Lord Thomas Robert Dewar said, “Minds are like parachutes, they only function when they are open”. That’s right, a mind in Portuguese can also be open:

aberto = open
uma mente aberta = an open mind

There are several other expressions using the word mente (mind) in Portuguese that are almost the same as in English. For example:

Eu tenho uma mente aberta. = I have an open mind.
A minha mente está aberta para novas ideias. = My mind is open to new ideas.
Tente manter a mente aberta. = Try to keep an open mind.

When your mind is open, things can come in!

vir à mente = to come to mind
Uma ideia lhe veio à mente. = An idea came to his mind.

Your mind can also be narrow!

estreita = narrow
de mente estreita = narrow-minded

Your mind can also be closed!

fechada = closed
uma mente fechada = a closed mind

Ideas, thoughts and memories exist “inside” somebody’s mind, so we have some expressions:

em mente = in mind
ter em mente = keep in mind
O que você tem em mente? = What do you have in mind?
É importante ter em mente a sua idade. = It’s important to keep in mind your age.

Minds can be brilliant, sharp or even dirty too!

brilhante = brilliant
uma mente brilhante = a brilliant mind
Ela tem uma mente brilhante. = She has a brilliant mind.

afiada = sharp
uma mente afiada = a sharp mind
Ela tem uma mente afiada. = She has a sharp mind.

suja = dirty
uma mente suja = a dirty mind / dirty-minded
Ele tem a mente suja. = He has a dirty mind.

No problem! If your mind is dirty you can have a lavagem cerebral!

lavagem = wash
cérebro / cerebral = brain
lavagem cerebral = brainwash

Did you know that the term lavagem cerebral comes from Chinese form xi nao and it was invented by the Chinese communist party in the fifties because they used harsh psychological techniques to doctrinate and break resistance.

Por hoje é só! See you next time!

Adapted from O Inglês Que Você Nem Imagina Que Sabe, by Ron Martinez. (Permissio given by the author)

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