Saudade de in Portuguese: Say What or Whom You Miss
After saudade, de introduces the person, place, or experience you miss: saudade de casa, saudade de você, or saudade de viajar.
Real Life Portuguese · 6 min read · Updated October 14, 2026
The short answer
Saudade is a feminine noun, and de connects it to the thing or person you miss. The preposition contracts with articles: de + a becomes da, de + o becomes do, and de + as becomes das. Before a name or você, there is no article to contract.
Use de to name the person, place, or experience
When de comes before an infinitive, the sentence can describe an activity or experience you miss doing. The phrase still works as a noun phrase rather than a direct English-style verb translation.
Estou com saudade de você.
I miss you.
Tenho saudade da minha cidade.
I miss my city.
Estou com saudade de viajar.
I miss traveling.
Choose a common phrase pattern
Ter saudade de and estar com saudade de are both natural ways to express missing someone or something. Speakers can choose between them depending on the sentence and their own usage; you do not need to force a difference every time.
Matar a saudade means to reconnect with or satisfy that longing by seeing someone, returning to a place, or revisiting a favorite experience. The phrase is idiomatic, so learn it as a complete expression.
Tenho saudade das conversas com meus amigos.
I miss conversations with my friends.
Vamos nos encontrar para matar a saudade.
Let’s meet up and catch up / reconnect.
Que saudade do verão no Brasil!
I really miss summer in Brazil!
Make the phrase personal
Add a time or reason when you want to give more context: desde que me mudei (since I moved), faz muito tempo (it has been a long time), or quando eu morava no Brasil (when I lived in Brazil). A short sentence with one detail usually sounds more natural than searching for a single English word that covers every nuance of saudade.
Put it into practice
Remember the frame saudade de + person, place, or activity. Use da, do, das, or dos when de meets a definite article.
Quick practice
Which Portuguese example matches “I really miss summer in Brazil”?
Choose an answer to check yourself.
This guide is an original Real Life Portuguese adaptation of an earlier article from I Speak Portuguese.
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