Portuguese

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Etymology

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dar (to result in) + pau (wooden rod) in the context of machines and computers.

dar (to give) + pau (wooden rod) in the context of football.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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dar pau (first-person singular present dou pau, first-person singular preterite dei pau, past participle dado pau)

  1. (Brazil, colloquial, computing, intransitive, said of a machine or computer) to crash, to freeze (to come to a halt, to stop working)
    O computador deu pau.
    The computer crashed.
  2. (Portugal, colloquial, soccer) to tackle violently another player, usually in a foul way
    O jogador está sempre a dar pau.
    The player is always tackling violently.