# portuguese words, inho



## Ali81

Hello!

I am curious about learning a few words/sentences/sayings in Portuguese, for a book that I am writing.

What would a Mother call her teenage son and little daughters? Are there any affectionate, loving terms that a Mother uses?
I've heard that te use of 'inho' and 'inha is common.

So, can I have words like 'little baby' = bébinho? Is that a real word?
The names Miguel and Marco will be Miguelinho and Marcinho?

One more question...are there any Portuguese/Portuguese Brazilian lullabies which parents sing to their children?

I look forward to any replies, thank you so much! )

- Ali

Ooops sorry, I put te wrong emoticon face in. I meant to put a smile


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## Vanda

Welcome to the forums! ]



> What would a Mother call her teenage son and little daughters? Are there any affectionate, loving terms that a Mother uses?
> I've heard that te use of 'inho' and 'inha is common.
> 
> So, can I have words like 'little baby' = bébinho? Is that a real word? - *bebezinho*
> The names Miguel and Marco will be Miguelinho and Marcinho?


For Brazil: 
Moms use to say: filhinho (for sons)/ filhinha (for moms) and a million words when we speak to beloved babies.
For Miguel we generally say: Miguelzinho

And about the lullabies, google ''cantigas de ninar'' and you 'll have plenty of them.


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## Codinome Shlomo

And for Marco(s) you should say Marquinho(s).


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## Ali81

Vanda said:


> Welcome to the forums! ]
> 
> 
> For Brazil:
> Moms use to say: filhinho (for sons)/ filhinha (for moms) and a million words when we speak to beloved babies.
> For Miguel we generally say: Miguelzinho
> 
> And about the lullabies, google ''cantigas de ninar'' and you 'll have plenty of them.



Hi, thank you so much for your reply!  I appreciate it a lot, because I've got no idea.
So...for example, a Mother would call her 15-year old son 'filhinho', yes? And he wouldn't be embarrassed by it?
What other words or expressions can Mothers use? You mentioned there are a million words, I'd love to hear some, please, if you can help me out. That'd be super!
How does a Mother say 'I love you' to her babies?

I have googled what you recommended, I'll have to translate it into english a bit, but that's ok.

Thanks again for replying so quickly!


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## Ali81

Hello  Much thanks for fixing my Marco mistake! Marquinho...I never would have guessed there's a 'q' involved. Thank you for your reply.


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## Vanda

''So...for example, a Mother would call her 15-year old son 'filhinho', yes? And he wouldn't be embarrassed by it?'' - yes, he'll. He'd say that he is pagando mico in front of his friends if they hear it.
''What other words or expressions can Mothers use? You mentioned there are  a million words, I'd love to hear some, please, if you can help me out.  That'd be super!'' - the problem is this is very personal, love inspires the dumbiest words with a love tone on them. 
''How does a Mother say 'I love you' to her babies?'' - te amo


For words and simpler expressions, have a look in our dictionary on top of the page:
http://www.wordreference.com/enpt/love


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## anaczz

Ali81 said:


> So...for example, a Mother would call her 15-year old son 'filhinho', yes? And he wouldn't be embarrassed by it?


Depends on the family, but usually teenagers get upset to be called "inho" (filhinho, queridinho).
One can say _filho, querido, meu amor, filhote, filhão_...


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## Ali81

Oh thank you for that link!  This is great!

Yes, I was thinking that maybe a teenage son would blush a bit from embarrassment  Thankyou for your help and suggestions, I appreciate it!


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## Ali81

Vanda said:


> ''So...for example, a Mother would call her 15-year old son 'filhinho', yes? And he wouldn't be embarrassed by it?'' - yes, he'll. He'd say that he is pagando mico in front of his friends if they hear it.
> ''What other words or expressions can Mothers use? You mentioned there are a million words, I'd love to hear some, please, if you can help me out. That'd be super!'' - the problem is this is very personal, love inspires the dumbiest words with a love tone on them.
> ''How does a Mother say 'I love you' to her babies?'' - te amo
> 
> 
> For words and simpler expressions, have a look in our dictionary on top of the page:
> http://www.wordreference.com/enpt/love




***
Hi Vanda, how are you? 

I had a look at the dictionary...so the embarrassed boy would say 'Pagando mico!' to his Mother? I see that it is said after being 'made a fool of'...in english this would be 'I'm ashamed'? I'm a bit confused about this.

