Ouros

Ouros is the plural form of the Portuguese noun ouro, which means gold. The term is masculine and is used in several contexts, most notably to refer to gold medals in sports, where ouros denotes gold medals won by competitors or teams. The singular form is ouro.

Etymology and form: Ouro derives from Latin aurum, and its plural ouros is formed according to standard Portuguese noun pluralization. In everyday language, ouro is used for the material (as in joias de ouro), while ouros is typically used when counting or identifying multiple gold medals and, less commonly, multiple distinct gold items in certain stylistic contexts.

Usage notes: In usual references to the metal itself, speakers prefer phrases like “ouro” or “joias de ouro” rather than “ouros.” The plural ouros is most common in sports reporting and summaries of competitions, for example, “Ela conquistou dois ouros nos Jogos Olímpicos” or “O país ganhou três ouros no torneio.” Outside sports, ouros may appear in idiomatic or metaphorical uses, but such uses are less frequent and often context-dependent.

See also: Ouro, or other language-specific plurals of metal nouns.