chuva

chuva filo-filo

chuva fino-fino

light rain (literally, “very thin rain”)

chuva pedra

Nunca costumado têm chuva Otubro


home

From Portuguese home, denasalized variant of homem.

home-home di hoze


chá

Borrowed from Cantonese 茶 (caa⁴), uncertain whether via Portuguese or later lent to Portuguese.

chá co sucre

vazâ chá

Dâ unga xicra di chá pa iou


caixa

From Portuguese caixa (“box”). Unusually, de-diphthongization did not take place (compare caxám, Spanish caja).


oficina

Presumably from Portuguese oficina, although probably influenced by English office.


filo

filo-di-quim

filo-grándi

filo trás di porta


filo

chuva filo-filo


cadera

From Portuguese cadeira, from Old Galician-Portuguese cadeira, from Vulgar Latin *cathēgra, variant of Latin cathedra, from Ancient Greek καθέδρα (kathédra), from κατά (katá, “above”) + ἕδρα (hédra, “chair”).

dói cadera

(to have) lower back pain; kidney pain; pain in the buttocks

(anatomy) lumbar region (the back at the kidney level)


nina

From Portuguese nina, clipping of menina. Possibly a doublet of nhim.


chupa

Borrowed from Malay cupak (pronounced /t͡ʃupaʔ/). First documented in the Ou-Mun Kei Leok published in 1751.

wooden or bamboo cylinder, closed at one end, formerly used to measure dry goods such as rice or beans, as well as liquids like milk


bazar

Presumably from Portuguese bazar (“bazaar”), from Italian bazar, from Persian بازار (bâzâr, “market”), from Middle Persian [Book Pahlavi needed] (wʾčʾl /wāzār/, “market”).

der

vai bazar comprâ sôm


paga

From Old Galician-Portuguese paga. Compare Galician paga (“payment; salary”).

quelóra recebê paga

when getting paid (literally, “when receiving the salary”)

Êle têm bôm paga


mám

From Portuguese mão, with influence from Cantonese 手 (sau²).

pê-mám

mám-fichado

miserly, tight-fisted (literally, “hand closed”)

mám tánto

person who interferes with things that are not their responsibility (literally, “much hand”)

mám cumprido

thief; sticky-fingered, prone to stealing (literally, “long hand”)

mám di fada

nimble-fingered (literally, “hand of fairy”)

mám pa trás

idle-handed; lazy person (literally, “hand at back”)

pegâ mám andâ rua

cai pê-mám

to lose one's temper; to become disoriented (literally, “to fall feet-hands”)

mám-lárgo

mám-macaco

mám-fêde

someone with a dirty mind (literally, “stinky hand”)

mám-cutí

pê-mám


oclo

From Portuguese óculo, from Latin oculus (“eye”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃okʷ-. Doublet of ôlo.

Iou nôm sabe úndi já rafundí iou-sua ôclo


bóca

From Portuguese boca, with many idiomatic uses being calques of Cantonese 口 (hau²) or 嘴 (zeoi²).

bóca aberto

bóca dóci

sweet-talker, somebody who has an affected manner of speech (literally, “sweet mouth”)

bóca cherâ lete

someone who still has a lot to learn in life (literally, “mouth smell milk”)

bóca sujo

swearer, person who swears a lot (literally, “smelly mouth”)

bóca-torto


sium

Possibly from an Afro-Portuguese variant of Portuguese senhor, reduced to *siô, with nasalization taking place by analogy of nhum. Doublet of nhum, via an older form nhom.

Sium Capitám


nhi

Nhi Pancha, passá bem?


pê

From Portuguese pé, with influence from Cantonese 腳／脚 (goek³).

pê marado

pê solto

cai pê-mám

to lose one's temper; to get disoriented (literally, “to fall feet and hands”)

chá di pêlo-pê

infusion to ward off frights (literally, “hair-feet tea”)


jinela

nhonha na jinela


botelha

From Portuguese botelha, from French bouteille.


cafelo

From dialectal Portuguese cafelo (“first plaster or mortar on a wall”).


lete

bebinca di lete

café co lête

china di lête


sapeca

Apparently Malay sa (“one”) + Malay paku (“thread of one hundred pichi coins”). Originally described a round coppern coin (hence sense 2), with a square hole in the centre, formerly used in China. Term formerly used jocularly to imitate Macanese, however is now the most common term to refer to money, this development possibly being a (relatively old) semantic loan from Cantonese 錢／钱. Compare French sapèque, from the same Malay origin.

com

Iou nôm têm sapeca


águ

Vai rua, pussá bafado, / Bebê águ di Lilau.

1983, José dos Santos Ferreira, Poéma di Macau: poesia e prosa, dialecto macaense:

Going on the street, too tired even to breathe, / Drink the water of Lilau.


mulé

From Portuguese mulher. Compare Kristang mulé.


nhonha

Possibly from Portuguese dona or Malay nyonya or Portuguese senhora. See also Spanish doña (“lady”) and Hokkien 娘惹 (nō͘-niâ) & 娘仔 (niô͘-á, “young lady”).

Coordinate term: nhum

Nhonha canta.


amui

head

amui (plural amui-amui, diminutive amuichai)

amui-amui (plural)
amuichai (diminutive)

Borrowed from Cantonese 阿妹 (aa3 mui6-2, aa3 mui6-1).

Amui corrê vem gudam.

girl, specifically an unmarried Chinese girl from a humble background


nhum

From Portuguese senhor, via an older nhom, which seems to have been an abbreviation arisen from Afro-Portuguese. Compare Portuguese nhô, Kabuverdianu nho, nhu. Doublet of sium.

