pois não
Portuguese
Etymology
From pois (“so, then”) + não (“not”). Probably originally intended as: "so ... not ...?", implying either "so, how could I not serve you?" or "so, how could I not do what you asked?", depending on the context.
Compare Spanish ¿cómo no? (“how not?”) and Hungarian hogyne (“sure, of course”, literally “how not”).
Phrase
- (Brazil, formal) Can I help you? (used when attending customers)
Usage notes
Don't confuse with pois sim (“used as a sarcastic agreement of something that is obviously to be disagreed: yeah, right!, yeah, sure!”).
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