Pronoun Placement with Gerunds

In Portuguese, pronouns love to cling to verbs. When you use a gerund, you have two main spots for the pronoun. You can put it before the gerund. This is called proclisis. Or you can put it after the gerund. This is called enclisis. In Brazil, people almost always put it before. They say estou te vendo (I am seeing you). It sounds smooth and musical. In Portugal, they prefer putting it after with a hyphen. They say estou vendo-te. It sounds a bit more structured. Both are correct! However, there is a catch. Some words act like magnets. They pull the pronoun toward them. If a magnet word is present, the pronoun must go before the verb. This happens in both Brazil and Portugal. It is like the pronoun has a crush on the magnet word.

1. 1Start with your main verb in the gerund form. This ends in -ndo. Example: chamando.
2. 2Pick your object pronoun. Example: me.
3. 3Decide on the position.
4. 4Option A (Before): Place the pronoun right before the gerund. me chamando.
5. 5Option B (After): Attach the pronoun to the end with a hyphen. chamando-me.
6. 6Check for magnets. If you see não, que, or quem, move the pronoun to the front. Não me chamando.
7. 7Add your auxiliary verb if needed. Usually, this is estar. Ele está me chamando.

You use this pattern whenever you describe an ongoing action. Imagine you are at a job interview. You want to say you are developing a project. You would say Estou o desenvolvendo. Or maybe you are ordering food. You see the waiter bringing your juice. You say Ele está me trazendo o suco. It is perfect for real-time updates. Use it when you are asking for directions. "Are you showing me the way?" becomes Você está me mostrando o caminho?. It makes your Portuguese sound active and alive. It is much better than just using the simple present. It shows you are right there in the moment.

Don't use the gerund if the action isn't actually happening now. If you do something every day, use the simple present. Also, be careful with prepositions. In European Portuguese, they often avoid the gerund after a. They say estou a falar instead of estou falando. If you are in Lisbon, using the gerund might make you sound like a Brazilian soap opera character. That's not a bad thing, but it might not be the local vibe! Also, avoid putting a pronoun at the very start of a sentence. Never say Me ligando ele estava. That is a big no-no. Always have something before that pronoun if it's in the front.

One big mistake is forgetting the hyphen in the "after" position. You cannot write vendo me. It must be vendo-me. Yes, even native speakers mess this up sometimes in text messages! Another mistake is ignoring magnet words. If you say Não vendo-te, it sounds very clunky. The não is too strong. It must be Não te vendo. Also, watch out for the pronouns o, a, os, and as. When they go after a gerund, they don't change their shape like they do with infinitives. You don't need to add an "l" or "r". Just keep it simple. Vendo-o is correct. Don't try to make it vê-lo unless you change the whole verb form.

Compare the gerund with the infinitive. With an infinitive, like para te ver, the pronoun is very stable. With the gerund, it's more fluid. Also, compare it with the simple present. Eu te vejo (I see you) is a fact. Eu estou te vendo (I am seeing you) is a movie playing in your head. In Brazil, the "before" position is so common it's the default. In Portugal, the estar a + infinitive is the default. So, estou te chamando (BR) vs estou a chamar-te (PT). It’s the same meaning, just a different outfit. Think of it like wearing flip-flops versus wearing loafers. Both get you to the beach, but one feels a bit more formal.