estiveram

Estiveram is a verb form in Portuguese, specifically the pretérito perfeito do indicativo of the verb estar, used for the third person plural (eles/elas). It means “they were” in English and denotes a completed action or state in the past.

The form is built from the stem estiver- added to the personal ending -am for the third person plural. Estar is an irregular verb, and estiveram is one of its standard past-tense forms found in both Brazilian and European Portuguese. The form appears in narrative, descriptive, and reported-speech contexts to indicate that a past condition or event occurred and was completed.

Usage notes include its contrast with the imperfect past form estar- estava/estavam, which expresses a past ongoing or habitual state. Estiveram, by contrast, emphasizes a definite occurrence or a completed state at a specific past moment. It can be used with time-adverbs such as ontem, ontem à noite, ou durante o evento, among others, to situate the action in time. It commonly appears in news, literature, and formal writing, as well as in everyday speech when referring to past presence or status.

Related forms in the same verb family include estive, estiveste, esteve, estivemos, estiveram, forming the complete pretérito perfeito do indicativo paradigm for estar. Estar itself derives from Latin stare, with Portuguese evolving numerous conjugation patterns over time.

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