the Central-West, Minas Gerais, the Northeast
/ʁa.paˈɾi.ɡɐ/hah-pah-REE-gahnoun
loose woman (means just "girl" in Portugal)
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A false friend with real consequences: in Portugal 'rapariga' is simply 'girl', but in the Northeast, Minas Gerais and Goiás it means a prostitute or a kept woman and is a serious insult. Learners should avoid it in Brazil and say 'moça' or 'menina'.
Regional patterns, not hard borders. A word may be used outside the highlighted area, and multiple words can coexist in the same region. Falando highlights the strongest and most useful patterns from its sources.
No Nordeste do Brasil rapariga tem um peso forte.
In Northeast Brazil rapariga has a heavy meaning.
Cuidado com a palavra rapariga nessa região.
Be careful with the word in this region.
Em Portugal, rapariga significa simplesmente menina.
In Portugal, rapariga simply means girl.
Hear it, use it in a sentence and get corrected — Falando’s Real Talk and Idioms Trainer are built for words like this. Free for 7 days.
