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[ARCHIVE] 39 False friends to watch out for

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EranBarLev
Israel

[ARCHIVE] 39 False friends to watch out for

Post by EranBarLev »

Original post by HelpfulDuo | Archived post

In a previous post we talked about cognates, words that are similar and share the same meaning across different languages. But not all words that look and sound alike mean the same thing. We call these tricky words false cognates, or false friends.

Here are some examples to watch out for:

Portuguese wordlooks likeactually
means
complementary
info
adeptoadeptadherent; proponentadept =
competente;
hábil
aliásaliasin fact;
actually
alias =
nome falso;
pseudônimo
amassaramasscrumple;
dent
amass =
acumular
armaarmweapon;
gun
arm = braço
atualactualcurrentactual =
real;
verdadeiro
boateboatnightclubboat = barco
brandobrandmildbrand = marca
cigarrocigarcigarettecigar = charuto
colégiocollegeschoolcollege =
faculdade
compreensivocomprehensiveunderstandingcomprehensive
= abrangente
compromissocompromisecommitmentcompromise
(concede)
= ceder;
meio-termo
;

compromise
(cause trouble)
= comprometer
consertoconcertrepairconcert
(show) =
concerto;
show
desertodessertdesertdessert =
sobremesa
embaraçadoembarrassedmixed in disorderly
fashion; complicated
embarrassed = envergonhado
esquisitoexquisitestrangeexquisite =
requintado;
primoroso
excitanteexcitingarousingexciting =
empolgante
êxitoexitsuccessexit = saída
fábricafabricfactoryfabric =
tecido;
material
gripegripflu; coldgrip (verb)
= empunhar;
agarrar
;

grip
(adherence)
= aderência
grosseriagroceryrudeness;
vulgarity
grocery =
mercado;
compras
idiomaidiomlanguageidiom =
expressão
idiomática
ingênuoingeniousnaiveingenious =
engenhoso
lanchelunchsnacklunch =
almoço
legendalegendsubtitles;
photo
caption
legend
= lenda
leituralecturereadinglecture =
palestra
livrarialibrarybookstorelibrary =
biblioteca
maiormayorbigger /
biggest
mayor =
prefeito
motelmotela hotel
intended
for
romantic
encounters
motel =
hotel à beira
da estrada
notícianoticepiece of
news
notice =
perceber
novelanovelsoap opera;
telenovela
novel (book)
= romance

novel (new)
= novo
parentesparentsrelativesparents = pais
prejuízoprejudicedamage;
loss;
harm
prejudice =
preconceito
pretenderpretendplan; intendpretend
= fingir
propagandapropagandacommercial;
advertisement
propaganda =
propaganda
manipuladora
puxar⁺⁺pushpullpush =
empurrar
quitarquitpay sth. offquit =
parar;
deixar
recordarrecordrememberrecord (verb)
= gravar;

record (feat)
= recorde
sopasoapsoupsoap = sabão

shower soap
= sabonete
ultimamenteultimatelylatelyultimately
= finalmente;

⁺⁺Puxar is pronounced "pushar", therefore it is more similar to "push" in sound than spelling.

Practice you Portuguese!

Study the table above and never get these words mixed up again.

Have you ever been fooled by a false friend? Share your experience with us in the comments below!

🇮🇱N 🇬🇧C1 🇪🇸B2 🇵🇹B1 🇫🇷B1 🇸🇦A1 🇷🇺A1

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