another side of this positivity in carioca's expressions is the reluctance on using the word 'no' - on asking a barman if the bar has coffee, the carioca attendant will likely respond, 'temos café, mas acabou', which is translated to 'we have coffee, but it is out of stock'.

'pode ser' is often used when planning a potential night out, instead of stating one's unavailability, it is a more polite 'no', which is still not definitive, as there is always the possibility - another polite and very common way of saying 'no' is the word 'talvez', technically meaning 'maybe' but normally truly meaning 'no'.

there are a whole spectrum of carioca affirmatives, ranging from a bona fide 'yes', to a 'probably' or  'maybe', right down to a definitive 'no' -  they are all however, packaged and presented with the same delightfully positive and reassuring wrapping paper.