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clowning around

[/ˈklaʊnɪŋ əˈraʊnd/]
verb (gerund/present participle)
palhaçada; fazer o palhaço; brincar de palhaço
1. To act in a silly or funny way; to behave like a clown; to joke around or engage in playful, mischievous behavior
Stop clowning around and pay attention to the lesson.
Deixa de fazer palhaçada e presta atenção na aula.
2. To waste time with foolish or silly behavior instead of doing something serious or productive
The kids were clowning around instead of doing their homework.
As crianças estavam fazendo palhaçadas em vez de fazer o dever de casa.
NYC Slang
clowning; acting the fool; goofing
Synonyms
joking aroundfooling aroundhorsing aroundmessing aroundgoofing offplaying the foolacting silly
Antonyms
behaving seriouslybeing seriousworking diligentlyfocusing

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
fazer palhaçada; brincar de palhaço; zoar
Most common usage in Brazilian Portuguese
Rio de Janeiro
zoação; tiração de sarro
More informal, colloquial variant
São Paulo
palhaçada; brincadeira de mau gosto
Standard usage
Portugal
fazer parvoíces; andar na brincadeira
Portuguese European variant; 'parvoíces' means silly things

Related Idioms & Phrases

stop clowning around
quit clowning around
clown around with someone
act the clown
play the fool
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