patinar

Senses

1. 1.

   to skate

   to glide on ice or a surface using skates or rollerblades

2. 2.

   to slip, to skid

   when wheels or feet lose traction and slide without moving forward

3. 3.

   to stall, to make no progress

   figuratively, to be stuck or fail to advance (projects, negotiations, etc.)

Examples

• "Ela adora patinar no gelo durante o inverno."

  She loves to ice skate during the winter.

• "O carro patinou na pista molhada e quase bateu."

  The car skidded on the wet road and almost crashed.

• "O projeto está patinando há meses sem avanços."

  The project has been stalling for months without progress.

Usage

Regular -ar verb. Commonly used literally for skating sports (patinação no gelo, patinação artística) and for vehicles losing traction. The figurative sense of "stalling" or "spinning one's wheels" is very common in Brazilian Portuguese, especially in business and political contexts.