How to Say ‘Forget it! / Screw it! (mild)’ in Portuguese
Que se lixe!
keh seh LEE-sheh
[keh seh LEE-sheh]
💬 Usage Tip: lixar literally means "to sand down", which makes it a polite stand-in for a much ruder verb. Swap in what you're giving up on, as in Que se lixe o jantar! "Screw dinner!"
🇵🇹 In Portugal: Mild enough to use at work, typically when you shrug off a problem and decide to stop worrying about it.
Phrase Breakdown
Que
[keh]
may (let)
Introduces a wish or command with the subjunctive.
Que se lixe o trabalho!
To hell with work!
se
[seh]
itself / (reflexive)
Reflexive pronoun attached to the verb 'lixar-se'.
Ele que se lixe.
Screw him.
lixe
[LEE-sheh]
screw it / to hell with it
Subjunctive of 'lixar-se' (to get screwed); a mild vulgar dismissal.
Que se lixe, vou na mesma.
Screw it, I'm going anyway.
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