Portuguese language: “Pelé” made his entry in the Portuguese language dictionary
In the Michaelis dictionary of the Portuguese language, « pelé » is now synonymous with «exceptional, incomparable, unique».
It is now possible to write « pelé » without capitalization. The nickname of the legendary Brazilian footballer, who passed away on December 29 at the age of 82, has since Wednesday become one of the 167,000 words in the dictionary of common nouns in the Portuguese language and its 265 million speakers worldwide. »
The nickname of Edson Arantes do Nascimento, who many considered as the greatest footballer of all time, is commonly used in Brazil as a synonym for excellence.
However, the Brazilian Academy of Letters, which governs the Portuguese language in Brazil, where 215 million Portuguese speakers live, has not included this word in its digital version.
«Something or someone who stands out from the ordinary»
In the online version of the Michaelis dictionary, the definition of this new common noun is: «Something or someone who stands out from the ordinary, something or someone who, by their quality, value, or superiority, cannot be compared to anything or anyone else, like Pelé, the nickname of Edson Arantes do Nascimento (1940-2022) ».
Here are some examples: « He is the Pelé of basketball», «she is the Pelé of Brazilian drama», « he is the Pelé of medicine».
This addition to the dictionary is the result of a joint campaign launched on April 14 by the Pelé Foundation, in partnership with Santos, the club where the three-time world champion (1958, 1962, 1970) shone from 1956 to 1974, and the Sportv channel, of the Globo group, the largest media conglomerate in the country.
Yannick H.
Source: 20minutes.fr
