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punga

Portuguese, noun/ˈpũ.ɡɐ/

punga is spelled P-U-N-G-A (5 letters) and appears about once in every 35 million words in written Portuguese, the 169,452nd most frequent Portuguese word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Punga is a Portuguese feminine noun meaning “pickpocket” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) defines it as “antílope africano pequeno e gracioso”.

What does punga mean in English?

noun

  1. 1

    Brazilfeminineinformalmasculinepickpocket

noun

  1. 1

    Brazilfeminineinformalpickpocketing

noun

  1. 1

    Brazilfemininea type of samba

adjective

  1. 1

    Brazilfemininemasculineuseless, of low quality

  2. 2

    Brazilfemininemasculinethat usually finishes last in a race

noun

  1. 1

    Brazilmasculinea low-performing horse

Source: English Wiktionary, Portuguese section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How Portuguese dictionaries define it

adjective: 1. ruim 2. sem préstimo 3. ordinário 4. o último a chegar (quando se fala de um cavalo de corrida)

noun: 1. antílope africano pequeno e gracioso 2. punja 3. homem tolo; sem préstimo; inepto 4. furto de carteira, de relógio, de alfinete de gravata, etc. sem que a vítima se aperceba

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 punga

  • pungas plural

Source: English Wiktionary and Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).

How do you pronounce punga?

  • Brazil /ˈpũ.ɡɐ/
  • Portugal /ˈpũ.ɡɐ/

Sources: English Wiktionary, Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.

How common is punga in Portuguese?

punga appears about once in every 35 million words in written Portuguese.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

What to look up after punga