Fluent Portuguese 101: common (and funny) expressions and sayings explained
One of the best ways to sound more fluent in a language is to use common expressions. Portuguese, being an 800-year-old language (roughly), has a lot of expressions, and today I will teach you what they mean and how to use them.
Notes: I am focusing on expressions used in European Portuguese because it is my native language; illustration by Pedro Loureiro
Desenmerda-te (to unshit yourself): when you’re in a tricky situation and you’re complaining, people might tell you to unshit yourself, as in fix the problem or get yourself out of said situation. You can also say it in relation to yourself (Vou ter que me desenmerdar = I’ll have to unshit myself)
Ex: “I’m failing ap bio”
“Olha, desenmerda-te!” (Look/Well, unshit yourself!)
Tirar o cavalinho da chuva (to take one’s little horse out of the rain): usually people will say this in a situation where they’re telling someone not to expect something.
Ex: If you think I’m going to drive you to the party, podes tirar o cavalinho da chuva! (you can take your little horse out of the rain)
Isso fica no cu de Judas (that stays/is in Judas’s ass): when a place is far away, you say that it is in Judas’s ass
Ex: “I would like to visit Egypt someday”
“Credo, isso fica lá no cu de Judas!” (Good grief, that is in Judas’s ass!)
Isso fica onde Judas perdeu as botas (that stays/is where Judas lost his boots): same as the last one; it’s basically like a spin-off so you don’t have to say ass haha
Ter a pulga atrás da orelha (to have a flea behind your ear): used to express distrust or suspicion.
Ex. “When my friends started acting strange, fiquei logo com a pulga atrás da orelha, I knew they were up to something!”
São muitos anos a virar frangos (I’ve spent many years flipping/turning chicken): used to indicate experience in doing something.
Ex. “How did you know Mom would say that?”
“São muitos anos a virar frangos!” (as in, they’ve been married for a while so they would know it from their experience)
Vai chatear o Camões! (go bother Camões - the poet): used to tell someone to leave you alone
Ex: “Dad, can I have 20 dollars?”
“Vai chatear o Camões!”
Ser bom/boa como o milho (to be as good as corn): used to say someone is sexy/very good looking (usually directed at women; not a very classy thing to say)
Ex: “Look at that girl, é boa como o milho!”
Ir desta para melhor (to go from this one to a better one): to die
Ex: “O meu tio foi desta para melhor.” (My uncle went from this one to a better one)
Estar à sombra da bananeira (to be sitting under a banana tree): to be relaxed, worry-free
Acordar com os pés de fora (to wake up with your feet off the bed): used when someone is in a bad mood; equivalent to “someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed”
Ex: “Man, he’s really grumpy today, deve ter acordado com os pés de fora!” (must’ve woken up with his feet off the bed)
So those are all the sayings I have for you today. Keep in mind these expressions are not translatable, and thus don’t really work in other languages.
If you’re trying to learn Portuguese, let me know if you’d like me to start a series of posts for you guys, and leave any suggestions for future posts in my ask box.
I really hope you liked this post, it was very fun to make! Let me know if you’d like me to make a part 2! ♡