I understand about the love expressions being personal, so I researched a few words to suit my book characters... I hope they're correct?
Can the Mother call her son, who has a spikey hairstyle, "Meu pequenino porco-espinho"? In english, this would be 'my little porcupine'.
Also...for her other son, who is a sweet, gentle boy with big, brown eyes..."Meu de grande olhos castanhos filinho"? In english, this would be 'My big brown-eyed little boy'? Or instead of 'grande', can I put 'doce' for sweet?
For a little sweet 8year old daughter with curly hair, can I say ' My sweet curly-haired baby girl'..."Meu doce de cabelos enrolados filinha"?
And lastly, a little 5year old boy who likes giving cuddles to his Mother...can I call him a 'funny, little bear'...like "Meu divertido pequenino urso"

I'm sorry for all the trouble, and thank you a lot! 

- Ali


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## LuizLeitao

Ali81 said:


> Hello!
> 
> I am curious about learning a few words/sentences/sayings in Portuguese, for a book that I am writing.
> 
> What would a Mother call her teenage son and little daughters? Are there any affectionate, loving terms that a Mother uses?
> I've heard that te use of 'inho' and 'inha is common.
> 
> So, can I have words like 'little baby' = bébinho? Is that a real word?
> The names Miguel and Marco will be Miguelinho and Marcinho?
> 
> One more question...are there any Portuguese/Portuguese Brazilian lullabies which parents sing to their children?
> 
> I look forward to any replies, thank you so much! )
> 
> - Ali
> 
> 
> 
> Ooops sorry, I put te wrong emoticon face in. I meant to put a smile



Well, one must be careful with certain diminutive forms in this beautiful but tricky Portuguese language. So, little baby is translated as bebe*Z*inho, the same way as Miguel becomes Miguel*Z*inho,BUT Marco is not Marcinho, which is the diminutive of Marcio. Marco = Marquinho. Regarding teens I do agree that none of them would appreciate being called "filhinho" — strange as it may seem, "filhão" is one rather fitting term in this case; and "filhota" for girls. But don't worry, just go on and ask us the diminutives you happen to be doubtful about!


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## Ali81

Hello Luiz!  Thanks for your reply. Oh, so bebezinho is a real word after all! 
What do filhão/filhota mean exactly?...Filho is son/filha is daughter, yes? so what do the remaining letters mean in english?
Filhinho means little baby boy, yes? So its too cute for adolescents, okay, I get it.
Portuguese sounds lovely, but I'm starting to believe it is difficult to learn!  I'm happy I found this forum.

Are these expressions correct?
- Meu pequenino porco-espinho = my little porcupine (one of my story characters has spikey hair, and I want his Mother to tease him lovingly about it, so she calls him her little porcupine son.)
- Meu de grande olhos castanhos filinho/filhão = my big brown-eyed little boy...Or instead of 'grande', can I put 'doce' for sweet?
- My sweet curly-haired baby girl = Meu doce de cabelos enrolados filinha/filhota
- My funny, little bear baby boy = Meu divertido pequenino urso filhinho

Thank you for everything! 

- Ali


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## marta12

Em Portugal, dizemos Miguelinho para Miguel


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## patriota

O único Miguel bebê que conheço é chamado de "Miguelito" pelas tias.


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## anaczz

> Oh, so bebezinho is a real word after all!


Yes, is the diminutive for bebê (baby)


> What do filhão/filhota mean exactly?


 "Filhão" is the augmentative for filho, "filhote" is the word for puppy and is used as a diminutive for "filho", "filhota" used as a diminutive for "filha"


> Filhinho means little baby boy, yes? So its too cute for adolescents, okay, I get it.


 "Filhinho" is the diminutive for "filho"


> Are these expressions correct?


In my opinion, the use of this kind of expressions  from a mother to her  child is not usual and may sound very old fashioned. There are too many adjectives in each expression

- Meu pequenino porco-espinho = maybe "meu porco-espinho querido" "meu porco-espinho predileto"  (for teasing purposes it works, but it is not too tender)  
- Meu de grande olhos castanhos filinho/filhão = Meu filhinho de grandes olhos castanhos (no one would say it, sounds too "literary stuff") maybe: Meu filho/filhote/filhinho de olhos lindos
- My sweet curly-haired baby girl = Minha doce menina de cabelos cacheados (literary stuff) -> Meu docinho, meus cachinhos, minha princesinha/gatinha de cabelos cacheados/enrolados
- My funny, little bear baby boy = Meu divertido pequenino urso filhinho -> "Meu ursinho" should work here


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## LuizLeitao

Ali81 said:


