travesso
/tɾaˈvɛ.su/
The English word naughty can be translated into Portuguese using travesso or levado.
Meaning: bad, tending to misbehave or act badly (adj)
Ways to say it
| Portuguese | IPA |
|---|---|
| travesso | /tɾaˈvɛ.su/ (Brazil) /tɾɐˈvɛ.su/ (Portugal) |
| levado | /leˈva.du/ (Brazil) /lɨˈva.du/ (Portugal) |
These words describe someone who is bad or tends to misbehave.
Which one should you use?
travesso often implies a sense of mischief or playfulness. In contrast, levado can sometimes imply a child who is difficult to control or 'handful'.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Brazilian Portuguese, the word brincalhão/a is commonly used to mean playful or mischievous.
How does it change in a sentence?
Both adjectives must agree with the gender of the person they describe. travesso changes to travessa for a feminine noun, and levado changes to levada for a feminine noun.
How do you pronounce it?
The word is pronounced /tɾaˈvɛ.su/ with three syllables and the stress on the second syllable.
Did you know?
- The word travesso shares its DNA with the English word 'transverse', as both originate from the Latin 'transversus', meaning 'turned across'.
- While 'naughty' in English can sometimes have a flirtatious connotation in adults, using travesso or levado for an adult in Portuguese will almost always sound like you are treating them like a small child.
- Depending on the region, a 'naughty' child might be called arteiro, a word that focuses more on the 'art' or cleverness of their mischief.
Examples in context
- Quem é o menino travesso que quebrou a janela?Who's the naughty boy that broke the window?This sentence uses travesso to identify a naughty boy who caused property damage.Tatoeba #2686401 by Ricardo14, translation #274159 by CM
- Ele era muito levado quando ele era um menino.He was very naughty when he was a little boy.This sentence uses levado to describe someone's naughty behavior during their childhood.Tatoeba #6955215 by Ricardo14, translation #299618 by CK
- É melhor o menino ter fama de travesso do que de bobo.It's better for the boy to be known as naughty than as silly.This sentence uses travesso to compare being known as naughty versus being known as silly.Tatoeba #2907503 by carlosalberto, translation #9921705 by lucasmg123
- Quando o João era criança, ele sempre era levado e adorava pregar peças.When João was a child, he was always mischievous and loved playing pranks.
- Aquele Pedro é um safado. Nunca perde a chance de fazer algo malandro.That Pedro is naughty, he never misses a chance to do something mischievous.
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Rodrigo and Beatriz are talking about a child's behavior.
- RodrigoO seu filho é muito travesso.Your son is very naughty.
- BeatrizSim, ele não para quieto.Yes, he doesn't stay still.
- RodrigoEle fez alguma travessura hoje?Did he do any mischief today?
- BeatrizSim, ele pintou a parede.Yes, he painted the wall.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “naughty” translations and entries travesso, levado, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries travesso, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
