Idiomatic expressions – Part Three

If you dig around, you can find hundreds of idiomatic expressions, so we will devote several articles to this topic. Firstly, through such expressions one can understand the way of thinking of the Portuguese, to understand how they build logical chains. Secondly, such expressions are simply funny and funny, and this is great uplifting. Languages ​​are more fun to learn when it’s fun! Forward!

Check it out all the others:

• Idiomatic expressions – part I
• Idiomatic expressions – part II

Chegar a mostarda ao nariz

“Staining your nose in mustard” is unpleasant. If you walk around like this all day and only then realize that you ate a hot dog with mustard many hours ago, and no one said that your nose was dirty, it can make you angry. Therefore, this expression just expresses anger, irritation.

• Não me chateies que já me está a chegar a mostarda ao nariz. (Don’t piss me off because I’m already very irritated.)

Chegar a roupa ao pêlo

We immediately warn that the expression has a negative meaning. The associations they evoke are just as unpleasant. To begin with, let’s translate literally – turn clothes into fur. At first glance, nothing is clear. Next, let’s imagine a garden scarecrow in the form of a man in clothes. If you beat this scarecrow for a very long time, his clothes will turn into tatters, they will become like animal fur. So, this idiomatic expression means “beat”.

• Sempre que o filho se porta mal, o pai chega-lhe a roupa ao pêlo sem dó nem piedade. (Whenever the son misbehaves, the father beats him mercilessly.)

Não chegar aos calcanhares

The literal translation of this phrase is this – “do not reach the heels.” Although it sounds funny, in fact, if a person always reached his heels, and now he can’t, then there is a reason why he lost this ability. For example, his belly has grown, the person has grown old, that is, he has lost quality, status.

• Embora seja uma pessoa inteligente, a Ana não chega aos calcanhares da irmã, que é um génio. (Although she is a smart person, Anna is inferior to her sister, who is a genius.)

Dar com os pés

The phrasal verb “dar com” translates as “to meet“. Oh yes, the direct meaning of the phrase is to meet feet. Most likely, the true meaning of this phrase among the Portuguese is due to the fact that we see the back of the head, back and …. heels, that is, the legs, of a departing person. See the example and its translation:

• O João queria continuar o namoro com a Maria, mas ela deu-lhe com os pés. Já não gostava dele. (João wanted to continue the relationship with Maria, but she left. She no longer liked him.)

The second translation also makes sense at the level of sensations. When a person is open to us, he moves towards a meeting. When a person is closed, he goes away. That is, to see a person’s legs means to receive a refusal from him.

• Ele pediu-me o carro emprestado, mas eu dei-lhe com os pés. (He asked me to lend him a car, but I refused him.)

Dar para o torto

This is perhaps the easiest option, because there is nothing to even explain. The direct translation is “it will turn out crooked” and this phrase says a lot. It doesn’t turn out the way you want, it turns out badly. A straight path is always shorter than a winding, curved one. Therefore, the word “curve” is always negative.

• Ela abriu a empresa há um ano, mas as coisas deram para o torto e acabou por falir. (She opened the firm a year ago, but things went awry and ended in bankruptcy.)

Such an expression can be borrowed into any language from Portuguese.

Dar à língua

Direct translation of the expression “give to the tongue”. We’d like to add – “to give freedom” or “to give to speak.” In any case, the main function of the language is to help the mouth reproduce speech, so the figurative meaning of the expression is logical – “to speak”.

• O Estevão, em vez de trabalhar, passa o tempo a dar à língua. É tão falador! (Estevão, instead of working, spends his time talking. He is such a talker!)

Estar liso

Usually we hear the adjective “liso” more often in relation to hair, that is, “cabelo liso” means “straight hair”. However, this time it is related to money. How? We will now explain.Imagine that you have pockets full of money. They will definitely stand out on your clothes. Now imagine empty pockets. They are flat, straight, like hair! So “estar liso” means to have no money at all.

• Ainda estamos a meio do mês, e já estou completamente liso. (We are still in the middle of the month, and I am already without money.)

Estar-se nas tintas

And this expression cannot be explained in any way. Just look at it in context, try to remember it, and if it doesn’t work out, then “esteja-se nas tintas”, that is, “ignore it.”

• Estou-me nas tintas se eles não acreditarem em mim. (Ignore them if they don’t believe me.)It also means “not wanting to know,” which is related to the verb “ignore.” In any case, the expression is negative.

Sair de fininho

When they say about some action “subtly” (fino), it means that it was done skillfully, with attention to detail, carefully. If you “leave subtly”, it means so quietly that no one will notice.

• Saiu da festa de fininho para não se despedir de ninguém. (He left the party discreetly so as not to say goodbye to anyone.)

Conclusion

We hope that this topic did not tire you, but entertained you, because learning, exploring the Portuguese language is more pleasant when you experience good feelings at the same time. Idiomatic expressions are based on associations and sensations, and therefore they seem to open the door to the soul of the Portuguese. Moreover, there is something philosophical in these expressions. This topic does not end there and there will be more, because, knowing such expressions, you can not only understand the locals, but even surprise them.