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AMIGO-DA-ONÇA
[a supposedly good friend, but actually one who is false and hypocritical; (lit.) friend of the jaguar]
- Que amigo-da-onça que você é!
- A fine friend you are!
TIPS & NOTES
Hyphenated, compound nouns like amigo-da-onça sometimes form the plural by putting the first word only in the plural. So…
Amigo-da-onça – plural – amigos-da-onça.
Pai-de-santo – (lit.) father of saint –- or mãe-de-santo – (lit.) mother of saint – male and female high priests in Umbanda and Candomblé religions.
Plural: pais-de-santo and mães-de-santo.
The basic rules for the plurals of compound nouns are as follows:
1. Only the first word takes a plural when there is a preposition between the words. For example:
Pé-de-moleque – (lit.) young boy’s foot – peanut brittle candy
Plural: pés-de-moleque – peanut brittle candies
2. Both words take a plural form when the separate parts are different and can stand alone. For example:
Segunda-feira – Monday
Plural: segundas-feiras – Mondays
3. Only the last word takes a plural form in the following two cases:
a) When the first word is a verb. For example:
Beija-flor – hummingbird
Plural: beija-flores – hummingbirds
b) When the first word cannot be changed or when it is a prefix. For example:
Abaixo-assinado – signed petition
Plural: abaixo-assinados – signed petitions
Ex-governador – ex-governor
Plural: ex-governadores – ex-governors
Cf. Qual é o significado de “onça” e “onça-troy”?
Cf. Animais em inglês
Cf. O que significa “HUCKLEBERRY FRIEND”?
Cf. O que “FRIENDZONE” quer dizer?
Referência: “Break the Branch? Quebrar o Galho – Common, Everyday Words and Phrases in Brazilian Portuguese” de Jack Scholes, Disal Editora, 2008. Leia a resenha.
