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tau tau tau

English translation: smack, smack

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Portuguese term or phrase:tau tau tau
English translation:smack, smack
Entered by: lexical

14:11 Nov 19, 2010
Portuguese to English translations [PRO]
Slang / português de Portugal (Açores)
Portuguese term or phrase: tau tau tau
We're almost at the end of my questions about colloquial or street Portuguese.
Here we have a battered woman complaining about the slowness of the justice system in Portugal:
"Aqui é assim, primeiro você faz o crime, fica zanzando aí fora, **tau tau tau**, pra depois o tribunal vai resolver se vai prender."

I think I've actually heard this said and I thought at the time it was fairly meaningless. Can anybody complete my education?
lexical
Spain
Local time: 12:25
naughty, naughty
Explanation:
This is how I have understood it, Tau meaning something like "smack"
Selected response from:

Douglas Bissell
Portugal
Local time: 11:25
Grading comment
Thanks, Douglas. Talking to the editor of this work, the consensus is that the woman means "he keeps on smacking his wife".
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +1naughty, naughty
Douglas Bissell
3tsk,tsk, tsk /blah,blah,blah
Verginia Ophof
2etc., etc.
Cristina Pereira
Summary of reference entries provided
tau
T o b i a s

  

Answers


2 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
naughty, naughty


Explanation:
This is how I have understood it, Tau meaning something like "smack"

Douglas Bissell
Portugal
Local time: 11:25
Meets criteria
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 8
Grading comment
Thanks, Douglas. Talking to the editor of this work, the consensus is that the woman means "he keeps on smacking his wife".

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Gilmar Fernandes: yes, that's the idea - tau,tau meaning a smack
13 mins
  -> thanks, Gilmar
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14 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5
etc., etc.


Explanation:
Since this is Brazilian, could it be "tal, tal, tal"?

"tau-tau" is something we to say to young children when they misbehave, eg: "if you do that again, I'll give you tau-tau" (meaning, I'll smack you).

Hope this helps, but I'm not sure.

Cristina Pereira
Local time: 11:25
Does not meet criteria
Native speaker of: Native in PortuguesePortuguese
PRO pts in category: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Gilmar Fernandes: It's not Brazilian, the Asker says it in the Question header that this is from Açores
2 mins
  -> Ok. But it looks Brazilian ("zanzando")... Anyway, I've never seen "tau tau tau" (3 times), but only "tau tau" (twice). That's why I think it must have a different meaning.
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
tsk,tsk, tsk /blah,blah,blah


Explanation:
suggestion

Verginia Ophof
Belize
Local time: 04:25
Meets criteria
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 12
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Reference comments


1 day 34 mins
Reference: tau

Reference information:
Dicionario Aurelio da Lingua Portuguesa

tau (2)
Interjeição.
1. Voz imitativa de tiro ou pancada.


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day39 mins (2010-11-20 14:50:58 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

e.g.
" Pegaram nos paus afiados e, aproximando-se, pregaram-lhos na cabeça: tau! tau! tau!... A onça, gemendo, exclama: — Ai! Ai! Parai lá... Eles, porém, continuam: tau! tau! tau! e ... "

http://books.google.com/books?id=1poRAAAAIAAJ&q="Pegaram nos...

T o b i a s
Meets criteria
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 8
Note to reference poster
Asker: That seems pretty uncontrovertible, Tobias, although I wasn't able to follow up your URL reference for some reason.. As I suspected, it's onomatopoeic, and I now remember the context in which I've met this before - the sound of gunfire (cf. bang, bang) and, I now, discover, the sound of roasting chestnuts popping. In the context of my question, Douglas may not be far off the mark, methinks, or do you want to post an answer?

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