gambiarra
Portuguese, noun/ɡɐ̃.biˈa.ʁɐ/
gambiarra is spelled G-A-M-B-I-A-R-R-A (9 letters) and appears about once in every 1 million words in written Portuguese, the 37,239th most frequent Portuguese word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Gambiarra is a Portuguese feminine noun meaning “MacGyverism, workaround” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) defines it as “perna longa”.
What does gambiarra mean in English?
noun
- 1
feminineMacGyverism, workaround
- 2
femininelifehack
Source: English Wiktionary, Portuguese section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How Portuguese dictionaries define it
noun: 1. perna longa 2. extensão elétrica, de fio comprido, com uma lâmpada na extremidade, que permite a utilização da luz em diferentes localizações dentro de uma área relativamente grande 3. extensão puxada fraudulentamente para furtar energia elétrica; gato 4. rosário de lâmpadas com que se iluminam fortemente determinados locais, quando necessário; chuveiro
The definition in the Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário), in Portuguese.
Source: Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of gambiarra
- gambiarras plural
Source: English Wiktionary and Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce gambiarra?
- Brazil /ɡɐ̃.biˈa.ʁɐ/
- Brazil [ɡɐ̃.biˈa.hɐ]
- Brazil /ɡɐ̃ˈbja.ʁɐ/
Sources: English Wiktionary, Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to gambiarra
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is gambiarra in Portuguese?
gambiarra appears about once in every 1 million words in written Portuguese.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).