preto - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Back-formation from apretar (“tighten, push, squeeze, compress”). The semantic evolution to "dark" comes through the sense of "tight" or "thick".[1] Another common, but less likely, etymology suggested is Vulgar Latin *prettus, from Latin pressus. Compare Portuguese preto, perto, Asturian prietu, Spanish prieto.

preto

  1. near, nearby
    Antonym: lonxe
    • 1390, J. L. Pensado Tomé, editor, Os Miragres de Santiago, Madrid: C. S. I. C, page 98:
      Et quando o diserõ a Calrros, volueuse a França et a grã presa enviou a todo los seus a longe et a preto que viesen a el.
      And when Charlemagne was told this, he returned to France and in great hurry he sent for all his, far and near, to come to him

preto (feminine preta, masculine plural pretos, feminine plural pretas)

  1. dark, swarthy, black
    Synonyms: louro, negro
    Antonyms: branco, claro
    • 1842, Juan Manuel Pintos, Meu Querido Pai:
      Ali venden millo
      Trigo è mais centeo
      Fabas è castañas
      Roupa è trapos vellos;
      Tamen venden louza
      De côr branco e prêto,
      Hai tendas do chan
      E tamen cubertos
      Con cousas do uso
      Todas a bon prezo
      There they sell corn
      wheat and also rye
      beans and chestnuts
      clothes and old rags
      also they sell dishware
      of colour white and black,
      there they sell on the ground
      and also under cover
      with handy things
      all at a good price
  1. ^ Coromines, Joan; Pascual, José Antonio (1983–1991), “prieto”, in Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico [Critical Castilian and Hispanic etymological dictionary]‎[1] (in Spanish), Madrid: Gredos.

Borrowed from Portuguese preto.

preto

  1. black

Old Galician-Portuguese

[edit]

From earlier *apreto, from apretar, from Late Latin appectorāre, from Latin pectus (“chest”).

preto m (plural pretos, feminine preta, feminine plural pretas)

  1. black
    Synonym: negro

preto

  1. near
    • […] que pã nõ comeu nẽ bocado nen beueu agua nẽ uỹo ata que preto de Silve foi quando aluzeçia.
      […] that she didn’t eat bread nor morsel, neither drank water nor wine until she was near Silves during sunrise.

Colors in Old Galician-Portuguese · coores, colores (layout · text)

branco, blanco, alvo gris negro, preto
vermelho castanho amarelo
verde
azur
cardẽo rosa

preto

From Old Galician-Portuguese preto (“black, near”), from earlier *apreto, from apretar (Modern Portuguese apertar (“tighten, press, clamp”)), from Late Latin appectorāre, from Latin pectus (“chest”). The semantic evolution to "black" or "dark" comes through the sense of "dense" or "thick". Another common, but less likely, etymology suggested is a Vulgar Latin *prettus, from pressus.

Doublet of perto. Cognate with Galician preto, Asturian and Leonese prietu, Ladino preto, and Spanish prieto.

preto (feminine preta, masculine plural pretos, feminine plural pretas)

  1. black; black in colour
    Synonym: (somewhat formal) negro
    O tecido preto aquece/esquenta mais rapidamente.
    Black cloth heats up more quickly.
  2. (loosely) being the darkest of its kind
    pão preto ― rye bread
    peças pretas de xadrez ― black chess pieces
    nuvem preta ― black cloud
  3. (of a person) black (dark-skinned)
    Synonym: negro (less offensive)
    Uma mulher preta esteve cá.
    A black woman was here.
  4. (idiomatic, of situations) bad; very adverse
    Synonyms: negro, feio, (formal) adverso
    A coisa está preta.
    The current situation is bad.

preto m (uncountable)

  1. the color black
    Synonym: negro
    O preto é a mais escura das cores.
    Black is the darkest colour.

Pretos.

preto m (plural pretos, feminine preta, feminine plural pretas)

  1. (now usually offensive) a black person
    Synonyms: (less offensive) negro, (Brazil, ethnic slur) macaco, (Brazil, pejorative) tição
    Uma preta passou por aqui.
    A black woman was here.
  2. (Portugal, colloquial) any of the lowest value euro coins (0.01 €, 0.02 € and 0.05 €) which, being made out of copper-covered steel, are darker than the higher value coins

Colors in Portuguese · cores (layout · text)

branco, alvo cinza, gris, cinzento preto, negro
vermelho,encarnado, rubro,salmão; carmim laranja,cor de laranja; castanho,marrom amarelo; creme, ocre
verde-limão verde verde-água; verde-menta
ciano, turquesa; azul-petróleo azul-bebê / azul-bebé, azul-celeste azul, índigo, anil
violeta,lilás magenta; roxo, púrpura rosa,cor-de-rosa, rosa-choque

preto (comparable)

  1. (obsolete outside of Trás-os-Montes) alternative form of perto

preto

  1. therefore, hence