Meaning
A direct plea for assistance.
Practice Bank
3 exercisesThe person exclaimed, "____!" as they needed help.
When in distress, a common Portuguese plea is "____."
If you're lost and need assistance in Portugal, you might say "____."
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Literally translates to 'Help me!' or 'Assist me!'. It is a common and direct plea for assistance in Portuguese. 'Me' is a clitic pronoun meaning 'me', and 'ajuda' is the third-person singular present indicative of the verb 'ajudar', meaning 'to help' or 'to assist'. The word 'ajudar' itself comes from the Latin 'adiutare', a frequentative form of 'adiuvare', which means 'to help, assist, support'. 'Adiuvare' is composed of 'ad-' (to, toward) and 'iuvare' (to help, benefit). The Latin root 'iuvare' is also related to words like 'adjuvant' in English. The phrase 'Me ajuda!' has been in use in Portuguese for centuries, its structure and meaning remaining consistent with the evolution of the language from Vulgar Latin.
