: Amanhã eu vou querer ir ao mercado.
Translation: Tomorrow I will want to go to the market.
When to use past querer
Use quis to explain past desires, changes of mind, or decisions already made. It is short and common in casual reports of past intentions.
Eu quis ficar em casa.
Translation: I wanted to stay home.
Negative form and negation
To say you do not want something, use não before querer. This is straightforward and essential for saying no politely or strongly, depending on tone.
Eu não quero.
Translation: I do not want to.
Você não quer comer?
Translation: You do not want to eat?
Polite negative: Não quero, obrigado/obrigada.
Translation: I do not want it, thank you. Use obrigado if you are male, obrigada if you are female.
Common vocabulary and phrases with querer
Here are practical words and short phrases beginners will see and use often with querer in Brazil.
o cardápio — the menu
a conta — the bill
uma água — a water
um café — a coffee
um ingresso — a ticket
quero isto — I want this
quero aquilo — I want that
quero mais — I want more
quero menos — I want less
Real-life examples: eating out
Quero um sanduíche de frango.
Translation: I want a chicken sandwich.
Queria a conta, por favor.
Translation: I would like the bill, please.
Real-life examples: shopping
Eu quero experimentar este vestido.
Translation: I want to try on this dress.
Você quer este tamanho?
Translation: Do you want this size?
Practical tips for beginners
1. Start with present tense forms: eu quero, você quer, nós queremos. These cover most immediate needs.
2. Use querer + infinitive to talk about actions you want to do: quero estudar, quero comer.
3. Prefer queria in service situations to sound polite: Queria um suco, por favor.
4. Learn a few set phrases for restaurants and shops where querer appears on menus and signs.
5. Combine não with querer to refuse politely and add obrigado/obrigada: Não quero, obrigado.
Common beginner mistakes and how to avoid them
Mistake 1: Using pedir when you mean querer. If you want an item, use querer. If you ask someone to do something, use pedir.
Wrong: Eu peço um café.
Better: Eu quero um café. or Posso pedir um café?
Mistake 2: Forgetting to conjugate for the subject. Portuguese verbs must match the subject pronoun.
Wrong: Eu querer água.
Better: Eu quero água.
Mistake 3: Overusing quero in very polite contexts. Native speakers often prefer queria or poderia querer (more formal) for requests.
Better: Queria o cardápio, por favor. instead of Quero o cardápio, por favor. in a formal restaurant.
Short practice dialogue for beginners
Maria: Você quer café?
João: Sim, eu quero um café, por favor.
Maria: Quer açúcar?
João: Não, obrigado.
Translation: Maria: Do you want coffee? João: Yes, I want a coffee, please. Maria: Do you want sugar? João: No, thank you.
Mini exercises
Fill in the blank with the correct querer form: Eu ___ um suco. (Answer: quero)
Transform into a polite request: Quero a conta. (Answer: Queria a conta, por favor.)
Make a negative: Você quer mais pão? (Answer: Não, não quero.)
Resources for continued practice
Practice with menus, short messages, and common signs where querer appears. Listen to simple Brazilian Portuguese dialogs and repeat querer forms aloud. Use language apps or beginner textbooks that emphasize verb conjugations and everyday phrases.
Conclusion
Querer is a core verb for beginners learning Brazilian Portuguese. Master present tense forms, querer + infinitive, and the polite variant queria to handle everyday situations like ordering food, shopping, and making plans. Practice short dialogues, learn a few vocabulary items that often appear with querer, and avoid common mistakes by keeping conjugation and context in mind.
