Looking for a Brazilian Language Exchange Partner?

Marcelo from the impressive blog Learning English for Pleasure is ready to start speaking and is looking for a potential language exchange partner.

Have a look at his blog (it’s useful for learners of Portuguese as well) and leave him a comment if you’re interested!

Has it come to this?

After some years of learning Portuguese off & on, I had a little pet theory that having conversational skills was most important.  I didn’t worry myself with having HUGE vocabulary, I figured I just needed enough vocabulary to get around such situations and that my vocabulary would quickly grow upon immersion.  Yet, as it turns out, after actually moving to Brazil, you come to find out that a limited vocabulary is annoying, makes one feel, well, stupid.  It’s true that speaking skills explode when immersed, but more in terms of gestures and sayings, somewhat less in terms of vocabulary, especially that lingering 1 or 2% of words that you hear with a frequency of less than once per month.

So that’s where flashcards came into my life.  I was pretty disappointed with what the internet had to offer.  Most of the word lists I was already familiar.  However, looking back, I had fond memories of reading a Portuguese language book called “Travessia”.  This book is full of stories, each with a vocabulary key, I had read them all and even scribbled in definitions for words I had painstakingly looked up in my dictionary.  So, page-by-page I added anything I (still) didn’t know to my flashcards.  It was a big relief knowing that all my hard work flipping through the dictionary wasn’t for nothing!  I would indeed, eventually, learn these words.

For whatever reason, I added all vocabulary from a particular story onto a single flashcard.  Initially, this amounted to a list of semi-related words and evolved to prefer multi-word phrases.  In essence, on a single flashcard, I could summarize everything I had learned from a particular short story.  Soon, I had completed this activity for the whole 200+ page book resulting in less than 100 flashcards.  (Later, I discovered LingQ which is also based around reading stories and saving vocabulary to flashcards.)

Upon review of the flashcards, this list of phrases usually evoked memories of the original story.   In real life, I sometimes drew upon this vocabulary, but far too often the word was left dangling on the tip of my tongue.  I needed a better way to trick my mind into storing this vocabulary.  So I began creating pretend narratives when reviewing.  This forced me not only to acknowledge recognition of the phrase, but to also insert it into an often ridiculous context (whatever came to mind quickly) created by stringing together the phrases of the card.  To a greater degree, phrases are tied in with emotional context of how they might be used in real life.

By the way, the fastest way to store words into memory is to show the English equivalent on the frontside and force yourself to remember the translation.  Pretty old-fashioned but it works.  However, this works best for common nouns that occur in lots of different contexts (in fact, I suggest it for such things).  As you advance your vocabulary, you’ll find that an English word will evoke many possibilities in Portuguese.  Forcing such 1-to-1 relationships is no longer efficient.

Beyond my book Travessia and LingQ, I started reading articles daily and saving clippings of new phrases via a Firefox addon.  I had written a flashcard editing software which includes the ability to import my saved phrases with click-of-a-button access to several web resources as needed.  What I found is that websites with searchable translations like Linguee proved the most useful.  Often, I ditched the original saved phrase in favor of another more distinctly unique.  I parse my saved phrases about once every month.  After all editing is done, I reorder grouping related terms and export for study in Anki.  So what does it look like?  Ten such flashcards are shown below! (Derived from reading ~40 articles)  Has it come to this?  Other ideas?  After reviewing was it fun creating a story from each of the sets?

Side note: On my site I’ve linked to a lot of Brazilian websites for learning English.  I have all of these in Google Reader and take a look at them when searching for phrases to add.  I have to say, it’s pretty disappointing how little material they contain, just lots of babbling in Portuguese about language learning (or the perils of being a language teacher) which isn’t helping Brazilians much.  They’re probably great teachers, but their blogs aren’t concerned much with teaching anymore.

