rábula

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See also: rabula

Portuguese

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin rabula (pettifogger).

Pronunciation

 

  • Rhymes: -abulɐ
  • Hyphenation: rá‧bu‧la

Noun

rábula m (plural rábulas)

  1. pettifogger (lawyer who confuses matters with artifices)
    • 1911, Lima Barreto, “Foi buscar lã...”, in O homem que sabia javanês e outros contos:
      Só o fazia, porém, entre os colegas e repórteres bem comportados. Nada de boêmios, poetas e noctívagos, na sua roda! Advogava unicamente no cível e no comercial. Isto de "crime", dizia ele com asco, "só para rábulas". Pronunciava - "rábulas" - quase cuspindo, porque devem ter reparado que os mais vaidosos com os títulos escolares são os burros e os de baixa extração que os possuem. (...)
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
  2. (Brazil) quack lawyer, pettifogger (an individual who practices law without being qualified to do so)
  3. blabbermouth, windbag (man who talks a lot without reaching a conclusion)

Noun

rábula f (plural rábulas)

  1. (film, theater) minor role, supporting part (small role in a play)
    • 2014, António Vilar, É a vida, Vida Economica Editorial, →ISBN, page 109:
      E o mal já vem de há muito, neste aspecto, ao que não é alheio o facto de a lei permitir brincadeiras sindicalistas também a titulares de órgãos de soberania, o que me faz vir à memória uma rábula magnífica, protagonizada por Ivone Silva, ...
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
  2. sketch, skit (short comic performance)

Further reading

Spanish

Noun

rábula m (plural rábulas)

  1. (law) pettifogger (unscrupulous or unethical lawyer)

Further reading