Portuguese Slang Expressions (Portugal)

Learning Portuguese slang expressions will infuse depth and character into your language journey. Not only will it help you improve your idiomatic feel for Portuguese and sound more natural, but it will also make it easier to keep up with native speakers in informal contexts.

In this post, we will explore a few slang expressions widely used in Portugal (we call them Calão or Gíria). Read on.

1. Fixe

Fixe  means “cool” or “nice”:

Esta música é mesmo fixe!
This tune is really cool!

Other similar and common expressions are altamente, porreiro and baril.

2. Pá

You’ll hear pá (or epá) a lot in informal situations. Depending on the context it can mean “man/dude” or “well”:

Olá pá, que contas?
Hey dude, what’s up?

Epá, ainda não sei o que fazer.
Well, I still don’t know what to do.

3. Tás a ver?

Tás a ver? (Estás a ver?)  is the Portuguese equivalent of “You know?” or “Do you follow?”, and is used colloquially to check if someone is following the conversation:

Estou todo rebentado. Esta noite só dormi 3 horas, tás a ver?
I’m a wreck. I only slept three hours tonight, you know?

4. Meu

Besides being a possessive pronoun, meu is also slang for “man” or “dude” (just like pá we saw above):

Ó meu, ou te calas ou vais ter problemas!
Dude, either shut up or you’ll get in trouble.

5. Tipo

This is a common slangy, filler word that we say right and left (just like like in English). It’s a “sort of” that implies approximation rather than precision:

A reunião nunca mais acabava, durou tipo 3 horas.
The meeting never ended, it lasted like three hours.

6. Bué

Bué is slang for muito, that is, “very” or “a lot” depending on the situation:

Estou com bué de fome.
I’m so very hungry.

Estava bué de gente no concerto.
There were a lot of people at the concert.

7. Gago/gaja

Gajo refers to men and is equivalent to “guy” or “fella”. Gaja is its feminine form and is similar to “chick” or “gal”. Both expressions are  used in colloquial contexts and some people may even find them a bit rude:

Aquele gajo nunca mais se cala!
That guy will never shut up!

Porque é que a gaja se está a queixar?
What’s the gal whining for?

8. Que cena!

Que cena! (often with pá: Que cena, pá!) is similar to “What the heck?!”:

Que cena, pá! Nunca vi nada assim.
What the heck?! I’ve never seen anything like it.

9. Guito

Guito is Portuguese slang for “money”:

Estou sem guito.
I’m short of money.

Other common alternatives are massa or carcanhol.

10. Que buba!

Que buba! is a slang expression to refer to someone who drank too much and is wasted:

Que grande buba, pá!
Dude, you are so wasted!

Other common similar expressions are Que bezana! and Que borracheira!

11. Larica

Larica is Portuguese for “munchies”:

Hoje não almocei. Estou com uma larica!
I skipped lunch today. I am so hungry!

12. Bora lá

Bora lá or just bora means “let’s go”:

Bora lá, estás à espera de quê?
Let’s go, what are you waiting for? 

13. Foleiro

Foleiro means “tacky” or “tasteless”:

Essa canção é mesmo foleira.
That song is really tacky.

Other similar expressions are chunga and rasca.

14. Isso é canja

Isso é canja is Portuguese for “easy peasy”:

Isso é canja, vai correr bem.
Easy peasy, you’ll do fine.

15. Briol

Briol is slang for frio, that is, “cold”.

Está um cá um briol, pá!
Man, it’s so bloody cold!

16. Curtir

Curtir is slang for gostar or apreciar, that is, enjoying something. It is often followed by bué (see above):

Estou a curtir bué estas férias.
I am really enjoying this vacation.

17. Gozar

Gozar means to joke around or make fun of someone:

Estás a gozar comigo?
Are you kidding me?

Note that, in Brazilian Portuguese, gozar means to come (ejaculate).

18. Bazar

Bazar is slang for sair, that is, to leave:

Já é tarde, tenho de bazar.
It’s already late, I must go now.

19. Gamar

Gamar is slang for roubar, that is, steal:

Hoje gamaram-me a carteira no metro. 
Someone stole my wallet on the subway today.

20. Lixar

Lixar means to fuck up:

Epá, lixei tudo!
Man, I fucked up!

You can also use the reflexive version, lixar-se, which we use to say that someone is “toast” or even to say “fuck off” to people:

Ele lixou-se bem!
He’s fucked.

Vai-te lixar!
Go to hell.

Conclusion

Exploring Portuguese slang expressions is like uncovering hidden gems that add depth and authenticity to the way you express yourself.  As you continue to learn and practice the language, remember to sprinkle these slang expressions into your conversations. By doing so, you will sound more natural and chances are that you’ll forge meaningful connections with the Portuguese people. Tás a ver?