Contexto Cultural
Adoniran Barbosa (1910–1982) is the father of samba paulista — samba from São Paulo. In "Saudosa Maloca" (1951), a man tells the story of the maloca (improvised shack) he built with two friends, Mato Grosso and Joca — until the owner of the land had it demolished to build a tall building. This recording is by Os Originais do Samba.
Adoniran wrote his lyrics in the popular Portuguese of working-class São Paulo — on purpose. Forms like nóis, as ferramenta and véia are not "mistakes" in the song: they are part of his art and identity. In this activity you will learn to recognize them and connect them to the standard forms you use in writing.
💬 The song made a Brazilian proverb famous: "Deus dá o frio conforme o cobertor" — literally, "God gives the cold according to the blanket": life only gives you what you can bear.
Ouça a música
First listen: just enjoy the story. Second listen: pay attention to the words that sound different from "textbook" Portuguese.
Adoniran Barbosa, "Saudosa Maloca" (1951) · Gravação: Os Originais do Samba. Trechos citados nos exercícios apenas para fins didáticos.
Vocabulário
a maloca — improvised shack, humble home
o palacete — small palace, elegant house
o terreno — plot of land
as ferramentas — tools
derrubar — to knock down, demolish
se conformar — to accept it, come to terms
a saudade — longing, missing something
saudosa — dearly missed
Exercise 1 · Compreensão
Verdadeiro ou falso?
Listen to the song and mark V (verdadeiro) or F (falso).
a) Antes do edifício alto, havia uma casa velha naquele lugar.
b) O narrador construiu a maloca sozinho.
c) O dono do terreno mandou derrubar a maloca.
d) Os amigos brigaram com os homens das ferramentas.
e) O narrador sente saudade da maloca.
Exercise 2 · Vocabulário
O que significa?
Match each word to its meaning in Portuguese.
1. a maloca
2. o palacete
3. as ferramentas
4. derrubar
5. o terreno
6. saudosa
Exercise 3 · Registro
A palavra no padrão
Adoniran sings in popular Portuguese. Write the standard form of each underlined word. The quotes are from the song.
1. "Era uma casa véia" →
2. "Esse edifício arto" →
3. "Dá licença de contá" →
4. "O dono mandô derrubá" →
5. "O dono mandô derrubá" →
6. "Veio os home com as ferramenta" →
Exercise 4 · Registro
A frase no padrão
Now rewrite the full lines in standard Portuguese. Pay attention to verb agreement and plurals.
1. "Veio os home com as ferramenta."
2. "Peguemo todas nossas coisa."
3. "Nóis se conformemo."
Exercise 5 · Produção
Um lugar que deixa saudade
Think of a place from your life that no longer exists or that you miss — a house, a school, a café, a city. Write 4–6 sentences about it in Portuguese.
Use these ideas:
• Eu sinto saudade de… (I miss…)
• O lugar era… (The place was…)
• Lá tinha… (There was/were…)
• Eu morava / estudava / ia lá… (I used to live / study / go there…)
• Eu sinto saudade de… (I miss…)
• O lugar era… (The place was…)
• Lá tinha… (There was/were…)
• Eu morava / estudava / ia lá… (I used to live / study / go there…)
📩 When you're done, send your exercises to your teacher. She will read carefully and give you personalized feedback — pointing out what you did well and helping you improve your Portuguese even further. This exchange is one of the most important parts of the learning process!
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