Brazilians enjoy celebrating, and this is never more apparent than at this time of year learn 6 DELIGHTFUL BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE HOLIDAY PHRASES.

It’s a particularly special time of year for Brazilians due to the pleasant summer weather and the start of the summer vacation for students. This entails a large number of festivities and holiday customs that are extremely unique to the United States.

We’ll list a few of the most popular proverbs, idioms, and jokes used during the holidays in this post. These will assist you in navigating the Christmas season in Portuguese and also give you a glimpse into Brazilian comedy!

Essential Brazilian Portuguese Holiday Phrases

Christmas / Happy New Year!

In its literal sense, “Merry Christmas!” and “Happy New Year!”

These are seasonal catchphrases.

Since it was colonized by Portugal and heavily influenced by other Catholic European nations like Spain and Italy, Brazil has historically been a particularly Catholic nation. The vast majority of Brazilians observe Christmas and other Christian festivals because of this. On New Year’s Eve, Brazil also holds a sizable celebration with a number of distinctive customs.

Before your Brazilian holiday celebration, if you only learn one Portuguese phrase, make it this one. It should be sufficient to make you some friends.

Use it in a phrase like this:
Oh, dear! Happy New Year! “Hello, my love! Happy Holidays!”

Now that it is Christmas, what did you do?
“So it’s Christmas; what have you done?” in its literal form.

Brazilians enjoy asking friends and relatives during the holidays, “So it’s Christmas, what have you done?” It’s a way to inquire about the previous year and discover plans for the one to come.

The question is also meant as a jest since it refers to the song “Happy Xmas (War Is Over),” which was initially written by John Lennon and Yoko Ono and has a well-known Simone Brazilian Portuguese cover. Throughout the Christmas season, this song may be heard playing in every store and shopping center in Brazil.

Use it in a phrase like this:

A: Yes, we are already in December. B: Now that it’s Natal, what did you do?

Wow, December has already here. B: “Christmas time has arrived; what have you done?”

É pavê ou pacumê?

Literally: “Is it to see or to eat?”

This expression is perhaps Brazil’s favorite dad joke. 

Christmas is here, and whatThis is how the joke always plays out. The Christmas supper is being enjoyed by everyone seated around the table. What’s for dessert? will be a common question. “Pavé!” will be the response. Then an uncle will question, “É pavê ou pacumê?” (it’s always an uncle).

Pavé, a Brazilian dessert that resembles tiramisu, got its name from the French term “pavage,” which means pavement. (Don’t ask me why it was named after pavement—it tastes fine, I promise).

The pun is the result of a word play. Pavé has the same pronunciation as fast saying “pra ver.” “Pra ver” is Latin for “to see”. Similar to “pra comer” or “to eat,” “pacumê” is a contracted, colloquial variant of these words. “É pavê ou pacumê?” is a phrase that means “Is it to see or to eat?”

This joke will be told to you if you go to a Brazilian holiday celebration where pavé is served. Rolling your eyes with everyone else as the uncle chuckles to himself is the appropriate answer.

Use it in a phrase like this:

A: What do we have for a topping? B: Pavê! A: Is it pav or pacum?

“What do we have for dessert?” B: “Pavé!” Is it to eat or to see?

5. Na vida tudo passa, o ano passa, e a uva passa.

The phrase means, “In life, everything passes, the year passes, and the grape passes.”

This is yet another wordplay. You must first be aware that uva means “grape” and uva passa means “raisin” as well as “the grape passes” in order to comprehend it.

It begins by noting that everything eventually comes to an end, including the year and even grapes. This wordplay is frequently heard around the New Year. Every aspect of life passes, including the year, the grape, and the raisin.

Use it in a phrase like this:

A: Work is very difficult in December. I hope today is over soon. B: “In life everything passes, including the year and the ova.”

A: “Work is very challenging in December. I’m hoping they pass shortly. B: “Everything in life passes, including the year and the grape.”

It’s just a memory.

Exactly: “It’s just a little souvenir”

When someone is giving a gift at a Christmas party with family and friends, you’ll frequently hear this said. It’s a way of saying, “It’s just something small,” and it implies that even though the present is small and inexpensive, it is being offered thoughtfully and with love.

However, you’ll also hear it used to minimize gifts and express modesty when the gifts are substantial and expensive.

Use it in a phrase like this:

A: Oh my goodness, a $100 spa day! I love it! B: It’s only a memory.

Wow, a $100 gift card to the day spa, how cool is that? “It’s just a little memento,” B said.

Additional Portuguese Christmas vocabulary
Here are a few more common vocabulary words to help you celebrate the holidays in Portuguese and wow your Brazilian relatives and friends:

“The Christmas tree” is a.k.a.

Santa Clause is known as “Father Christmas” or O Papai Noel.

“The presents” is Os presentes.

“The wreath” is a guirlanda.

“The Christmas lights” is sung as O pisca pisca.

O sino is “The Bell”

“The snowman” is O boneco de neve.

“The stocking” is a meia.

“The candle” is a vela.

O Anjo means “the angel”