do dia para a noite
Meaning: Very suddenly or extremely quickly.
Language: Portuguese
Literally: from the day to the night
Category: Nature
Origin: The phrase pictures the abrupt transition from daylight to darkness at dusk, capturing the sense of something happening without warning or intermediate steps.
More idioms — Nature
- olho da tempestade — A moment of unexpected calm or peace in the middle of chaos or crisis.
- fazer uma tempestade num copo de água — To make an excessive fuss over something trivial.
- in het water vallen — for a plan or undertaking to fail or fall through.
- in de kiem smoren — To nip something in the bud; to stop a problem before it grows.
- vuur met vuur bestrijden — to counter a harmful action using the same method or intensity.
- ta sig vatten över huvudet — Get in over one's head; take on more than one can manage.
More Portuguese idioms
- vaca sagrada — Something so valued or protected that it cannot be criticized, changed, or harmed.
- morrer de rir — To laugh very hard or uproariously.
- descer a lenha — To harshly criticize or scold someone severely.
- altura do campeonato — at a critical or decisive moment in an event or competition.
- pegar o jeito — to learn how to do something; to acquire skill or proficiency.
- dar-se conta — to realize or come to understand something.
From our tongue twisters
- A aranha arranha a rã. A rã arranha a aranha. — Contrasts the soft single r of aranha against the hard rolled rr of arranha — one letter…
- O rato roeu a roupa do rei de Roma; a rainha com raiva roeu o resto. — An unstoppable 'r' trill drill — every key word begins or ends with the Portuguese r.
- Um tigre, dois tigres, três tigres tristes triscam trigo num trigal. — A 'tr' cluster drill that adds a sad adjective to make the alliteration worse.