a fuga de presos algemado e surrado por… 60 presos fugiram das carceragens relutam em impor punições demasiado duras tiroteios fatais a polícia capixaba	jailbreak handcuffed and beaten/flogged by… 60 prisoners escaped from holding cells/jails reluctant to impose punishments too harsh fatal shootings/shootouts the state police (from Espirito Santo)
Mais um tema incontornável. um esquema de grilagem de terra neste mesmo Recinto revogar esta decisão uma enxurrada de refugiados depredam mulheres acabaram desencadeando uma enxurrada de revelações de fraude	One more extremely relevant subject a scheme of falsifying/misappropriating land documents in this very Chamber/within these walls [recinto=place, precinct, enclosure] repeal/void this decision a flood of refugees (they) prey on women led to cascading revelations of fraud
não estou demasiado preocupado ele teve um mal súbito ao volante o ônibus depredado desceu a rua ferroviária depredada À medida que o inchaço diminuía,…	I am not especially concerned he collapsed at the wheel the plundered bus headed down the street dilapidated rail yard As the swelling dies down,…
concorre nas urnas nervos à flor da pele fumante assíduo O assíduo freqüentador de festas saca-rolhas	competes at the ballot box nerves on edge / nervous chain smoker (fumante inveterado) party hopper / frequent guest at parties corkscrew
Uma palavra de cautela Isto reverte a favor de… essa diferença se deve ao fato de que ponto contraditório da hipótese Ela ressaltou a frase uma correia de ombro amovível e ajustável marca-texto amarelo asa de xícara	A word of caution This is for the betterment of… this difference stems from the fact that a point contradictory to the hypothesis She highlighted the phrase detachable and adjustable shoulder strap [tiracolo, alça de ombro, tira pra transporte] yellow highlighter cup handle
fincar 33 bandeiras atirei o pau no… Chega de treta, … silêncio estupefato jogou/chutou para escanteio	plant 33 flags (no chão) [also: fincar=to root] I threw a stick at… Enough bullshit, … [treta=nasty trick, made-up story, bullshit conversation] baffled silence brushed aside / kicked to the curb [thrown to the corner]
um craque no campo enfrentar a concorrência mais acirrada na primeira fase não de forma incontornável mala sem alça permaneceria alijado	a soccer superstar face a more intense competition in the first stage not inevitable/unavoidable damned irritating [lit: suitcase without a handle] would remain on the sidelines (excluded)
contrato de trabalho pode ser rescindido a qualquer momento apenas bobagem varejista frete grátis chupa-chupa açucarado	employment contract can be terminated at any time just bullshit [uma porcaria, besteira] retailer free shipping sugary lollipop
mirar num alvo inimigo mesmo no escuro. derrubado um avião tiveram sorte de escapar ilesos enxurrada de denúncias de alegadas… um avião não tripulado	to zero in on an enemy target even in the dark. shot down an airplane were lucky to escape unharmed a flurry of complaints alleging… unmanned aerial vehicle
sofreram desmatamento total, o chamando corte raso efeito estufa riquezas naturais com todas as suas riquezas subtraídas	suffered complete deforestation, so-called clear cutting greenhouse effect natural resources with all of its wealth gone

Material Posted on Quizlet

I posted most all of my flashcards on the website Quizlet a few days ago, over 1800 in total! (mostly advanced level, not worth it if you’re just starting out).  I posted in the group Portuguese (Brazilian) Language Group, of which you need to be registered to view.  You’ll see my posts under the username “erikspen“.

BTW: There are now Android flashcards apps (AnyMemo) that automatically download sets from Quizlet so don’t feel restricted to only using Anki.

In regard to my flashcards, these are NOT your standard flashcards giving names of fruits or things of the like.  Mainly, these come from reading material, so the vocabulary is a little beyond normal spoken Portuguese.  Remember how some Portuguese books have a little story followed by a vocabulary “key”.  Well, most of my cards are kind of like that, except usually I’ve tried to include the context from where it came as well. [though my style (and quality) has varied over time. In my home version, I like putting all vocabulary from a particular story onto a single flashcard for faster review and keep related concepts grouped together]

As an example, look at some of my most recent entries:

Now look at the translations.  These are common word combinations!

After just a few times reviewing the cards in Portuguese, you’ll quickly catch on to the meaning without needing the translations.  That’s the beauty of using phrases.  The question is, does this imply that you fully understand the embedded vocabulary such as inegável, estrondoso, ofegante, empatar, and ostentar?  Well, at least you have a hint! (and the hint itself is also useful!)  Does it imply you can remember the phrase in real life?  This may take a while.  The problem is that just recognizing a phrase doesn’t make it available to our procedural memory (immediately accessible in everyday speech).  My suggestion is to focus on saying the phrases out loud, focus on stressing the emotional meaning as you say them, and perhaps try inserting them into a pretend narrative in you mind (Such pretend stories become more interesting by putting several vaguely-related phrases on a single flashcard as I suggested previously).

Every field of interest has its own vocabulary, its own quirks, so to some extent I encourage everyone to develop their own flashcards to compliment their own interests.  I strongly encourage anyone to delete whatever they don’t find interesting!  You need to follow what you enjoy if you’re going to continue successfully.

