BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU DICTIONARY

If you are a Jiu-Jitsu student or have one of your loved ones affectioned by BJJ you probably came across some Portuguese words. Sometimes they get confused or very hard to pronounce (we know how hard is to learn a second language 😉 ), but we are here to make your life a bit easier.

Find below a list of the most common expressions and words in Portuguese saying on the mats in Australia and around the world. You may think it is just entertainment but it may be very useful in a fight when the referee says ‘PAROU’ that means STOP.

Positions (Posições):

Side Control – Cem Kilos (literally: 100 kilos)

Close Guard – Guarda fechada

Half Guard – Meia guarda

Spider guard – Guarda aranha

Mount – Montada

Expressions and slangs:

Abriu o bico – Be tired

Baiana – Double leg (or Barzagar)

Bota pra dormir – Put to sleep

Casca grosa – Tough guy

Cem quilos – Side control

Chave de braço – Armlock

Chave de pe – footlock

Equipe – Team

Fuga de quadril – Hip escape

Gancho – Hook

Joelho na barriga – Knee on belly

Legal – cool!

Punição – Penalty

Pegada – Grip

Queda – Take down

Quimono/kimono – Gi

Sangue bom – Good guy

Tatame – mat

Tempo – Time

Triângulo – triangle, sankaku jime

Vai – Go

Vira de quatro – Go to turtle position

Belts & Training gear:

Belts – Faixas (fai-shas)

White – Branca

Blue – Azul

Purple – Roxa

Brown – Marrom

Black – Preta

Gi / Kimono – Kimono (duhhhh!)

No-Gi – Sem kimono (seng kimono)

Useful terms:

Yes – Sim

No – Não

Left – Esquerda

Right – Direita

Stop – Pare … VERY useful if you can’t physically tap!

Actions:

Grip – Pegada

Hook – Gancho

Push – Empurre

Pull – Puxe

Hold – Segura

Posture – Postura

Calm – Calma

Body (Corpo):

Hand – Mão

Foot – Pé

Arm – Braço

Leg – Perna

Knee – Joelho n

Elbow – Cotovelo

Fingers – Dedos do mão

Toes – Dedos do pé

Hips – Quadril

Body – Corpo

Chest – Peito

Head – Cabeça (ka-beh-sa)

Neck – Pescoço

Throat – Garganta

Back – Costas

Shoulder – Ombro

Shoulder blade – Omoplata

Commands:

Go – Vai

Pass the guard – Passar de guarda

Attack – Attaque

Defend – Defendar

Escape – Saida /S air

Sweep – Raspa / Raspada (has-pa)

Spar/roll – Spare (sh-par-ey)

Close the guard – Fechar a guarda

Other things you might here in class:

Valeu – thanks

Até amanhã – until tomorrow

Treinar – Training

Bora treinar – Let’s train

Mais um – One more

I hope it helps somehow in you BJJ and to get to know better the Brazilian culture around Jiu-Jitsu.

Oss

See you on the mats.

Gracie Sydney Team

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(02) 8488 3039

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