The following is a list of funny words and expressions in Portuguese that make me chuckle (or stutter). I've learned most of them from TV commercials:
intestino preguiçoso - a polite way to talk about constipation; but it literally translates to “lazy intestine”. Haha. But I guess it's not that different from “upset stomach” in English, which is pretty silly if you think about it.
cabeleleiro- : hairdresser/barber/hair stylist-- this word is so hard to say! So is "aeroporto", for that matter.
400 cavalos de força: 400 horsepower .... but it sounds so much funnier if you literally translate it to “400 horses of force” (400 babies!)
está formigando: it's how to describe your limbs when they fall asleep (for example: “minha perna está formigando” means “my leg is (falling) asleep”. But the Portuguese phrases uses the insect, the ant, as a verb. So you're literally saying “my leg is anting”. I remembered this wrong when I first heard it, and later said that I had “formiginhas”: little ants. Alexandre thought it was hilarious and still teases me for saying “formiginhas” instead of “está formigando”.
Mentirinhas: These are cookies, kind of like Nilla Wafters. But they're called “little white lies”. Is that because women tell little white lies to their husbands about how many they ate?pula-pula: this is the word for bouncy house. But it literally translates to “jump-jump”. It so cute, especially if you put the stress on the first “jump” in English: “Let's go on the JUMP-jump!” I already love the sound of the term “bouncy house” in English, so I can't decide which one I like better.
Any other words or expressions that entertain you in your foreign language? (Have at it, Kristin!)
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Yay! Thanks for the shout-out =)
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I have 1 more I'm going to include in my next post about this topic.
dar la luz "give to the light" in Spanish is much nicer than "giving birth"
3 years learning Portuguese and I still stumble over the cabeleleiro... rã (frog) or even better rãs (frogs)is also hilariously impossible to pronounce: the r equals a kind of h/r,the ã a nasle a...
ReplyDeleteHey Danielle, thanks so much for your sweet comment on my blog! Don't tell everyone, but I probably will go/move there (in september!), hehe. I just haven't made the official declaration of "Yes, I am going to Brazil for sure." But that needs to happen. Anyway, love this post, I hadn't heard any of these before! The formiginhas are especially entertaining :P Can't think of any additions off the top of my head but I'll have to keep my ear out :)
ReplyDeletep.s.-not sure if it's recent or I'm just slow on the uptake, but I like the right-side navigation with topics of posts, makes it a lot easier to find things!
You misspelled "cabeleireiro" hehehe
ReplyDeleteSee? If I can't even spell it, imagine how badly I pronounce it!
ReplyDeletehi! just curious, what city are you in?
ReplyDeletehey there are way too many ridiculous portuguese words. the other night i discovered a word that i refuse to even try to say. it's not funny, just ridiculous, auréola. looks innocent enough, but listen to a brazilian saying it and you'll scrunch your face at its ridiculousness! :D
my favorite things about portuguese is calling my parents "breads" and calling a "Mrs." a carrot ;)
The "formiguinhas" was cute! I have put one in my blog that I find funny: armadillo. I also put the Portuguese translate that is also funny: tatu.
ReplyDeleteThere are few others that I like, not because I find it funny, but, for some reason, the sound appeals to me. "To whom it may concern" is one of them.
I just learned a fun one in Chilean Spanish the other day. perseguagui (not sure of the spelling on that). It's a person who always thinks everyone is talking about them or out to get them. Someone called me one. The word actually made me laugh so hard that I didn't care. Probably not the expected reaction.
ReplyDelete