embromation

Portuguese

FWOTD – 5 November 2017

Etymology

From embromar (“to beat around the bush; to trick”) +‎ -ation.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ĩ.bɾo.ˈmej.ʃõ/

Noun

embromation m or f (uncountable)

1. (Brazil, slang) the act of beating around the bush, especially while pretending to do something useful
   • 2017, Julianna Costa, Luiza Costa, Miga, sua louca, Universo dos Livros, page 149:

     Na verdade, acho que aquela embromation toda foi só resto de ética que ainda batia na porta dele, […]

     Actually, I think that whole beating around the bush thing was just a residue of ethics knocking on his door, […]

2. (Brazil, slang, chiefly music) the act of improvising the use of another language, such as mimicking the lyrics of a song badly or using Portuguese-like words and syntax
   • 2004, Cult, issues 76-87, Lemos Editorial e Gráficas, page 38:

     A letra é cantada em “embromation”, numa mistura de alemão, com japonês e inglês, fácil de acompanhar.

     The lyrics are sung in “mimicry”, with a mix of German, Japanese and English, easy to sing along.