Top 5 Portuguese Dictionary Tools Online

1. Word Reference.com (also has Portuguese-Spanish dictionary)
2. babLa (for both its definitions and its translation database)
3. Linguee (translation database perhaps better than babLa)
4. Michaelis (sometimes looks like a big black block of confusing text, but is populated with many short phrases much like WordRef)
5. FrazeIt (simply phrases, but supports wildcard searches and is great for seeing how to use a word in more varied contexts)

Honorable Mention: Priberam, Infopedia, COMPARA, iDic,  and Pensamento

Vocab: Lock

The focus today will be on vocabulary associated with the word “lock”.  First let’s look at different types of locks, each of which you should memorize:

• lock (door)
• lock (masterlock)
• lock (for a bike)
• lock (suitcase, seat buckle, shoe buckle)
• to lock up the bike
• to lock up the door

In Portuguese:

• fechadura
  [pick a lock = forçar a fechadura, keyhole = buraco de fechadura, deadbolt = fechadura de segurança]
• cadeado
• (bar-type) tranca; (spiral type) cadeado espiral; (chain) corrente
• fecho
• prender a bicicleta
• trancar a porta / fechar a porta à chave
  [under lock and key = debaixo de chave; fechar a sete chaves]

None of these examples uses another very common verb relating to locking: travar.  The meaning of travar is varied (more than I can cover).  I’ll give some examples to memorize:

• A well fought battle
• in the locked position
• anti-lock braking system
• combination lock
• Such movements must not be stopped.
• should be kept separate.
• felt stuck/unable to do anything

In Portuguese:

• Uma batalha muito bem travada
• na posição travada
• sistema de travagem antibloqueio
• combinação ou “trava” [padlock = cadeado/fechadura/trava]
• Tais movimentações não podem ser travadas.
• deveriam ser travadas em separado.
• se sentiu travado

So ‘travar’ (in the sense of locking) usually means something like stuck in certain position or state.

The default word for “lock” (in the traditional sense) is probably trancar.  The meaning of this word is less varied and if you forget everything above, people will most likely understand you.  The only slightly odd example I can think of might be “trancar a matrícula” = “hold off or cancel on registering for courses”.

To memorize these, I would throw all 6 of the lock examples onto a single flashcard in Anki.  For the list of phrase for travar, again, I would put all on a single flashcard, except in this case I would put the Portuguese translations on the front-side.  The idea being to check that you understand the various meanings rather than forcing yourself to translate all of the examples given.

Vocab: Trick

When I look at the word “trick” alone, I usually relate it to a magic trick, or in Portuguese: truque de mágica.  So your first impression might be: trick = truque, easy!  “Trick” is used very broadly in English, it can mean “gimmick”, “ruse”, “misleading someone”, and we can’t use “truque” in all of these instances, at least, not so easily.  I’ll just give some common phrases that you can try to work into your vocabulary:

Trick

truque de mágica (magic trick)
truque sujo; golpe sujo (dirty trick)

Mislead

Fui enganada! (I was tricked!)

Antics, Mischief

doces ou travessuras? (trick or treat?)
se ele cometer alguma travessura (if he ever gets up to anything)

Ruse, Cunning

através de artimanhas (trick one’s way into something; through trickery)
a artimanha do costume; velho artifício; velho truque (same old trick)

Gimmick, Smokescreen, Decoy

formas de engano ou artifício (forms of deception or contrivance)
fogos de artifício (fireworks)
artifícios contábeis (accounting tricks/gimmicks)

Expressions from ProZ.com

Some new phrases for more advanced students who like practicing with flashcards.  Scrapped these from a site yesterday, the site has over 50,000 of such phrases, but most are technic/engineering phrases.

A few proverbs are mixed in, but a much better list can be found here.

On a side note, some new sites for phrase and translation searches:

