ficar
Portuguese, verb/fiˈka(ʁ)/
ficar is spelled F-I-C-A-R (5 letters) and appears 537 times per million words in written Portuguese, the 171st most frequent Portuguese word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Ficar is a Portuguese verb meaning “to become; to get; to end up” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) defines it as “permanecer num lugar”.
What does ficar mean in English?
verb
- 1
to become; to get; to end up
Eu vou ficar rico.
- 2
to be, to be located
A casa dela fica na esquina desse quarteirão.
- 3
to stay (at); to remain (in)
Ela ficou em casa, não quis vir com a gente.
- 4
to remain (to be left over)
Só ficaram algumas migalhas.
- 5
to stay (to remain in a particular place)
Fiquei três dias em Munique.
- 6
not to go any further
A discussão fica por aqui.
- 7
forms the habitual aspect [with gerund]; to tend to; to do often
João fica lendo o dia inteiro.
- 8
Brazilslangto make out (to share kisses and physical touch; does not imply sex)
Source: English Wiktionary, Portuguese section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How Portuguese dictionaries define it
verb: 1. permanecer num lugar 2. se tornar 3. se envolver com alguém apenas por uma noite, ou por período de tempo breve, sem compromisso 4. ter nota insuficiente para passar em uma dada matéria escolar
The definition in the Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário), in Portuguese.
Source: Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of ficar
- fico first-person present singular
- fiquei first-person preterite singular
- ficado participle past
- c-qu alternation
- ficares infinitive second-person singular
- ficarmos first-person infinitive plural
- ficardes infinitive plural second-person
- ficarem infinitive plural third-person
- ficando gerund
- ficados masculine participle past
- ficada feminine participle past
- ficadas feminine participle past
- ficas indicative present second-person
- fica indicative present singular
- ficamos first-person indicative plural
- ficais indicative plural present
- ficam indicative plural present
- ficava first-person imperfect indicative
Source: English Wiktionary and Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce ficar?
- Brazil /fiˈka(ʁ)/
- Brazil [fiˈka(h)]
- /fiˈka(ɾ)/
Sources: English Wiktionary, Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to ficar
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is ficar in Portuguese?
ficar appears 537 times per million words in written Portuguese.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).