Are you bored or boring? One small ending changes everything. Adjectives with -ed and -ing come from the same verb, but they describe different things, and mixing them up is one of the most common (and funniest) mistakes Brazilian students make.Você está bored (entediado) ou é boring (chato)? Uma pequena terminação muda tudo. Os adjetivos com -ed e -ing vêm do mesmo verbo, mas descrevem coisas diferentes, e confundir os dois é um dos erros mais comuns (e mais engraçados) dos alunos brasileiros.
B1 Feeling or cause?
-ed adjectives describe how a person feels: the feeling is inside you. -ing adjectives describe the thing, situation or person that causes that feeling.Os adjetivos com -ed descrevem como uma pessoa se sente: o sentimento está dentro de você. Os adjetivos com -ing descrevem a coisa, a situação ou a pessoa que causa esse sentimento.
-ed = the feeling
How someone feels.Como alguém se sente.
I’m bored. I have nothing to do. (Estou entediado. Não tenho nada para fazer.)
-ing = the cause
What causes the feeling.O que causa o sentimento.
This class is boring. (Esta aula é chata.)
- The documentary was really interesting. I was interested from start to finish. (O documentário foi muito interessante. Fiquei interessado do começo ao fim.)
- I’m so tired. It was a tiring day at school. (Estou muito cansada. Foi um dia cansativo na escola.)
- Gabriel was surprised by his test results. (O Gabriel ficou surpreso com o resultado da prova.)
- The end of the movie was very surprising. (O final do filme foi muito surpreendente.)
Common pairs
| -ed (feeling) | -ing (cause) | Português |
|---|---|---|
| bored | boring | entediado / chato |
| interested | interesting | interessado / interessante |
| tired | tiring | cansado / cansativo |
| excited | exciting | animado / empolgante |
| confused | confusing | confuso / que confunde |
| worried | worrying | preocupado / preocupante |
| frightened | frightening | com medo / assustador |
| disappointed | disappointing | decepcionado / decepcionante |
| relaxed | relaxing | relaxado / relaxante |
People can be both
Things are usually described with -ing, but people can take both forms. Be careful: the meaning is completely different. He is bored means he feels bored. He is boring means other people find him boring.Coisas normalmente são descritas com -ing, mas pessoas podem receber as duas formas. Cuidado: o sentido é totalmente diferente. He is bored significa que ele está entediado. He is boring significa que ele é chato para os outros.
- My uncle is so interesting. He has traveled all over the world. (Meu tio é muito interessante. Ele já viajou o mundo inteiro.)
- Nobody talks to Marcos at parties. People think he’s boring. (Ninguém conversa com o Marcos nas festas. As pessoas acham ele chato.)
- The students were confused because the teacher was confusing. (Os alunos ficaram confusos porque o professor explicava de um jeito confuso.)
A classic mistake
✗ I’m boring in this class. ✓ I’m bored in this class.Quem diz “I’m boring” está dizendo “eu sou chato”. Para “estou entediado”, use I’m bored.
B1+ Prepositions, pronunciation and false friends
At B1+, you can use these adjectives more naturally by learning the prepositions that follow -ed adjectives, pronouncing the -ed correctly and avoiding some traps.No B1+, você passa a usar esses adjetivos com mais naturalidade aprendendo as preposições que vêm depois dos adjetivos com -ed, pronunciando o -ed corretamente e evitando algumas armadilhas.
-ed adjectives + preposition
| Adjective + preposition | Example | Português |
|---|---|---|
| interested in | She’s interested in studying abroad. | Ela tem interesse em estudar fora. |
| excited about | We’re excited about the trip. | Estamos animados com a viagem. |
| worried about | I’m worried about the exam. | Estou preocupado com a prova. |
| tired of | He’s tired of waiting. | Ele está cansado de esperar. |
| surprised by / at | I was surprised by the news. | Fiquei surpreso com a notícia. |
| disappointed with / in | They were disappointed with the hotel. | Eles ficaram decepcionados com o hotel. |
| embarrassed about | She felt embarrassed about her mistake. | Ela ficou sem graça com o erro. |
Teacher’s tip
After a preposition, use the -ing form of a verb: interested in learning, tired of studying, excited about traveling. Never “interested in learn”.Depois de preposição, use o verbo com -ing: interested in learning, tired of studying, excited about traveling. Nunca “interested in learn”.
