rodar

Rodar is a widely used verb in Portuguese with several related meanings centered on movement, rotation and circulation. The core sense is to cause to turn or to move in a circular path, as when a wheel, a gear or a knob turns. It can also describe the action of moving along a surface by rolling, as in a vehicle or a ball.

Etymology and scope. Rodar comes from roda, wheel, and shares the root with other verbs related to turning and rotating. The term is productive in everyday language and appears in formal and informal contexts across Portuguese-speaking regions.

Principal uses. In the physical sense, rodar denotes rotation or spinning: “A roda da bicicleta roda” (The bicycle wheel is turning). It also covers the operation of mechanisms or devices: “O motor já rodou por meia hora” (The engine has run for half an hour) and, more broadly, “rodar um software” means to run or execute a program. In film and media, to rodar a film means to shoot or film it, and “rodado” as an adjective describes someone or something with experience, e.g., “um ator rodado.” News and information can “rodar” or circulate, as in “a notícia está rodando pela cidade” (the news is circulating around town). The expression “rodar o mundo” conveys traveling around the world.

Conjugation notes. Rodar is a regular -ar verb. Present indicative forms include eu rodo, tu rodas, ele roda, nós rodamos, vós rodais, eles rodam. The past participle is rodado, used in compound tenses and as an adjective.

See also. Related terms include girar (to spin), rodízio (rotation, rotating service) and rotação (rotation).