brigades
1. Organized groups or units of people working together for a specific purpose, often military, emergency response, or labor
The fire brigades arrived quickly to extinguish the flames.
As brigadas de incêndio chegaram rapidamente para apagar as chamas.
2. Military units or regiments consisting of soldiers
The general commanded three brigades in the battle.
O general comandava três brigadas na batalha.
3. Work teams or labor groups organized for collective tasks
The brigades cleaned up the neighborhood after the storm.
As brigadas limparam o bairro após a tempestade.
4. Informal groups of friends or companions
He went out with his brigade of friends last night.
Ele saiu com sua brigada de amigos ontem à noite.
In Brazilian Portuguese, 'brigadas' extends beyond its formal military meaning to colloquially refer to friend groups or social circles, similar to 'crew' or 'squad' in English. This casual usage is particularly common among younger people and in Rio de Janeiro. The word also represents organized labor tradition from communist and socialist movements in Brazil's labor history.
NYC Slang
crew, squad, posse
Related Idioms & Phrases
minha brigada - my crew/squad (colloquial)
brigada de incêndio - fire brigade
brigada de resgate - rescue brigade
Look up more words on Fala2Me
The free English-Portuguese dictionary with real Brazilian accents, NYC slang, conjugator and more
Open Fala2Me →