DEM

[/dɛm/]
pronoun/determiner
deles/delas (those)
1. Informal contraction of 'them' in English, commonly used in casual speech and dialectal varieties
Give it to dem kids over there.
Dê para aqueles meninos ali.
2. Dialectal or colloquial pronoun referring to a group of people or objects
Dem's the rules, you gotta follow 'em.
Essas são as regras, você tem que segui-las.
3. Portuguese prefix or particle meaning 'of' or indicating possession/origin in older texts
In historical Portuguese documents
Dom Fernando, dem Portugal
DEM is primarily an informal contraction used in African American Vernacular English and Southern American dialects. In Portuguese, it appears historically as a preposition meaning 'of' in medieval texts but is not used in modern Brazilian or European Portuguese except in archaic contexts. The word represents linguistic variation and cultural speech patterns rather than standard formal English.
NYC Slang
Dem - used in NYC vernacular similarly to AAVE, as in 'Dem's my boys'
Synonyms / Sinônimos
thosethemthose peopledaqueles
Antonyms / Antônimos
thesedessesdestes

Regional Variations

African American Vernacular English (AAVE)
dem
Standard dialectal pronunciation and usage in casual speech
Southern United States
dem
Common in informal, colloquial speech patterns
Brazil
deles/delas
Standard Portuguese equivalent; 'dem' rarely used except in very informal contexts
Portugal
deles/delas
Formal standard; historical 'dem' appears in medieval texts

Related Words

dem boysdem thingsthosetheydelesdelas

Related Idioms & Phrases

Dem's the breaks
Dem and those
Dem's fightin' words
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