> Hello Luiz!  Thanks for your reply. Oh, so bebezinho is a real word after all!
> What do filhão/filhota mean exactly?...Filho is son/filha is daughter, yes? so what do the remaining letters mean in english?
> Filhinho means little baby boy, yes? So its too cute for adolescents, okay, I get it.
> Portuguese sounds lovely, but I'm starting to believe it is difficult to learn!  I'm happy I found this forum.
> 
> Are these expressions correct?
> - Meu pequenino porco-espinho = my little porcupine (one of my story characters has spikey hair, and I want his Mother to tease him lovingly about it, so she calls him her little porcupine son.)
> - Meu de grande olhos castanhos filinho/filhão = my big brown-eyed little boy...Or instead of 'grande', can I put 'doce' for sweet?
> - My sweet curly-haired baby girl = Meu doce de cabelos enrolados filinha/filhota
> - My funny, little bear baby boy = Meu divertido pequenino urso filhinho
> 
> Thank you for everything!
> 
> - Ali





(Although formally some of them are correct, their usage sounds unnatural in this context. Normally, one would only use the adjective when speaking directly to the person, but not when talking about him/her. So, it would be good if you could give us more context here).

Anyway, Ali, here it goes:

— Meu pequeno (rather than pequenino, which is not wrong) porco-espinho. (how about "ouricinho" — sea urchin — instead?) 
— (Brown-eyed people are so common in Brazil that nobody would likely highlight this feature when talking to his/her son; instead, a quite good expression would be "olhos de jabuticaba" — which is a black, coin-sized round fruit)
— Minha querida filhinha/filhota de cabelos encaracolados.
— Meu ursinho engraçadinho (talking to him). 

And yes, like Patriota said, "Miguelito", although being a Spanish form, sounds appropriate for a baby.


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## marta12

patriota said:


> O único Miguel bebê que conheço é chamado de "Miguelito" pelas tias.



Também,
mas estávamos a falar dos 'inhos'


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## Carfer

Ali81 said:


> Hello Luiz!  Thanks for your reply. Oh, so bebezinho is a real word after all!
> What do filhão/filhota mean exactly?...Filho is son/filha is daughter, yes? so what do the remaining letters mean in english?
> Filhinho means little baby boy, yes? So its too cute for adolescents, okay, I get it.
> Portuguese sounds lovely, but I'm starting to believe it is difficult to learn!  I'm happy I found this forum.
> 
> Are these expressions correct?
> - Meu pequenino porco-espinho / *meu porco-espinhozinho* = my little porcupine (one of my story characters has spikey hair, and I want his Mother to tease him lovingly about it, so she calls him her little porcupine son.)
> - Meu de grande olhos castanhos filinho/filhão Meu filhinho de grande olhos castanhos = my big brown-eyed little boy...Or instead of 'grande', can I put 'doce' for sweet? *Depends on what you mean*
> - My sweet curly-haired baby girl = Meu doce de cabelos enrolados filinha/filhota*Minha filhinha de cabelos encaracolados/aos caracóis*
> - My funny, little bear baby boy = Meu divertido pequenino urso filhinho *Meu filhinho, meu ursinho tão engraçado*
> 
> Thank you for everything!
> 
> - Ali



Portuguese is a rather supple language as to the expression of warm and affectionate feelings. Affection can be expressed namely both by diminutives ('_filhinho', 'filhote', filhito', 'bebezinho_', '_bebezito_', '_bebezote', 'Miguelinho', 'Miguelito', 'Migucho',_ for instance) and augmentatives ('_filhão', 'bebezão_', _'Miguelão'_ and the like), the set of possibilities being quite large. Portuguese having different rules as to the placement of adjectives, literal translations the way you did sounds weird. Compound adjectivation like '_sweet curly-haired baby' _or_ 'funny, little bear baby_' cannot be used the same way as in English. Also, the direct translation of _'sweet_' in the first sentence would be redundant because the diminutive _'filhinho_' already conveys that meaning. Furthermore cultural idyosincracies make literal translations almost impossible and you have to be a native or a very seasoned translator to know, for example, that you can use the word _'filhão_' for a male baby in an affectionate way but that the corresponding word for a female baby, _'filhona_', could sound rude in many contexts ('_filhota', _on the other hand, would be OK). Of course there are other ways of translating your sentences (*). Mine is just a suggestion. 

P.S. (*) As the previous posts, which were posted while I was writing mine, clearly demonstrate.


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## Vanda

Guys, I can't believe we are discussing ''there is this, there isn't that''when speaking of nicks moms give to their children. Any thing you can imagine or you can make up to sound affectionate is possible. That is why I said there are 1 million possibilities to address children, lovers, - whatever.
Miguelzão, Miguelinho, Miguelzinho, Migué, Miguelito (I myself call ''our'' Mike like that), Miguilim and so on. Aninha, Anita, Nana, Ninha... well, you just make according to your own will and taste.

