This is a list of idioms in the Portuguese language. Proverbs and idioms with direct equivalents in the English language are excluded.
Idiom Literal Translation Meaning
Atirar-se de cabeça Plunge head first Face a problem without hesitation Ficar em águas de bacalhau Remain in codfish waters Tackled but unsolved problem Tirar o cavalinho da chuva Take the pony away from the rain Forget it/don't wait for it Ir para o olho da rua Go to the eye of the street To be thrown out Estás aqui, estás a comer You are here, you are (going) to eat I am about to hurt you Ajoelhou, tem que rezar Kneeled, has to pray Finish what (you) started Sem eira nem beira Without land nor roof Destitute Bicho de sete cabeças Seven-headed beast Huge complication Dar com os burros n'água To get into water with the assess To have a great frustration Cair de quatro To fall on fours To be humbled and ridiculed Comer o pão que o diabo amassou To eat the bread the devil prepared To suffer intolerably Ouvir o galo cantar e não saber onde To hear the rooster crowing without knowing where To be clueless, or to succeed out of sheer luck Ficar a ver navios To be left watching the ships To be left without nothing Ser carta fora do baralho To be a card out of the set To be relegated to an irrelevant position When something happens that was predictable since a Cair de maduro To fall because of being ripe long time Cantar de galo To crow as a rooster To attempt to control something Falar pelos cotovelos To speak by the elbows To speak too much Olhar com o rabo do olho To eye with the eye's tail To look at someone briefly, obliquely To do something one had been desiring for a long Lavar a égua To wash the mare time Jogar água fora da bacia To spill water out of the bowl To be untrustful Comer com os olhos To eat with the eyes To envy something (or someone) very much Dar no couro To beat the skin To have sex (Brazil only) To wait uncomfortably, to be put to rest against one's Ficar de molho To be soaking will (e.g. after an accident) Dar o troco To give back the change To have a quick revenge Dar a volta em To walk around (someone) To "milk" money from a gullible person Chuta para canto Kick it to corner Don't worry about it Pôr o rabo entre as pernas To put one's tail between the legs To withdraw from a position, usually with shame
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Portuguese Short Stories for Beginners Book 5: Over 100 Dialogues & Daily Used Phrases to Learn Portuguese in Your Car. Have Fun & Grow Your Vocabulary, with Crazy Effective Language Learning Lessons: Brazilian Portuguese for Adults, #5