ativou

Ativou is a form of the Portuguese verb ativar, meaning to activate or to turn on. It is the third-person singular pretérito perfeito do indicativo, used with ele, ela or você as subject, to indicate that something was activated in the past. In everyday usage, it can refer to devices, accounts, services, or settings being enabled.

Etymology and morphology: The verb ativar comes from the Latin activus, through the Romance languages, with the suffix -ar marking it as a regular -ar verb. The preterite ending -ou is typical for the third-person singular of regular -ar verbs (ativ- + -ou gives ativou).

Usage notes: As a past tense form, ativou is used for actions completed in the past. It can apply to physical devices (Ele ativou o alarme), systems, or services (Ela ativou a conta). The corresponding passive or inanimate form often appears as foi ativado/foi ativada, depending on gender. The related noun forms include ativação (the act of activating) and ativado/ativada as the past participle, used in compound tenses or as adjectives. The adjective ativável means “activatable” or capable of being activated.

Examples: Ele ativou o sistema. A conta foi ativada com sucesso. A função pode ser ativada nas configurações.

See also: ativar, ativação, ativação de conta, ativado.