1
Listen to the episode
Áudio: COERLL · University of Texas at Austin · Também disponível no Apple Podcasts →
2
Read the dialogue
João comes home sweaty from playing ball, and the smell doesn't go unnoticed.
A: Que cheiro terrível, que que isso?
What a terrible smell, what is that?
B: Desculpe, sou eu. Eu estava jogando bola.
Sorry, it's me. I was playing ball.
A: É você João? Bom, vai tomar banho, rapaz, vai.
It's you João? Well, go take a bath, man, go.
B: Tá, eu já vou.
OK, I'm going.
A: Vai já já, porque esse fedor está demais.
Go right now, because this stench is too much.
B: Sei, eu só queria esperar uns minutinhos antes.
I know, I just wanted to wait a few minutes first.
3
Language focus
Focus 1
Vai + infinitivo — imperativo informal
English: Go do X! (an informal spoken command)
In everyday spoken Brazilian Portuguese, vai (from ir) + infinitive gives a quick, informal command: "vai tomar banho" = "go take a bath." This is different from vamos ("let's..."), which includes the speaker — vai is a direct order to someone else.
Vai tomar banho, rapaz, vai!
Go take a bath, man, go! Vai arrumar seu quarto!
Go clean up your room!
Go take a bath, man, go! Vai arrumar seu quarto!
Go clean up your room!
Focus 2
Já e já já — imediatismo
English: right away, right now (already vs. doubled for urgency)
Já alone with a present-tense verb signals an immediate intention: "eu já vou" = "I'm going right now." Doubling it to já já intensifies the urgency even more: "vai já já" = "go right this instant."
Tá, eu já vou.
OK, I'm going right away. Vai já já, porque esse fedor está demais!
Go right now, because this stench is too much!
OK, I'm going right away. Vai já já, porque esse fedor está demais!
Go right now, because this stench is too much!
Focus 3
Vocabulário do cheiro & rapaz
Smell/sweat vocabulary + the informal vocative "rapaz"
Key vocabulary from the dialogue, plus the informal way Brazilians address a guy they know well.
Cheiro — smell
Fedor — stench
Suar — to sweat
Jogar bola — to play ball / soccer
Rapaz — man, dude (informal way to address a guy)
Fedor — stench
Suar — to sweat
Jogar bola — to play ball / soccer
Rapaz — man, dude (informal way to address a guy)
🚿 Culture note
Brazilians tend to be quite direct with close friends and family about hygiene — telling someone to go shower after sports isn't rude, it's just practical (and often affectionate, as with A's repeated "vai, vai" here).
🔊 Phonology note
In já já, both syllables are stressed almost equally and said quickly, back to back — the repetition itself carries the sense of urgency, more than any single sound change.
4
Exercises
Exercise 1 — Comprehension check
Choose the correct answer based on the dialogue.
Exercise 2 — Vai, já ou já já?
Fill in each gap with vai, já, or já já, as appropriate.
1. tomar banho, rapaz!
2. Eu vou, só um minutinho!
3. arrumar seu quarto agora!
4. Ele disse que vai chegar .
5. terminar essa tarefa antes de sair!
Exercise 3 — Vocabulário do cheiro
Match each Portuguese word to its English meaning.
Exercise 4 — Your turn
Write 4–6 sentences in Portuguese giving a friend an informal command. Use vai + infinitivo at least once, já or já já for urgency, and at least one word from Focus 3.
Enviar respostas para a professora