dar bronca

Portuguese

Meaning

to scold, to give someone a telling-off

Example

A mãe deu bronca no menino por ter chegado tarde.

The mother scolded the boy for arriving late.

Origin

Bronca traces back to bronco ("rough, unrefined, coarse"), and the noun kept that rough edge: a bronca is a blunt, no-nonsense telling-off, not a gentle correction.

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Source: Priberam — dar bronca.

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