Words and Phrases
by Frederic A. "Jim" Silva
This is an edited compilation of material almost entirely from articles by Frederic A. "Jim" Silva Click on the SEARCH icon and enter his ID number (7902) to be taken to his personal page published in the UMA Bulletin. Sounds of the words and phrases, recorded by Maria de Carvalho e Rego Machado MarquesClick on the SEARCH icon and enter her ID number (39646) to be taken to her personal page
have been added. There are minor differences between the pronunciations and spellings here and those in Maquista Chapado
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to listen to a sound, and on 
to read a recipe.
Macanese |
English |
| ade cabidela/capidela
| dish of duck cooked in its blood |
| alho com cobra | bitter enemies |
| aluar | a sweet block made from grated coconut, Chinese brown sugar, almonds and pine-nuts, served at Christmas (representing the bed of the Christ-child) |
| amorchai | cute, charming |
| arroz caregado |
pressed rice, accompanying porco balichão tamarindo/tamarinho |
| atai de rua | loafer, rude person |
| azinha | (verb) quick, (adverb) quickly |
| bafo de ade | painfully long-winded; reference to the breath of the non-stopping quacking duck |
| baji | sweet made with grated coconut and glutinous rice |
| balichão | Macanese condiment based on salted krill |
| bate peito | praying in a fervent manner. usually attributed to a religious hypocrite. literally, chest-beater. |
| bebinca/bebinga de leite | a rich pudding made with egg yolks, butter and coconut with a baked toasted crust |
| bicho de festa | great party goer or giver |
| bicho balichão | a restless person |
| boca cheira leite | disparaging reference to someone immature; literally, mouth smelling milk, implying that weaning is not over |
| boca grande | boaster, braggart. literally, big mouth. |
| bom cara | handsome |
| booyão | a large earthenware storage jar |
| busca sarna | look for unnecessary trouble |
| cabeça de atong | one who could be counted on to do the wrong thing |
| cabeça de vento | forgetful, plain giddy |
| cabeça grande | instigator of schemes and ideas which are not favored |
| cabeçudo | stubborn |
| cacoose | latrine (from the Dutch cak huis) |
| cai peh, cai mung | give up easily, demoralized |
| capela | tasty meat loaf with cheese, usually set in a ring mold |
| cara de cu | not a candidate for a beauty contest |
| chau chau chili | pork with chilli, preserved Chinese radish and often with tao see (Chinese black beans) |
| chipi | to squeeze |
| choler | to shovel (as with a spoon) |
| chouriço sutate | pork sausage with soy sauce |
| chouriço vinho alho | pork sausage with wine and garlic |
| chubi | to pinch |
| chuchu | to poke, to prod |
| dali dos mão | playing a couple of hands. also used to denote philandering. |
| dali dos mão com ingles | doubtful paternity |
| diabo | a rich spicy stew made with left-over roast meats |
| embigo pegado | close friends |
| festa de quebra testa | great party |
| fica chupa dedo | left with nothing |
| fingi tolo | play dumb |
| fingido | insincere, two-faced |
| fruto de autono | autumn fruit, last of the litter |
| fula pedo | the foul smelling lantana flower |
| galo doido or namorador | playboy, womanizer |
| gantaria | fussy, too self important |
| gato manso | sneaky, sly, surreptitious |
| gavata ate osso de bur-bur | intensive investigation |
| gungdung | a sore lump (as on the head) |
| gohng-gohng | beetle with humming wings, a name used to tease someone, dopey |
| harmonica | beef rissoles |
| juga soco | fist fight |
| ladu | sweet made with glutinous rice, pine nuts, coconut, and almond meal and dusted wtih roast bean flour |
| lalala | cockle; bi-valve shell fish |
| lingua de prata | (silver-tongue) charmer, flatterer |
| lingua torto | (twisted tongue) speech impediment |
| ma lingua | (bad tongue) gossip, backbiting |
| macaco velho | old monkey, worldly wise |
| mete fogo | instigate trouble |
| mezinha | medicine |
| minchi/minchy | the omnipresent dish made with mince meat (usually beef, pork or a mixture both), typically served with little crisp fried potato cubes |
| miçó/missó Cristão | minced pork with soy beans sprouts (tai tau nga choy in Cantonese) |
| moochy | small pastries with a filling of grated coconut and roasted bean flour |
| moorong | depressed |
| muito quere | love very much |
| nung pode mas de querer | love to distraction |
| nung quero reva | hope you don't mind |
| olho de gavão | sharp eyes, eagle eyed |
| olho dekka | anus |
| olho kakai | cross-eyed |
| olhos infiado | cock-eyed |
| oui de | extreme, excessive, abundant (as in oui de fierce) |
| pata choca | stick in the mud |
| peekanino (pequeno) | small |
| pele | dried pork rind (kohn chee pey in Cantonese) and ingredient used in tacho |
| piti pótó | sickly, weak |
| porco balichão tamarindo | distinctive stew made of pork and balichão, sweetened with brown sugar and rendered tart with tamarin; always served with arroz carregado |
| quebra cabeça | puzzling over something |
| qui ramede | what a calamity |
| ramata | the rest of |
| ranca olho | stare intensely, glare at |
| rei do bolo | cherished one (brat?) |
| rusa-rusa | faltering |
| sakana | s.o.b. |
| sarão muroon | unkempt, sloppy |
| sayão | pity (as in "what a pity") |
| sinti galanti | feel odd, feel unwell |
| soong | (Cantonese) any food accompanying rice or noodles |
| soo soo | to dispense with charges, free |
| soompeter | pea-shooter |
| strika | to iron; from the Dutch strijken via Malay to Macanese |
| sutate | soy sauce |
| tacho | a stew made with pork, pele, cabbage and Chinese sausages |
| takanada | technique, strategy, adept know-how |
| ting ting por ting ting | a full, detailed and comprehensive recitation of events |
| tomar jeito | putting on airs |
| tung tung mung tung | dazed, confused |
| unchindo | very little; same as oui de pouco |
| unha com carne | thick as thieves. literally, nail and flesh |
| vagar vagar | very slowly |
| yuh | one of the suffixes thrown in to complete a sentence, like meh or suh |