Linguee
Pensador (UOL)
Idiomatic Expressions

esfera pública	public arena
do domínio público	public record
manobra publicitária / golpe publicitário	publicity stunt
dar consistência/consolidar	pull something together
Ordem de contratação (de mão-de-obra)	purchase order
sem cobertura	out in the open (..sem proteção..expostos..)
abafador	damper
chave de boca	double-ended open-end wrenches
tempo de fadiga/vida útil à fadiga	fatigue life
conformar-se, aceitar, acatar, ficarem submissos.	fall in line
essa é a minha praia	I’m big time
ter menos cuidado consigo, desmazelar-se um pouco	letting herself go a bit
desafiar os limites	push the envelope
nunca se deve desperdiçar uma crise	“A Crisis Is a Terrible Thing to Waste”
dançar à beira do caos	“to dance at the edge of chaos”
castelos nas nuvens	a castle in the sky
um manjar digno dos deuses	A dish fit for the gods
um tolo e seu dinheiro logo se separam	A fool and his money are soon parted
uma boa pergunta é a metada da resposta	A good question is half the answer
uma revista de primeira	a kick-ass magazine
A ignorância e o vento são do maior atrevimento	A little knowledge is a dangerous thing[not a common saying]
uma agulha no palheiro	A needle in a haystack
os dados estão lançados	all bets are off
tábua/tábula rasa / tela em branco	blank slate
o tirava do sério	blew his stackPor mais que tente, difícil o Pedro tirar o João do sério.
a soprar no vento	blowin’ in the wind
desmascarar	bust wide openNão quis desmascarar-nos. (I didn’t want to blow our cover.) Temos de o desmascarar. (We must call his bluff.)
continuou me enganando / me enrolando	but kept stringing me along
“Se correr o bicho pega, se ficar o bicho come”	catch 22
abriu uma clareira no manto de vegetação rasteira	cleared a path through old undergrowth
os fins justificam os meios	the ends justify the means
paquerador; namorador; vulgo “galinha”	flirty guy
enfiar os pés pelas mãos, dar um fora	Foot-in-mouth
de fora pra dentro.	from the outside in
ele está esbanjando dinheiro	he’s misspending/flashing/spending/wasting cash
não preciso que andem em cima de mim	I don’t need you breathing down my neck
“Quem está na chuva é para se molhar” ou “Quem pode pode, quem não pode se sacode”	If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen
nem de longe	not by a longshot
tô boiando	I’m out in the cold (Not understanding)
medicamentos de venda livre	over-the-counter medication
prestar homenagem, homenagear	pay homage
energizante; estimulante	picker-upper
fios da trama	plot threads
pirar	pop your cork (ficar doido/perder a cabeça)
baforada de ar	puff of air
vão muito além	reach well beyond
seguindo um palpite, ruminando um palpite	running down a hunch (have a hunch = ter um palpite, venture a guess = arriscar um palpite)
novo fôlego	second wind
desembucha logo	so lay it on me now
enfeitiçar/feitiço	spell casting
expandir nossos horizontes	spread our wings
certinha	squeaky clean
agente teatral	stage-agent
bons sonhos	sweet dreams
(ter uma) queda por doces	Sweet tooth [weakness for sweets]
fornecer o que falta	take up the slack
jogar verde	test the waters
(pôr/colocar/botar) a carroça à frente dos bois	put the cart before the horse / get ahead of ourselves
…estar na casa das centenas …	to be well into the hundreds
largar tudo para ficar com alguém / colocar seu destino nas mãos de alguém	to cast one’s lot with someone
ser o sítio certo	to have it right
ficar em águas de bacalhau	wither on the vine
triturador de madeira	wood chipper
lema de vida	words to live by
não há bela sem senão	You have to take the good with the bad
pagar os olhos da cara	you will be paying through the nose

FlashcardExchange.com

I’ve already linked to this site years ago, but recently decided to repost some material (various expression) here as a reminder to anyone interested.

