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What does “eita” mean in Brazilian Portuguese?

Eita is what Brazilians say when something catches them off guard, like “whoa!” or “yikes!” It’s strongly linked to the speech of Brazil’s Northeast, and most Brazilians would recognise it as a typical reaction of surprise. It can be happy (eita, que lindo!), alarmed (eita, caiu!), or a bit of both.

You’ll hear it stretched out (eeeita!) or repeated (eita, eita, eita). A common combination is eita nóis, roughly “oh boy, here we go.” In this clip a real cricket, um grilo de verdade, gets an eita out of his friends, along with tá louco! (“are you crazy!”).