As Carfer said it: ''Mine is just a suggestion.''That means, anything we put in this context are just that: suggestions! .


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## marta12

Carfer said:


> Portuguese is a rather supple language as to the expression of warm and affectionate feelings. Affection can be expressed namely both by diminutives ('_filhinho', 'filhote', filhito', 'bebezinho_', '_bebezito_', '_bebezote', 'Miguelinho', 'Miguelito', 'Migucho',_ for instance) and augmentatives ('_filhão', 'bebezão_', _'Miguelão'_ and the like), the set of possibilities being quite large. Portuguese having different rules as to the placement of adjectives, literal translations the way you did sounds weird. Compound adjectivation like '_sweet curly-haired baby' _or_ 'funny, little bear baby_' cannot be used the same way as in English. Also, the direct translation of _'sweet_' in the first sentence would be redundant because the diminutive _'filhinho_' already conveys that meaning. Furthermore cultural idyosincracies make literal translations almost impossible and you have to be a native or a very seasoned translator to know, for example, that you can use the word _'filhão_' for a male baby in an affectionate way but that the corresponding word for a female baby, _'filhona_', could sound rude in many contexts ('_filhota', _on the other hand, would be OK). Of course there are other ways of translating your sentences (*). Mine is just a suggestion.
> 
> P.S. (*) As the previous posts, which were posted while I was writing mine, clearly demonstrate.



Ah, Carfer! não estou nada de acordo.

Ninguém, eu pelo menos nunca diria, dirá: _Meu porco-espinhozinho_ e sim _meu pequenino porco-espinho.
_Da mesma maneira que se pode e se diz: _minha doce filhinha_. É redundante porquê? se fosse _minha pequenina filhinha_, percebia, assim não.


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## Casquilho

Maybe this can help you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypocoristic


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## Ali81

Casquilho said:


> Maybe this can help you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypocoristic



Oh super, thank you for this link...it came in handy, as I have a Jose in my story, too!


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## Ali81

This is awesome!  Thank you for your help and explanations, its given me a lot to think about. Everyone's been so wonderful in helping me out, I'm grateful heaps, thank you!


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## Ali81

LuizLeitao said:


> (Although formally some of them are correct, their usage sounds unnatural in this context. Normally, one would only use the adjective when speaking directly to the person, but not when talking about him/her. So, it would be good if you could give us more context here).
> 
> Anyway, Ali, here it goes:
> 
> — Meu pequeno (rather than pequenino, which is not wrong) porco-espinho. (how about "ouricinho" — sea urchin — instead?)
> — (Brown-eyed people are so common in Brazil that nobody would likely highlight this feature when talking to his/her son; instead, a quite good expression would be "olhos de jabuticaba" — which is a black, coin-sized round fruit)
> — Minha querida filhinha/filhota de cabelos encaracolados.
> — Meu ursinho engraçadinho (talking to him).
> 
> And yes, like Patriota said, "Miguelito", although being a Spanish form, sounds appropriate for a baby.



***

Hi Luiz!
Thanks for your reply...I see what you mean, so I'll explain the context a bit better now...
I'd like to use these expressions as the Mother's direct speech to her children. For example, she says the 'porco-espinho' expression, when she is ruffling her son's hair, affectionately...or the Meu ursinho, when she is giving her little son a hug.
I want the Mother to talk to her children in Portuguese sometimes, some words here and there. My book is in English, but I'd like to drop in the Portuguese language every so often, to show the Mother's background. 
I love your idea about using a 'sea urchin'!  it made me smile, thank you.
What do the words 'engraçadinho', and 'cabelos encaracolados' mean exactly?
In regards to Patriota's suggestion of 'Miguelito'... yes, that'd be great too. I know in Spanish, you can use 'ito' and 'ita'.


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## Ali81

Carfer said:


> Portuguese is a rather supple language as to the expression of warm and affectionate feelings. Affection can be expressed namely both by diminutives ('_filhinho', 'filhote', filhito', 'bebezinho_', '_bebezito_', '_bebezote', 'Miguelinho', 'Miguelito', 'Migucho',_ for instance) and augmentatives ('_filhão', 'bebezão_', _'Miguelão'_ and the like), the set of possibilities being quite large. Portuguese having different rules as to the placement of adjectives, literal translations the way you did sounds weird. Compound adjectivation like '_sweet curly-haired baby' _or_ 'funny, little bear baby_' cannot be used the same way as in English. Also, the direct translation of _'sweet_' in the first sentence would be redundant because the diminutive _'filhinho_' already conveys that meaning. Furthermore cultural idyosincracies make literal translations almost impossible and you have to be a native or a very seasoned translator to know, for example, that you can use the word _'filhão_' for a male baby in an affectionate way but that the corresponding word for a female baby, _'filhona_', could sound rude in many contexts ('_filhota', _on the other hand, would be OK). Of course there are other ways of translating your sentences (*). Mine is just a suggestion.
> 
> P.S. (*) As the previous posts, which were posted while I was writing mine, clearly demonstrate.



