dar um bolo
To stand someone up
字面意思: To give a cake
Use dar um bolo when someone flakes on a plan and leaves you waiting alone.
15秒了解
- Used when someone fails to show up for a planned meeting.
- Commonly used for dates, hangouts, or even professional appointments.
- Can be used as 'giving' (offender) or 'taking' (victim) the cake.
意思
This phrase is used when someone fails to show up for a planned meeting or date without warning. It is the equivalent of 'standing someone up' or 'no-showing' on a friend or colleague.
关键例句
3 / 6Waiting for a date at a bar
Acredita que ele me deu um bolo ontem à noite?
Can you believe he stood me up last night?
Texting a friend who didn't show up for coffee
Poxa, você me deu um bolo! Estou aqui esperando.
Man, you stood me up! I'm here waiting.
A client missing a scheduled business meeting
O fornecedor deu um bolo na equipe e não veio para a reunião.
The supplier stood the team up and didn't come to the meeting.
文化背景
The expression is deeply rooted in Brazil's social culture where 'combinar' (making plans) is a daily ritual. While being 15 minutes late is often culturally accepted, 'giving a cake' is the ultimate social transgression of ghosting a physical meeting.
The Victim's Verb
Always remember: 'Dar' is for the person who flakes, and 'Levar' is for the person left waiting. If you say 'Eu dei um bolo,' you are admitting you were the rude one!
Not for Physical Cakes
If you actually bring a cake to a party, just say 'Trouxe um bolo.' If you say 'Dei um bolo,' people will think you stood someone up earlier that day.
15秒了解
- Used when someone fails to show up for a planned meeting.
- Commonly used for dates, hangouts, or even professional appointments.
- Can be used as 'giving' (offender) or 'taking' (victim) the cake.
What It Means
Imagine you are waiting at a cafe. You have a date. Ten minutes pass. Thirty minutes pass. Your friend never shows up. In Brazil, you didn't just get stood up. You were 'given a cake'. Dar um bolo describes that frustrating moment of being stood up. It implies a broken promise. It covers everything from romantic dates to casual hangouts.
How To Use It
The grammar is very simple. You use the verb dar (to give). You can say ele me deu um bolo (he stood me up). You can also say levar um bolo (to take/receive a cake). This means you were the victim. If you are the one who missed the meeting, you 'gave' the cake. If you were left waiting, you 'took' the cake. It is a very active way to describe a social disappearance.
When To Use It
Use it when a friend misses lunch. Use it when a date disappears. It works perfectly for social flakes. You can use it in a professional setting too. If a client misses a Zoom call, you might tell a coworker: O cliente me deu um bolo. It sounds a bit more colorful than saying they were absent. It highlights the personal inconvenience of waiting.
When NOT To Use It
Do not use this for serious emergencies. If someone is in the hospital, they didn't 'give you a cake'. That sounds too trivial. Also, avoid it in very formal legal documents. You wouldn't write it in a contract. It is a social expression. If you actually give someone a physical cake to eat, don't use this! They might think you are canceling your plans instead of being sweet.
Cultural Background
Brazilians are generally flexible with time. However, completely failing to show up is still considered rude. The origin is a bit mysterious. Some say it refers to a party where the guest of honor never arrives to cut the cake. Others think it relates to 'fluffiness'—something that looks big but is full of air. Either way, it has been part of the vocabulary for decades. It is a staple of Brazilian social life and soap operas.
Common Variations
You will often hear levar um bolo. This is the most common way to complain. You might also hear ficar a ver navios. This means 'to be left watching ships'. It is a more poetic way of saying you were left behind. But dar um bolo remains the king of social flakes. It is punchy, clear, and everyone understands the sting of it.
使用说明
The phrase is mostly informal. It is perfect for social life, dating, and casual work environments. Avoid it in formal writing or when speaking to high-level authorities unless you are being intentionally colorful.
The Victim's Verb
Always remember: 'Dar' is for the person who flakes, and 'Levar' is for the person left waiting. If you say 'Eu dei um bolo,' you are admitting you were the rude one!
Not for Physical Cakes
If you actually bring a cake to a party, just say 'Trouxe um bolo.' If you say 'Dei um bolo,' people will think you stood someone up earlier that day.
The 'Cano' Alternative
In Rio de Janeiro, people often say 'Dar um cano' (to give a pipe). It means exactly the same thing but feels a bit more like street slang.
例句
6Acredita que ele me deu um bolo ontem à noite?
Can you believe he stood me up last night?
Uses 'me deu' to show the action was directed at the speaker.
Poxa, você me deu um bolo! Estou aqui esperando.
Man, you stood me up! I'm here waiting.
A direct but casual confrontation via text.
O fornecedor deu um bolo na equipe e não veio para a reunião.
The supplier stood the team up and didn't come to the meeting.
Slightly more professional but still uses the idiom to show frustration.
Se você me der um bolo de novo, eu vou comer o bolo sozinho!
If you stand me up again, I'm going to eat the cake by myself!
A pun playing on the literal meaning of cake.
Levei um bolo da Maria, então voltei cedo.
Maria stood me up, so I came back early.
Uses 'levar' to show the speaker was the one left waiting.
Todo mundo deu um bolo e ninguém apareceu na festa.
Everyone stood me up and nobody showed up to the party.
Describes a collective failure to show up.
自我测试
Choose the correct verb to say you were the one left waiting.
Eu ___ um bolo do meu namorado no cinema.
You use 'levar' (to take/receive) when you are the victim of being stood up.
Complete the sentence to say 'He stood me up'.
Ele ___ deu um bolo.
'Me' is the pronoun used when the action is done to 'me' (the speaker).
🎉 得分： /2
视觉学习工具
Formality of 'Dar um Bolo'
Very street-level talk
Me deu um cano
Friends and family
Me deu um bolo
Work colleagues
Não compareceu
Legal or official
Ausência injustificada
When to say 'Dar um Bolo'
Romantic Date
Waiting at a restaurant alone
Doctor Appointment
Patient doesn't show up
Friend Hangout
Friend flakes on the movies
Job Interview
Candidate never arrives
常见问题
12 个问题No, it's an idiom. While dar means 'to give' and bolo means 'cake', together they mean to stand someone up.
It's a bit informal. If your boss misses a meeting, it's safer to say Ele não pôde vir. Use dar um bolo only if you have a very close relationship.
Use dar um bolo if you are the one who didn't show up. Use levar um bolo if you were the one waiting at the table alone.
Yes, it is understood in Portugal, though they also use dar uma tampa for the same situation.
It can be a confrontation. Saying Você me deu um bolo is a direct way of telling someone they were unreliable.
Yes, in a casual professional context. For example: O cliente nos deu um bolo hoje is common among coworkers.
If you eventually show up, it's not a 'bolo'. It's only a 'bolo' if you never arrive at all.
Not really. Even if you stand up five people, you still deu um bolo in the singular form.
You would say Eu levei um bolo. It focuses on your experience as the person left behind.
A very common slang synonym is dar um cano, which is widely used in many parts of Brazil.
Usually, yes. It refers to social or professional commitments between people.
No. A 'bolo' usually implies you didn't call or text to cancel, or you canceled at the very last second.
相关表达
Dar um cano (Slang for standing someone up)
Ficar a ver navios (To be left empty-handed/disappointed)
Dar o bolo (A variation using the definite article)
Marcar e não ir (To make plans and not go)
Furar um compromisso (To flake on a commitment)
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