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In English, the word smooth can be an adjective applied to an action that means doing something with a lot of skill to make it look effortless, or you could apply it to a person to - like "that guy is smooth". Typically it means that the person operates seemingly effortlessly often in a charming and very skilled manner. For example:

Girl: Are you lost?

Guy: Only in your eyes.

Girl: You're smooth.

Is there a word in Brazilian Portuguese for this term? One close word could be jeitoso but it doesn't seem to have exactly the same meaning.

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  • We often say: that guy is a smooth operator.
    – Lambie
    Commented Nov 10, 2022 at 19:31

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You may say that someone has a tender speech. In this case, "he is smooth" would sound something like:

Ele tem uma fala mansa.

or

Ele tem fala mansa.

You may end up sounding like someone from the beginning of the 20th century, though.

A friend commented the alternative "bom de lábia":

Ele é bom de lábia.

You should understand that these are, though close to the tone of smooth in the given example, not generalizable to actions in general.
For that, I would recommend the more formal "com maestria":

Ele performou um salto com maestria.

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  • "you may say someone has a tender speech"?? maestria is mastery. bom de lábia is a smooth talker in English. fala mansa is really wrong.
    – Lambie
    Commented Nov 12, 2022 at 18:56
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    Hey Harpago, welcome to Portuguese SE! +1. As you've met some disagreement in your first participation, let me assure you we're a friendly community — and we strive to keep this way. So, please, try to assume good intent. In particular, if criticism comes across to you as nonconstructive, respond in a way that doesn't lead to escalation. If you really feel a line's been crossed, flag the offending comment and, if it's very serious, message a moderator.
    – stafusa ♦
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 0:15
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    Welcome Harpago, this is a good first answer. :) In the stackexchange etiquette, when you edit an answer you don't need to mark the editions. Just improve your answer any time you want and however you want, it doesn't matter as long as it becomes better. :)
    – ANeves
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 4:37
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    We even edit each-other's answers to improve them... the etiquette when editing answers from other people is to make sure not to change the intention and content of the answer, and of course above all respect the wishes of the owner of the answer. I've tried to touch up your answer a bit, you can review the editions by selecting the "edited X time ago" link to see the revisions; rollback or edit on top to make the answer just how you like it. :)
    – ANeves
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 4:44
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Not negating Harpago's answer.
There is also the slang when we call someone a "liso" (one of the synonyms for smooth or slick).

On qualeagiria:

[...] something or someone who is never caught, always manages to escape.

And on DicionarioInformal, one of the definitions says:

People who practice acts of cleverness without being exposed or penalized.

This can be used in both situations: commenting on a successful flirt or being quick-witted at something.

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  • You could explain how this connects to "smooth", in particular the sense in the example: some guy just turning a situation around to flirt successfully and artfully with a gal.
    – ANeves
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 4:34
  • edit I don't know if I can explain this properly. In super informal environments, this word is used for both situations: commenting on a successful flirt or being quick-witted at something. @ANeves, save me, lol
    – Renato C.Francisco
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 16:14
  • Sim, liso poderia funcionar. O prioblema é que na frase dada, não há suficiente contexto. A resposta acima da sua está errada e não tem nada que ver com smooth.
    – Lambie
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 16:52
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    Sorry, I can't help you, I really don't know the subtleties of liso. :) In pt-PT, liso is just broke... 🤷‍♀️ I think your addition has improved the answer, thanks. :)
    – ANeves
    Commented Nov 15, 2022 at 0:55
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Achei engraçado demais o que disse o Lula sobre o Bolsonara:

Lula classificou Bolsonaro como “ignorantão” e “chucro”: “O Bolsonaro, você sabe que é meio ‘ignorantão’, meio chucro, fala palavrão. […] Tem gente que acha que é bonito ser ignorante, mas não é. O bonito é ser educado, um cara refinado como eu”.

a smooth guy = um cara refinado

Publicado no: Diário de centro mundo

["vox populi", o que Lula diz de si mesmo, o fato que ele diz que é um cara refinado; é piada minha]

Isso é p'ra cair na gargalhada.

Também se poderia dizer: fino ou chique

video

smooth as asked in the question can be slang in English. A smooth person can be refinado, fino, chique, among others.

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  • Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat.
    – stafusa ♦
    Commented Nov 12, 2022 at 23:34
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    I don't understand very well what you are proposing as an answer. Maybe you could rephrase to make that clearer. :) As an example... "Is Diário de centro mundo the name of a publication or site? What does that have to do with vox populi?" It's probably obvious for a Brazilian, and I can (and did) search and discover what it's all about; but the answer is not as clear as it could be.
    – ANeves
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 0:25
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    A resposta é: refinado ou fino ou chique. Vox populi is a joke about Lula seeing himself as the voice of the people.
    – Lambie
    Commented Nov 13, 2022 at 16:57
  • Thanks, it's much clearer now.
    – ANeves
    Commented Nov 15, 2022 at 0:53

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