What does "cara" mean?

Dude, guy, man.

Language: 🇧🇷 Brazil
Say it: KA-ra
Register: Friends & informal

How it's actually used

The standard Brazilian address word between friends, and also a noun for a guy you are describing. "Mano" is the other big one, slightly more street. Used constantly by all genders despite the masculine form.

Examples

E aí, cara, tudo bem? Hey man, all good?
Aquele cara é meu vizinho. That guy is my neighbor.

Where it comes from

Literally "face."

How it compares

Portugal says "pá" or "gajo". Mexico says güey, Colombia says parce.

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Now actually use it out loud

Reading a definition isn't the same as saying it to someone. Lingo Kaiava is a voice tutor set to Brazilian Portuguese — it uses cara the way locals do, corrects you in the moment, and never "fixes" the way real people actually talk into textbook Brazilian Portuguese.