Spanish combines the verb haber with the -do form (the past participle) of the main verb to form a series of tenses which are traditionally called the "perfect" tenses. We are referring to such items as:
he comido
habrá salido
habían escrito
habíamos trabajado
si hubiera hecho
Portuguese has this kind of construction too, but it uses the verb ter (cognate with Spanish tener) instead of haber.
The Portuguese constructions are parallel to the Spanish constructions most of the way. For example, we can say that the following, under most circumstances, are equivalents:
| Spanish | Portuguese | English |
|---|---|---|
| habían escrito | tinham escrito | they had written |
| habríamos escrito | teríamos escrito | we would have written |
| habrán escrito | terão escrito | they will have written |
| si hubiera escrito | se tivesse escrito | if I had written |
Now, however, we come to a slight, but very important, exception. The present tense of Spanish haber + verb is usually not the exact equivalent of the present tense of Portuguese ter + verb. Observe carefully:
Spanish: he escrito I have written
Portuguese: tenho escrito I have been writing
Spanish: hemos trabajado We have worked
Portuguese: temos trabalhado We have been working
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