Hello Carfer, how are you?
Thanks for your explanation...I think I understand what you mean. Oooh, its interesting and complicated at the same time!  Thank you for your help, I appreciate it!


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## Carfer

Ali81 said:


> Hello Carfer, how are you?
> Thanks for your explanation...I think I understand what you mean. Oooh, its interesting and complicated at the same time!  Thank you for your help, I appreciate it!



You are welcome, Ali. _'Engraçadinho_' is the diminutive form of '_engraçado_' (funny). Depending on context, this diminutive _'inho'_-ended form can be affectionate, mocking, contemptuous or derogatory . '_Cabelo(s) encaracolado(s)_' is the same as _'curly hair'. 'ito'_-ended diminutives are not specifically Spanish. They are quite frequent in Portuguese too, at least in the European variant, although less frequent than the '_inho' _
variant.


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## Carfer

marta12 said:


> Ah, Carfer! não estou nada de acordo.
> 
> Ninguém, eu pelo menos nunca diria, dirá: _Meu porco-espinhozinho_ e sim _meu pequenino porco-espinho.
> _Da mesma maneira que se pode e se diz: _minha doce filhinha_. É redundante porquê? se fosse _minha pequenina filhinha_, percebia, assim não.



Admito que sim, marta, não vou contestar. Lá está o que dizia a Vanda, nesta matéria não há propriamente regras nem limites. Cada um diz como quer e o que quer, felizmente a língua dá-nos ampla margem para a imaginação e a criatividade na expressão dos sentimentos. A mim soa-me bem. Quanto a _'sweet_' em '_My sweet curly-haired baby girl'_, creio que desempenha aí a mesma função que o nosso sufixo '_inho'_, ou melhor, creio que o sentimento que um falante de inglês exprime com esse adjectivo é o mesmo que nós expressamos com o diminutivo '_filhinho_'. Daí a redundância.


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## marta12

Carfer said:


> Admito que sim, marta, não vou contestar. Lá está o que dizia a Vanda, nesta matéria não há propriamente regras nem limites. Cada um diz como quer e o que quer, felizmente a língua dá-nos ampla margem para a imaginação e a criatividade na expressão dos sentimentos. A mim soa-me bem. Quanto a _'sweet_' em '_My sweet curly-haired baby girl'_, creio que desempenha aí a mesma função que o nosso sufixo '_inho'_, ou melhor, creio que o sentimento que um falante de inglês exprime com esse adjectivo é o mesmo que nós expressamos com o diminutivo '_filhinho_'. Daí a redundância.



Obrigada pela resposta, Carfer
Não teria traduzido o 'sweet' com esse significado. Aprender até morrer!


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## Sonhadora

..Estou curiosa por saber se os sufixos diminutivos *-inho, -zinho* (e aumentativos também!) são usados em Portugal tão frequente- e ativamente como no Brasil? Será que foreiros portugueses me podem ajudar?
Muito grata.


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## Carfer

Sonhadora said:


> ..Estou curiosa por saber se os sufixos diminutivos *-inho, -zinho* (e aumentativos também!) são usados em Portugal tão frequente- e ativamente como no Brasil? Será que foreiros portugueses me podem ajudar?
> Muito grata.



São frequentes, sim. Se são menos ou mais do que no Brasil não lhe sei dizer com certeza. A mim parece-me que menos, mas é uma apreciação subjectiva.
Bem vinda ao forum, Sonhadora.


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## LuizLeitao

Aqui na _Terra Brasilis_ também são muito comuns: amorzinho, carrinho, amiguinho, dinheirinho, coisinha.


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## anaczz

Uma diferença que notei é que em Portugal, os homens têm menos restrições ao uso dos diminutivos do que no Brasil.
É possível ouvir um homem dizer "Doem-me os pezinhos." e coisas assim, que no Brasil são muito improváveis.


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## Codinome Shlomo

Depende do contexto e o modo como se fala, né, Ana...
Mas no geral, homens não usam muito diminutivos.


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