You already know how to say “I worked” and “I went”. Now it’s time to say what you didn’t do and to ask questions about the past. The secret is one small word: did.Você já sabe dizer “I worked” e “I went”. Agora é hora de dizer o que você não fez e de fazer perguntas sobre o passado. O segredo é uma palavra pequena: did.
A1 Negatives with didn’t
To make a negative in the past simple, use didn’t (did not) + the base form of the verb. The base form is the verb with no changes: work, go, eat, see. The good news: didn’t is the same for all people, I, you, he, she, we and they.Para fazer a negativa no past simple, use didn’t (did not) + a forma base do verbo. A forma base é o verbo sem mudança nenhuma: work, go, eat, see. A boa notícia: didn’t é igual para todas as pessoas, I, you, he, she, we e they.
| Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|
| I worked on Saturday. | I didn’t work on Saturday. |
| She went to the gym. | She didn’t go to the gym. |
| We ate pizza. | We didn’t eat pizza. |
| They saw the movie. | They didn’t see the movie. |
The did rule
Did already shows the past. So the main verb goes back to the base form. Only one word in the sentence carries the past: did. “She didn’t went” is wrong; “she didn’t go” is right.O did já mostra o passado. Por isso o verbo principal volta para a forma base. Só uma palavra na frase carrega o passado: o did. “She didn’t went” está errado; “she didn’t go” está certo.
- I didn’t sleep well last night. (Eu não dormi bem ontem à noite.)
- My brother didn’t call me on my birthday. (Meu irmão não me ligou no meu aniversário.)
- We didn’t have class on Friday. (Nós não tivemos aula na sexta.)
- They didn’t understand the question. (Eles não entenderam a pergunta.)
Yes/no questions with did
For yes/no questions, put Did at the beginning, then the subject and the base form. In Portuguese we can make a question only with intonation (“Você viu?”), but in English you need did.Nas perguntas de sim ou não, coloque Did no início, depois o sujeito e a forma base. Em português dá para fazer pergunta só com a entonação (“Você viu?”), mas em inglês você precisa do did.
| Question | Português | Short answer |
|---|---|---|
| Did you like the food? | Você gostou da comida? | Yes, I did. / No, I didn’t. |
| Did Rafael pass the test? | O Rafael passou na prova? | Yes, he did. / No, he didn’t. |
| Did they travel in July? | Eles viajaram em julho? | Yes, they did. / No, they didn’t. |
| Did it rain yesterday? | Choveu ontem? | Yes, it did. / No, it didn’t. |
In short answers, use only did or didn’t. Don’t repeat the main verb: say “Yes, I did”, not “Yes, I liked” or “Yes, I did like”.Nas respostas curtas, use só did ou didn’t. Não repita o verbo principal: diga “Yes, I did”, e não “Yes, I liked” ou “Yes, I did like”.
Teacher’s tip
The verb to be is different: it does not use did. We say “Were you at home?” and “I wasn’t tired”, never “Did you be at home?”. Did is for all the other verbs.O verbo to be é diferente: ele não usa did. Dizemos “Were you at home?” e “I wasn’t tired”, nunca “Did you be at home?”. O did é para todos os outros verbos.
A2 Wh- questions, subject questions and more
To ask for information, put the question word first, then did, the subject and the base form. This order is the same with every question word.Para pedir informação, coloque primeiro a palavra interrogativa, depois did, o sujeito e a forma base. Essa ordem é a mesma com todas as palavras interrogativas.
- Where did you go on vacation? (Aonde você foi nas férias?)
- What did she say to you? (O que ela te disse?)
- Why did they leave so early? (Por que eles foram embora tão cedo?)
- How much did you pay for your sneakers? (Quanto você pagou pelo seu tênis?)
- What time did the concert start? (Que horas o show começou?)
Subject questions: no did
When who or what is the subject of the verb (the person or thing that did the action), we don’t use did. The verb stays in the past form. Compare the two questions below.Quando who ou what é o sujeito do verbo (a pessoa ou coisa que fez a ação), não usamos did. O verbo fica na forma do passado. Compare as duas perguntas abaixo.
Who is the subject
We want to know who did the action.Queremos saber quem fez a ação.
Who called you? Carla called me. (Quem te ligou? A Carla me ligou.)
Who is the object
We know who did the action; we want the other person.Já sabemos quem fez a ação; queremos saber a outra pessoa.
Who did you call? I called Carla. (Para quem você ligou? Liguei para a Carla.)
- What happened at school today? (O que aconteceu na escola hoje?)
- Who won the game last night? (Quem ganhou o jogo ontem à noite?)
Negative questions
We use Didn’t at the start of a question when we are surprised, or when we expect the answer “yes”. “Didn’t you get my message?” means “I think you got it, so why didn’t you answer?”Usamos Didn’t no começo da pergunta quando estamos surpresos ou quando esperamos a resposta “sim”. “Didn’t you get my message?” quer dizer “Acho que você recebeu, então por que não respondeu?”
- Didn’t you see the email from the coordinator? (Você não viu o e-mail da coordenadora?)
- Why didn’t you tell me about the test? (Por que você não me falou da prova?)
Strong negatives: never and not … any
English uses only one negative word per sentence. With never, the verb is affirmative: “I never saw him again”. With didn’t, use any or anything, not “nothing”: “I didn’t buy anything”. In Portuguese we say “não comprei nada”, with two negatives, but in English that is a mistake.O inglês usa só uma palavra negativa por frase. Com never, o verbo fica afirmativo: “I never saw him again”. Com didn’t, use any ou anything, e não “nothing”: “I didn’t buy anything”. Em português dizemos “não comprei nada”, com duas negativas, mas em inglês isso é erro.
Did for emphasis
In affirmative sentences, you can use did + base form to insist that something really happened, especially when someone doubts you: “I did study for the test! I just forgot everything.”Em frases afirmativas, você pode usar did + forma base para insistir que algo realmente aconteceu, principalmente quando alguém duvida: “I did study for the test! I just forgot everything.” (Eu estudei sim para a prova! Só esqueci tudo.)
Common Mistakes
Watch out
✗ I didn’t went to the party. ✓ I didn’t go to the party.Depois de didn’t, use a forma base do verbo.
✗ You liked the movie? ✓ Did you like the movie?Em inglês, a pergunta precisa do auxiliar did no começo.
✗ Where you went yesterday? ✓ Where did you go yesterday?Depois da palavra interrogativa vem did + sujeito + forma base.
✗ Who did win the game? ✓ Who won the game?Quando “who” é o sujeito, não usamos did.
✗ I didn’t do nothing. ✓ I didn’t do anything.Só uma negativa por frase: didn’t + anything.
Quick Summary
| Form | Example | Português |
|---|---|---|
| didn’t + base form | He didn’t come. | Ele não veio. |
| Did + subject + base form? | Did you finish? | Você terminou? |
| Short answer | Yes, I did. / No, I didn’t. | Sim. / Não. |
| Wh- + did + subject + base? | When did she arrive? | Quando ela chegou? |
| Subject question (no did) | Who broke the window? | Quem quebrou a janela? |
Practice Time
Quiz