Exclamations, part I

We are used to thinking that exclamations are an unimportant part of speech because they do not convey meaning. However, while studying a foreign language and communicating with native speakers, we suddenly feel a shortage of exclamations in this language in our vocabulary. Then we understand that exclamations are often more informative than a full-fledged phrase, and sometimes more appropriate. This is what we dedicate today’s article to.

Surprise, admiration

We are familiar with the unique word Uau! (Wow!), but repeating it a million times a day would be strange. Therefore, we offer you a whole list of exclamations suitable for different situations, and you choose the ones that you like.
Let’s start with exclamations, which are simply a set of sounds that in meaning we can equate to “Wow”, “Ah!

Oh!”, “Oh!” and so on, because they do not have a special personal translation: Ah! Ai! Chi! Ena! Ih! Oh! Oi! Ui!

Ah! Esta comida está deliciosa! (Ah! This food is so delicious!)
Chi! Esqueci-me do meu guarda-chuva em casa e agora está a chover. (Damn! I forgot my umbrella at home and now it’s raining.)
Ena! Que bela surpresa, não esperava mesmo isto! (Wow! What a wonderful surprise, I didn’t expect this!)
Ui! Quase caí das escadas! (Oops! Almost fell down the stairs!)

Surprise in this case can be both negative and positive. The same applies to exclamations that consist of several words:

A sério? (Seriously?) Eh lá! (Whoa!) Céus! (Heaven!) Esta agora?! (How is that?)
Meu Deus! (My God) Não acredito! (I don’t believe it!) O quê? (What?)
Que cena! (What a sight!) Que coisa! (What a thing!)

A sério? Ganhaste mesmo o prémio? (Seriously? Did you really win an award?)
Céus! Que susto que me pregaste! (Heaven! How you scared me!)
Meu Deus! Que notícia terrível, estou chocado! (Oh my God! What terrible news, I’m shocked!)

Warning, drawing attention

Usually we receive warnings also in the form of an exclamation, because it is necessary to avoid some undesirable consequences. It is important to convey information to a person the first time, so “strong” words and an exclamation mark are used.

Atenção! (Attention!) Cuidado! (Caution!) Olha! (Look!) Perigo! (Danger!)
In this case, there is no need to further explain anything, because it is already clear how these exclamations are used, but we will still show examples:

Atenção! Não entres aí, é perigoso! (Warning! Do not enter here, it is dangerous!)
Cuidado! O chão está escorregadio! (Caution! The floor is slippery!)
Olha! Aquele cão está solto, tem cuidado!(Look! That dog is not tied, be careful!)

To attract attention, the Portuguese use calmer words. Some of them are just sounds:

Hei! O pá! Psiu! Pst!

Hei! Espera um minuto, tenho algo para te dizer. (Hey! Wait a minute, I have something to tell you.)
Oh pá! Não faças isso, estás a exagerar! (Oops! Don’t do this, you’re exaggerating!)
Psiu! Não fales alto, estás a incomodar os outros. (Psh! Don’t speak loudly, you’ll disturb others.)

And others of them are well-known words of politeness:

Desculpe! (Sorry!) Por favor! (Please!) Se faz favor! (If you don’t mind!)

Joy, enthusiasm

We can definitely borrow some of the exclamations in this topic from the first paragraph, however, we have something to add. To this section we can add exclamations that express not only emotion, but also an assessment of what is happening.

Altamente! (High!) Boa! (Good!) Brutal! (Brutal!)

Cinco estrelas! (Five stars!) Espetacular! (Amazing!) Fixe! (Cool!) Sem palavras! (Without words!)

Boa! Conseguimos mesmo terminar o projeto a tempo. (Good! We were able to finish the project on time.)
Espetacular! Que vista maravilhosa, estou encantado! (Amazing! What an amazing view, I’m fascinated!)
Fixe! Vamos todos ao concerto amanhã! (Cool! Let’s all go to the concert tomorrow!)

Let us also mention a few words that are difficult to translate, but they contain a lot of positive feelings.

Viva! Iupi! Baril! Do belo! Ih!

Baril! Este concerto está a ser incrível! (Wow! This concert is great!)
Do belo! Este almoço está mesmo delicioso! (Beauty! This lunch is delicious!)
Ih! Que grande alegria! (Wow! What great joy!)

In principle, in most cases, these exclamations are interchangeable.

Relief, fatigue

The following exclamations express two opposing feelings, but without context it is completely unclear which of the two meanings is contained in a word that is almost impossible to translate or explain.

Bolas! Livra! Puxa! Safa! Ufa! Uf!

Examples will help you feel the right shade:

Bolas! Esqueci-me do aniversário da Maria! (Damn! Forgot about Maria’s birthday!)
Livra! Que susto, quase que batia no carro da frente! (Oh! What a scare, I almost hit the car in front!)
Safa! Ainda bem que tenho o guarda-chuva, está a chover muito! (Oh! It’s a good thing I have an umbrella, because it’s raining a lot!)
Ufa! Terminei finalmente o trabalho, que alívio! (Phew! Finally finished work, what a relief!)

And sometimes it is completely unclear whether this is good or bad:

Puxa! Este filme é mesmo emocionante! (Phew! This movie is very emotional!)

Approval

Approval has something in common with admiration, which we already discussed in the first section. This is also appreciation, also joy, but calmer, more rational.

Apoiado! (I support!) Aprovado! (Approved!) Bravo! (Bravo!) Isso! (Exactly!)

Apoiado! Concordo plenamente com o que disseste. (I support! I completely agree with what you said!)
Bravo! O teu discurso foi tão bom que merece repetição! (Encore! Your speech was so good it deserves repeating!)
Isso! Continua a trabalhar assim, estás a fazer um ótimo trabalho. (Exactly! Keep up the good work, you’re doing a great job.)

Conclusion

It is difficult to talk about this topic in more detail, because the meaning lies somewhere on another level – at the level of sensations, emotions. We hope that we managed to convey this feeling to you, so that when you hear a familiar word from our list, you will understand whether you should go and see what is happening there or whether you should quickly get away!