faça alguma coisa! aproximadamente às duas andar pela cidade eles deixaram suas coisas espalhadas por toda parte não estou disposto a fazer tudo isso de graça que tal se fizemos isso?	do something about it! at about 2:00 to walk about the town they left all their things lying about I´m not about to do all that for nothing how about doing this?
acima menciondado liberdade de cátedra ano letivo os ladrões conseguiram entrar por uma janela este carro tem lugar para 4 pessoas por sua iniciativa	the above mentioned, the aforementioned academic freedom academic year the burglars gained access through a window this car accommodates 4 people of his own accord
segundo dizem todos de modo nenhum estou todo dolorido um gosto cultivado conseguir comunicar algo a alguém apanhar alguém em flagrante	by all accounts on no account I´m aching all over an acquired taste to get something across to somebody to catch somebody in the act
é só encenação na qualidade de presidente, eu… morto em combate tomar atitude tino para os negócios não faz sentido	it´s only an act acting in my capacity as chairman I… killed in action to take action business acumen it doesn´t add up
é pouca coisa toxicômano além disso… enfocar no problema hábil sentir-se à altura da tarefa	it doesn´t add up to much drug addict in addition… to address the problem adept at… to feel adequate to the task
sem mais cerimônias é vantajoso para nós caso sofrer de a sociedade de abundânica temos dinheiro para comprar um carro?	without further ado it´s to our advantage love affair to be afflicted with the affluent society can we afford a car?
está acontecendo algo receio que sim, não dia após dia repetidas vezes passe primeiro! afinal (de contas)	there´s something afoot I´m afraid so, not day after day time after time after you! after all
sobre um fundo azul atingir a maioridade faixa etária dos 40 aos 50 anos já em 1960 acietar fazer consentir algo	againts a blue background to come of age the 40 to 50 age group as long ago as 1960 to agree to do to agree to something
foi combinado que vá em frente! pode falar ter vantagem sobre alguém pretender fazer completamente só	it was agreed that go ahead (and do something) go ahead (speak)! to be ahead of somebody (fig) to aim to do all alone
é só isso? não estou nada cansada ao todo com toda a energia dá no mesmo não tocar em algo	is that all? I´m not at all tired all in all all out it´s all the same to leave sth alone
sem falar em… junto com por outro lado se podia… qual é a soma total? espantar-se de,com reparar seus erros	let alone.. along with alternatively one could… how much is that altogether? to be amazed at to make amends
compensar alguém por algo aí tem coisa enlouquecer equivaler a isso é mais do que suficiente ter tempo, lugar de sobra	to make amends to sb for sth there´s something amiss to run amok to amount to (be same as) this is ample to have ample time, room
achar graça em ele ficou sem graça para grande diversão minha em última análise fundear como previsto	to be amused at he was not amused much to my amusement in the final analysis to drop anchor as anticipated
em todo o caso não consigo mais ouvi-lo eu irei de qualquer jeito não o vejo em parte nenhuma separados por 10 milhas além de	in any case I can´t hear him anymore I shall go anyhow I donót see him anywhere 10 miles apart apart from
peço desculpas por… apresentar desculpas não me atrai pareceria que essa caminhada me abriu o apetite valer para	please accept my appologies for… to send one´s appologies it doesn´t appeal to me it would appear that that walk has given me an appetite to be applicable to
não seria conveniente eu comentar a região de DC sustentar que se for necessário providenciamos um carro para buscá-lo providências necessárias	it would not be appropriate for me to comment the DC area to argue that should the need arise we have arranged for a car to pick you up necessary arrangements
duas vezes maior que por mais que eu goste deles, eu no decorrer dos anos quanto a o mais cedo possível como tal	twice as big much as I like them, I as the years went by as for as soon as possible as such
ter vergonha de é procurar encrenca designar algo a na suposição que desencaminhar de dois em dois	to be ashamed of it´s just asking for trouble to assign sth to (task) on the assumption that to lead astray two at a time
expiar a carta junta, anexa ele não fez nada para ajudar encarregar-se de constatei que em vão, inutilmente	to atone for the attached letter he made no attempt to help attend to (matter) it has come to my attention that to no avail
