quém

Portuguese

Alternative forms

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

  • (Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈkwẽj̃/ [ˈkwẽɪ̯̃]

  • Rhymes: (Brazil) -ẽj̃, (Portugal) -ɐ̃j̃

Noun

quém

  1. (onomatopoeia) quack (imitative of the sound of a duck)
    Synonyms: quá, quac, qué

Interjection

quém

  1. (onomatopoeia) quack (imitative of the sound of a duck)
    Synonyms: quá, quac, qué
    • 1961, Jayme Silva, Neuza Teixeira, “O Pato”, performed by João Gilberto:
      O pato vinha cantando alegremente, quém, quém
      The duck came singing happily, quack, quack

Usage notes

  • This onomatopoeia is usually written quém, possibly to prevent confusion from the pronoun quem, but the spelling quem is implicitly prescribed: compare the name of the bird quem-quem. Prior to the Orthographic Agreement of 1990, Brazilian orthography already made the difference in pronunciation explicit in the spelling qüem.
  • Like many onomatopoeias, quém can be used repeatedly, such as quém-quém.
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