Pronouncing -ed
Brazilians often pronounce every -ed as an extra syllable. In fact, -ed is an extra syllable only after the sounds /t/ and /d/: interested, disappointed, excited. In bored, tired and worried it sounds like /d/; in relaxed, shocked and embarrassed, the ending sounds like /t/ (embarrassed ends in /st/).Os brasileiros muitas vezes pronunciam todo -ed como uma sílaba a mais. Na verdade, o -ed só vira sílaba extra depois dos sons /t/ e /d/: interested, disappointed, excited. Em bored, tired e worried, soa como /d/; em relaxed, shocked e embarrassed, o final soa como /t/.
- I felt relaxed after the weekend in Ubatuba. (Eu me senti relaxada depois do fim de semana em Ubatuba.)
- We were shocked by the price of the tickets. (Ficamos chocados com o preço dos ingressos.)
Traps and stronger adjectives
Excited is not “excitado”
I’m excited means “estou animado” or “estou empolgado”. It is a positive, everyday word: I’m so excited about my birthday party! Don’t avoid it because of the Portuguese word.I’m excited significa “estou animado” ou “estou empolgado”. É uma palavra positiva e do dia a dia: I’m so excited about my birthday party! (Estou muito animada com a minha festa de aniversário!) Não deixe de usá-la por causa da palavra em português.
Also, scared and scary work like a pair, but scary does not end in -ing: The movie was scary. I was scared.Além disso, scared e scary funcionam como um par, mas scary não termina em -ing: The movie was scary. I was scared. (O filme era assustador. Fiquei com medo.)
To sound more expressive, use stronger pairs such as exhausted / exhausting, fascinated / fascinating, terrified / terrifying and amazed / amazing. With these, use absolutely or really, not very.Para soar mais expressivo, use pares mais fortes como exhausted / exhausting (exausto / exaustivo), fascinated / fascinating (fascinado / fascinante), terrified / terrifying (apavorado / apavorante) e amazed / amazing (impressionado / incrível). Com eles, use absolutely ou really, e não very.
- The hike to Pedra da Gávea was absolutely exhausting. (A trilha até a Pedra da Gávea foi absurdamente exaustiva.)
- My students were fascinated by the museum. (Meus alunos ficaram fascinados com o museu.)
- I’m terrified of speaking in public. (Tenho pavor de falar em público.)
Common Mistakes
Avoid these
✗ I’m very interesting in music. ✓ I’m very interested in music.Para dizer que você tem interesse, use interested.
✗ The trip was very tired. ✓ The trip was very tiring.A viagem causa o cansaço, então é tiring.
✗ I’m worried with my grades. ✓ I’m worried about my grades.Worried é seguido de about, não de “with”.
✗ The horror movie was very scaring. ✓ The horror movie was very scary.A palavra certa é scary, sem -ing.
✗ We were very exhausted. ✓ We were absolutely exhausted.Com adjetivos fortes, use absolutely ou really.
Quick Summary
| Use | Example | Português |
|---|---|---|
| -ed: how you feel | I’m bored. | Estou entediado. |
| -ing: what causes it | The class is boring. | A aula é chata. |
| people with -ing | He is so interesting. | Ele é muito interessante. |
| -ed + preposition | She’s interested in art. | Ela se interessa por arte. |
| preposition + -ing verb | I’m tired of waiting. | Estou cansado de esperar. |
| positive excitement | We’re excited about the trip. | Estamos animados com a viagem. |
| strong adjectives | The view was absolutely amazing. | A vista era simplesmente incrível. |
Practice Time
Quiz