todos os recursos à sua disposição o gerente pode me atender? acima, abaixo da média longamente esperado eu compreendo perfeitamente que desvanecer-se	every available means is the manager available? above, below average long awaited I am fully aware that to fade away
sair mal ter interesse pessoal no meu íntimo… voltar atrás antecedentes familiares fazer as malas	to go awry to have an axe to grind at the back of my mind… back out (of promise) family background to pack one´s bags
olheiras dar começo é a vez deles de agir contar com sem exceção atrás das grades	bags under the eyes to start the ball rolling the ball is in their court to bank on bar none behind bars
o imprescindível ele consiguiu mais do que pediu uma saraivada de perguntas estar estacionado em uma empresa sediada no Rio estamos lutando em vão	the bare essentials he got more than he bargained for a barrage of questions to be based at a Rio-based firm we´re fighting a loosing battle
ninguém sabe o paradeiro dele devo então concluir que só um momentinho, por favor fora de mão falar com rodeios cair fora	he is nowhere to be found am I to understand that bear with me a minute off the beaten track to beat about the bush to beat it!
isso é o cúmulo espancar o atrativo disso é que eles formam uma dupla estranha isso dá por resolvida a questão de desde o início	that beats everything! beat up (person) the beauty of it is that they are strange bedfellows that begs the question of right from the beginning
em nome de em favor de nos bastidores não sou partidário de castigos corporais tenho uma vaga lembrança disso o nome não me é estranho	on behalf of (person, organization) on behalf of (in aid of) behind the scenes I don´t believe in coporal punishment that rings a bell the name rings a bell
estar empenhado em isso não tem nada a ver estar fora de si na melhor das hipóteses tiar o maior partido possível de algo fazer o possível	to be bent on that´s beside the point to be beside oneself (with anger) at best to make the best of sth to do one´s best
que eu saiba o melhor é… apostar em é coisa segura isso! em melhor situação	to the best of my knowledge the best thing to do is… to bet on it´s a safe bet that´s better! better off
seria melhor para você assim a estrada daqui a DC juntos só tínhamos 5 cá entre nós ter preconceito contra até o fim	you´d be better off this way the road between here and DC we only have 5 between us between you and me to be biased against to the bitter end
faz um frio glacial esmurrar alguém e dixá-lo de olho roxo aí está preto no branco desmaiar uma folha de relva chegamos a lugar nenhum	it´s bitterly cold to give sb a black eye there it is in black and white black out a blade of grass we drew a blank
no volume máximo está na cara Deus escreve certo por linhas tortas fazer vista grossa a numa bendita ignorância bloqueio	full blast it´s blatantly obvious it was a blessing in disguise turn a blind eye on in blissful ignorance mental block
assoar o nariz char ás vias de fato estar na fossa uma vez na vida e outra na morte de estalo pagar para ver alguém	to blow one´s nose to come to blows to have the blues only once in a blue moon out of the blue to call sb´s bluff
gabar-se de ser de bom,mau agouro (para) atolar-se (em) não dá para imaginar transboradar estou morrendo de calor	to boast of to bode well,ill (for) to get bogged down (in) (fig) it boggles the mind boil over I´m boiling hot
corretamente o hotel está lotado botar alguém na rua chagar às raias de estar muito entediado um líder nato	by the book the hotel is booked up to give sb the boot border on (fig) to be bored to death a born leader
tirar algo a limpo preparar-se diversificar suas atividades abuso de confiança ganha-pão quebrar a perna	to get to the bottom of sth to brace oneself branch out breach of trust bread and butter (money) to break one´s leg
sair sem ganhar nem perder soltar-se fazer uma pausa arrumbar o sol apareceuto desmanchar-se	to break even to break free to take a break break into (a house) the sun broke through to break up (a marriage)
vislumbrar cosiderar o lado positivo não posso me resolver a… ocasionar introduzir ela estava à beira de desatar em prantos	to glimpse briefly to look on the bright side I can´t bring myself… bring about to bring up (question) she was on the brink of tears
quebrar um lar desfeito filhos de pais separados num inglês mascavado folhar um livro dar o fora em	to go broke (business) a broken home childrem from broken homes in broken English to browse through a book to brush off
