Notório

Notório is an adjective used in Portuguese to describe something or someone widely known, acknowledged by the public, or accepted as a fact. It signals that the information is already common knowledge or has broad recognition, rather than requiring proof in the current context. The term can carry a neutral to formal tone.

The word derives from Latin notorius, from notus meaning "known." In Portuguese, notório developed from this Latin root and entered standard usage in the Romance languages to convey public or general knowledge. Its usage tends to be more formal than everyday synonyms like conhecido or famoso.

Notório is often contrasted with synonyms such as conhecido, famoso, and célebre. It emphasizes public knowledge rather than personal reputation and is common in legal, administrative, or educated registers. Phrases such as "fato notório" (a widely known fact) and "de notório saber" (known by common knowledge) illustrate its specialized sense. In everyday speech, it appears in constructions like "é fato notório" or "é de notório saber," where the knowledge is presumed to be shared by most people.

In English, the closest equivalents depend on context: "well-known" or "widely known" for neutral use, and "notorious" when a negative connotation is intended. Notório is thus a versatile Portuguese term that both marks public knowledge and signals a formal or deliberative register, particularly in legal, academic, and administrative language.