Nhum nunca-sam di aqui.


atâi

Atâi corrê vem gudam.


cális

From Old Galician-Portuguese calez／caliz, from Latin calicem. Compare Portuguese cálice.

Tóne tâ bebê unga cáliz di vinho-Porto.
Tóne is drinking a glass of port.


fólia

From Portuguese folha. Sense 3 likely a semantic loan from Cantonese 葉／叶 (jip⁶, “leaf”) and 頁／页 (jip⁶, “page”), although emergence of sense 4 probably not related to Cantonese.


xicra

From Portuguese xícara, from Spanish jícara, ultimately from Classical Nahuatl xīcalli.

Dâ unga xicra di chá pa iou


leongfanêro

Chinese diver who collects oysters from the muddy waters of Macau and cracks them open


vêlo-công

Estung'a velo-công ui-di boca brejero!


santám

Borrowed from Malay santan, from Old Javanese santĕn (“coconut milk”), from Sanskrit सार (sāra, “essence”).

chau-cháu co santám


amuichai

amui + Cantonese 仔 (zai², “diminutive suffix”) and/or Cantonese 阿 (aa³, “familiar prefix”) + Cantonese 妹仔 (mui⁶⁻¹ zai², “maid”).


apó

apó cartâ águ

elderly Chinese woman of humble background


siára

head

siára (plural siára-siára, masculine sium)

From Portuguese senhora, apparently influenced by Afro-Portuguese and/or Kristang.


respondéncia

From a merger of Portuguese correspondência and archaic Portuguese respondência (“commercial profit”), from Latin respondentia.

der

Su sapeca têm respondéncia


nhonhônha

Alternative form of nhonhonha: ladies, women


ólo

From Portuguese olho, with many adverbial senses being a calque of Cantonese 眼. Doublet of oclo.

ólo batê-batê

to blink quickly (literally, “to hit the eyes”)

ólo enfiado

ólo fino

ólo di gaviám

lively eyes (literally, “eyes of a hawk”)

ólo sentado

comê qui ficâ ôlo sentado

to overeat, to gorge (literally, “to eat to the point of sitting eyes”)

ólo empatucado

ólo galado

ólo más grándí qui baríga

a gluttonous person who takes more than he can ingest (literally, “eyes bigger than one's belly”)

fichâ ôlo

pussâ ôlo

to attract attention (literally, “to pull eyes”)

rancâ ôlo

to stare frighteningly (literally, “to snatch eyes”)

bassâ ôlo

virâ ôlo

to roll one's eyes; in a very short amount of time


greza

corê greza

to go to multiple churches on Maundy Thursday (literally, “to run church(es)”)

Nôs véla-véla têm-qui cubrí dol pa vai greza.

We old ladies have to cover our heads with a veil when we go to church.


pacfanista

Cantonese 白粉 (baak⁶ fan², “heroin”, literally “white powder”) + -ista (“agent noun suffix”), probably influenced by Cantonese derivations such as 白粉仔 (baak⁶ fan² zai²) and 白粉友 (baak⁶ fan² jau⁵⁻²).

suffix

drug addict (person with a chemical or psychological dependency on drugs)


iam-chá

Borrowed from Cantonese 飲茶／饮茶 (jam² caa⁴).

bor+

yum cha (Chinese meal served between breakfast and lunchtime, usually featuring dim sum)


hortelám di sopa

Literally, “soup mint”. Referred to as such due to its common usage in soups in Macanese cuisine, in addition to various other dishes.

chá di hortelám di sopa


hotê

Probably from Portuguese hotel, from French hôtel, from Latin hospitāle.

Êle falâ amanhâm vai Hotê Lisboa dále dôs mám.

He says that tomorrow he will go to Hotel Lisboa to gamble.


perdê chávi

Literally, “to lose the key”. Derivation uncertain.


chaminica

small teacup with no handle, used in Chinese restaurants


cai chuva

Possibly a calque of Cantonese 落雨 (lok⁶ jyu⁵, literally “fall rain”).

calque

Azinha vai casa-ia, logo cai chuva

Let's get home quickly, it's going to rain


sapeca fêmea

(idiomatic, possibly derogatory) easy money, money gained through dishonest means


máno

Presumably from Portuguese mano. Sense 3 (especially with chomâ) possibly also a semantic loan from Cantonese 大佬 (daai⁶ lou²).


cabéça

From Portuguese cabeça. Sense 3 most likely a semantic loan from Cantonese 頭／头.

cabéça-di-bonzo

soup prepared in a bain-marie using the skin of a winter gourd (literally, “head of monk”)

cabéça-di-vento

forgetful, head in the clouds (literally, “head of wind/air”)

cabéça-di-cobra

trafficker of illegal immigrants (literally, “head of snake”)


nhim

Possibly a diminutive of Portuguese menina, ultimately from Old Galician-Portuguese meninha, with possible metathesis.

Coordinate term: siára

formal address for young girls, single women and lowly women of a certain age: young lady, miss


amuiróna

amui (“girl”) + -róna (“feminine augmentative suffix”).


pilizám

Probably from Portuguese pelejão. By surface analysis, pilizâ (“to argue, to dispute”) + -ám.


aporóna

apó (“elderly Chinese woman”) + -róna (“feminine augmentative suffix”).

suffix

Sã ramendá aporóna,
Cartá pinga vendê brêdo.
She appears to be an ordinary woman,
carrying baskets of vegetables for sale.

(possibly derogatory) large, heavy, ordinary middle-aged Chinese woman


pilizóna

Probably from obsolete and/or low colloquial Portuguese pelejona. By surface analysis, pilizâ + -óna.


pó-brânco

Literally, “white powder”. Calque of Cantonese 白粉 (baak⁶ fan²).