fazer o jogo de empurra incluir algo no orçamento estou com o orçamento apertado estar abarrotado de dar com desgastar-se	to pass the buck to budget for something I´m on a tight budget to be bulging with bump into s.o. to burn o.s. Out
cair na gargalhada desatar a chorar estar esbanjando energia eu não tenho nada com isto isso é cá comigo fala a sério	to burst out laughing to burst into tears to be bursting with energy it´s none of my business that´s my business he means business
antes das quatro aumentar de hora em hora esta mesma hora amanhã que passou passou um grupo de curiosos acabar com a animação de	by 4:00 to increase by the hour by this time tomorrow let bygones be byhones a crowd of bystanders to put a damper on (party)
correr o risco de em perigo desafiar alguém a fazer algo acho provável que ele venha no escuro depois de escurecer	to be in danger of in danger to dare sb to do sth I dare say he´ll turn up in the dark after dark
está escurecendo desatualizado em dia pôr em dia carta datada de 5 de julho começou a perceber que	it is getting dark out of date up to date (correspondence, etc) to bring up to date letter dated July 5th it dawned on him that
ao amanhecer de manhã à noite a véspera dia a dia de dia hoje em dia	at dawn from dawn to dusk the day before day by day by day these days
o dia-a-dia diariamente estacar ele foi morto a tiro na hora em ponto fechar um negócio com	the day-to-to routine on a daily basis to stop dead he was shot dead dead on time to stike a deal with
negócio fechado tratar com ocupar-se de perguntar-se se estar endividado com 3 casas decimais	it´s a deal! deal with (people) deal with (problem) to debate whether to be in debt to 3 decimal places
queda dos padrões de vida recusar-se a fazer algo ele respirou fundo um grau considerável de risco até certo ponto ser muito solicitado	decline in living standards to decline to do sth he took a deep breath a cosiderable degree of risk to a certain degree to be in demand
à vista realizar uma passeata com grande densidade de população coberto de florestas densas ele nega ter dito isso bem projetado	on demand to hold a demonstration densely populated densely wooded he denies having said it well designed
ser destinado a alguém, algo estar desesperado entrar em detalhes o barulho diminue o paz despreciar as notícias deixaram-no desolado	to be designed for sb, sth to be in despair to go into details the noise detracts from the peace to detract from (reputation) he was devasted by the news
destituído de é um puco arriscado estar louco por algo estar morrendo de vontade de fazer algo o vento abrandou discordar de alguém em algo	devoid of it´s a bit dicey to be dying for th to be dying to do sth the wind died down to differ from sb over sth
não faz diferença para mim está na mesa! modo de usar pedir uma indicação senso de direção na direção de	it makes no difference to me dinner´s ready! directions for use to ask for directions sense of direction in the direction of
espezinhar alguém golpe sujeira incrédulo mover ação disciplinar contra alguém em discussão repartir	to treat sb like dirt dirty trick in disbelief to take disciplinary action against sb under discussion dish out
estar pouco disposto a fazer para miha grande consternação porblema estomacal à mostra ficar dilapidado prejudicar alguém	to be disinclined to do much to my dismay stomach disorder on display to fall into disrepair to do sb a disservice
ao longe dá para ir a pé fazer distinção entre distinguir entre descuplpe incomodá-lo perturbar a ordem	in the distance it´s within walking distance to draw a distinction between to distinguish between sorry to disturb you to cause a disturbance
degringolar foi você que fez isso estar destinado ao fracasso na casa ao lado ir de porta em porta servir também de	to go to the dogs this is your doing to be doomed to failure next door to go from door to door to double as
sem dúvida alguma não há dúvida que lá embaixo agringolar milhares de vezes sentir-se esgotado	beyond doubt there is no doubt that down there to go downhill (business) dozens of times to feel drained
tender para o fim afastar-se um do outro eu entendo mais ou menos o que você está dizendo impelir alguém a fazer algo chuva torrencial falar monotonamente	to draw to a close to drift apart (people) I get your drift to drive sb to do sth driving rain to drone on
babar por algo dar um pulo (na casa de) ficar bêbado enxugar as maõs exatamente ao norte o aluguel vence no dia 30	to drool over sth to drop in (on) to get drunk to dry one´s hands due north the rent is due on the 30th
estar na fossa vamos rachar	to be down in the dumps let´s go Dutch

Key Phrases from the book “Brutalmente” (Beastly)

Read this one a while ago to keep up on my Portuguese and made sure to highlight key phrases in my Kindle.  Finally got around to dumping the “My Clippings.txt” into my software to translate and export as an HTML table/Anki flashcard set.

The book was translated into Portuguese by a fan group on the internet.  My translations are probably much different than the English of the original book, but the focus here is on Portuguese, so it’s enough to get the point across.

Anyway, have a look, perhaps scrape a few phrases from here to put into your flashcards, or use this to prep yourself for reading the book! (I must say though that the book is a very ego-driven interpretation of Beauty and the Beast, and the film is even worse.  Just stuff for teens.)

estandartes de perfeição.	standards of perfection.
ele a deixa plantada no baile.	he left her high and dry at the dance.
pelagem, garras	fur, claws
as cédulas	the ballots
rabiscando	scribbling/doodling/jotting
-Isso é asqueroso!	-This is hideous/nasty!E, em breve estaremos sentindo seu asqueroso bafo em nossos rostos. (And soon we will smell his hideous breath in our faces.)
Por que deveriam ser tratados como a realeza?	Why should they be treated like royalty?
seu nariz era longo e aquilino.	his nose was long and hawkish (curved).
-Depois de dez anos vendo sua cara feia, nada me acovarda.	-After ten years of seeing your ugly face, nothing intimidated/discouraged me.
…então fingi um sobressalto.	…then pretended to be alarmed/surprised.
a risada desatinada de vilão de desenhos animados.	the mad/crazy/demented laugh of a cartoon villain.
O ouvi averiguar o Sub-Zero (que era como ele sempre chamava o refrigerador)	I heard him investigate/check out the Sub-Zero (which was what he always called the refrigerator)
Sloane praticamente arrebentou uma veia quando viu o ramalhete.	Sloane practically burst a vein when she saw the bouquet.(bust a gut = arrebentar de rir)
…como aquela garota naquele velho filme de Stephen King que vi uma vez, Carrie, onde a garota desenvolvia poderes telecinéticos e os descarregava em seus inimigos.	…like that girl in that old Stephen King movie I saw once, Carrie, where the girl developed telekinetic powers and discharged/vented them onto her enemies.
os menos afortunados.	the less fortunate.
mesquinho e cruel.	petty and cruel.
uma serpente alada de três cabeças?	a winged serpent with three heads?
as corcovas de um camelo?	the humps of a camel?
Parei, com a mão a maçaneta,	I stopped with my hand on the knob,
pateando no chão como uma besta enjaulada.	stomping the ground like a caged beast.(patear = to fail, pateada = stomping noise as signal of disapproval)
seja o que for que esteja acontecendo	whatever is happening
Preciso acrescentar que ela choramingou?	Must I add that she whined/cried/bitched?Nada mais há a acrescentar! (Nothing further need be said!) Agora, pára de choramingar, levanta esse rabo e encontra-o! (Now, stop your whining, get up off your ass and go find him!)
Contive minha raiva.	I suppressed my anger.(contiver = ter em si ou dentro de si; refrear, reprimir, deter; controlar-se)
uma tonelada de dinheiro	a ton of money
uma navalha para me barbear.	a razor to shave myself.
Corri para a janela. Queria uivar	I ran to the window. I wanted to howl
O reflexo se esfumou, e ali estava meu rosto de besta outra vez.	The reflection vanished, and there was my face of a beast again.
-Você era um idiota odioso.	You were an obnoxious idiot.
fiquei obcecado.	I became obsessed.
O apartamento tinha a pintura descascadas e o chão de linóleo.	The apartment had peeling paint and linoleum floor.
Agarrou seu livro e o segurou diante dela, como se fosse um escudo.	She grabbed her book and held it in front of her like a shield.
Magda já tinha desempacotado meus pertences	Magda had already unpacked my belongings
Esse é o momento de adquirir sabedoria!	Now is the time to get smart! (aquire wisdom)
-A florista entregava um ramalhete a cada semana.	The florist delivered a bouquet each week.
Envolvi um cachecol ao redor do meu queixo e bochechas.	I wrapped a scarf around my chin and cheeks.
ela estaria ansiosa para me apontar, para que soubessem que ela não estava mentindo.	she was eager to point me out to let them know she was not lying.
Do lado de fora, a última rosa vermelha balançou com o vento que a soprou repentinamente.	Outside, the last red rose swayed in the wind that blew it abruptly.
Ele está tão desgostoso com você como eu estou, enfiado na cama de pijama até a uma da tarde.	He is as disgusted with you as I am, all tucked in bed in your pajamas until one o’clock.
Ela fez carranca.	She scowled/frowned.
“Quem ousa incomodar minhas rosas?”	“Who dares disturb my roses?”
Ela o encarou, mas não disse nada.	She stared at him, but said nothing.
“Eu estou sentado aqui.” Eu disse suavemente. “Eu quero que você saiba então você não vai pirar.”	“I’m sitting here.” I said softly. “Just letting you know so you don’t freak out.”
Eu vou jogar para você alguns arremessos suaves se perecer que você precisa deles, mas eu duvido que você vai.	I’ll throw some easy ones your way if you need them, but I doubt you will.
Se ela soubesse o tanto que eu queria ela, isso poderia pirar ela.	If she knew how much I wanted her, that might freak her out.
“Você dança divinamente, minha querida Ida,” eu disse. Que tapado eu era!	“You dance divinely, my dear Ida,” I said. I was such a moron!
Eu queria conhecer cada sarda dourada na pele dela.	I wanted to know every freckle on her golden skin.
esse súbito vazio e perda.	this sudden emptiness and loss.
Deu meia volta e saiu à pressa da sala.	He turned and hurried from the room.dar meia-volta = to turn around, to about-face)

Software for Adding More Info to Flashcards

There are tons of flashcards freely available on the web for Portuguese (e.g., from Quizlet, those saved while reading books and highlighted on LingQ/Lingro, or check out my own flashcards).  But, in my opinion, most suffer from the paradigm of a 1-to-1 relationship of words between the two languages; the flashcards lack common usage examples, alternative meanings, etc.  So, let’s put the words in context and give our brains more content to absorb!

If you’re looking to enrich someone else’s flashcards, or creating your own,  wouldn’t it be nice to have software to search the web for definitions, synonyms, and translated sentences? (from babLa, FrazeIt, COMPARA, etc).  That’s exactly the software I created, see the video.

(Perhaps) Available in the future by request only. (likely violates Terms of Use of aforementioned websites, so I cannot distribute freely)