====== '''''' means literally a senile person, from the verb . ====== ''''
(according to the Diccionario de la lengua española de la Real Academia Española'', ), according to the
Chicano poet
José Antonio Burciaga, "basically describes someone who is stupid or does something stupid." Burciaga said that the word is often used while not in polite conversation. It may be translated as "dumbass" or "asshole" in many situations, The expression
¡Ah cabrón! is used sometimes when one is shocked/surprised by something. Among close friends, the term is often inoffensive; however, it is not a word to be used casually with strangers. As an adjective, it is equivalent to "tough" as in "It is tough" (
Está cabrón). To some extent, it can also be used with an ironically positive connotation meaning "great", "amazing", "phenomenal", or "badass". Such expressions would be said as
¡Estás cabrón! or
¡Yo soy cabrón!. The word is quite flexibly used in Puerto Rico, and it can even have completely opposite meanings depending on the context. Best friends call each other
cabrón in a friendly manner, while it may also be used in an offensive manner. One might say
Está cabrón to describe something as very good or very bad depending on the circumstance. In Panama, it is used as an adjective to mean something/someone very annoying (who pisses you off). The verb
cabrear can mean "to piss off (someone)". This verb form is also used in Chile. In Peru,
cabro is a reference to a homosexual, hence
cabrón is a superlative form ("big faggot"/"flaming faggot"). The term
cabrón also means a handler of prostitutes, comparable to "
pimp" in English.
Chulo The most common way to refer to a pimp in Spanish is by using the term
chulo as a noun. In some countries,
chulo can be used as an adjective somewhat equivalent to "cool" (
Ese hombre es un chulo = "That man is a pimp" versus
Ese libro es chulo = "That book is cool"). The word
chula is a completely benign reference to an adorable female or
feminine object, as in "¡Ay, que chula!". In Chile, however, "chulo" and "chula" always mean "vulgar".
Gilipollas Gilipollas (and rarely
gilipolla) is a term used mostly in Spain and lacking an exact translation to English; the most frequent equivalents when translated in books, films, and other media are "
jerk", "jackass", "
douchebag", "
asshole", or "
buffoon" (in English),
con (in French), and
boludo or
pendejo. The canonical definition of a
gilipollas is a person whose behavior, speech, outlook or general demeanor is inconsistent with the actual or potential consequences of their own intellectual inadequacy. Paragons of this taxon include stupid people unaware of their own stupidity or unwilling to accept the consequences thereof, people with an ostensible lack of
self-criticism, people unable to realize their own limitations, people who engage in repeated self-defeating behavior, and even a category which is seldom captured in languages other than European Spanish—to wit, people characterized by
self-aware idiocy or incompetence, with this self-awareness occasionally stressed to the point of (presumably futile) complacency. By extension, its use in daily life is dedicated to any of the following types of people: •
stupidity in its own right, to the point of eliciting animosity, whether faked or real, in whoever uses the word; • any character flaw (e.g., obnoxiousness, impertinence, general unpleasantness, blatantly unjustified arrogance or obliqueness and even
neurotic or
passive-aggressive behavior) deemed irritating and even a catalyst for potentially detrimental situations; or • a person displaying any combination of the two above qualities. Occasionally it may be used for people who appear to be unpleasant or stupid (without necessarily being either) out of extreme
social ineptitude. When selecting a word denoting low intelligence, most Spanish speakers have three options: • using a merely descriptive term, or one which, although insulting, can be used as a mild or at times even affectionate form of teasing:
tonto ("silly"),
burro (), etc. • using a more explicitly insulting expression, although one which still does not qualify as a real profanity:
imbécil,
idiota,
estúpido. • one which delves into profanity.
Gilipollas and
capullo would correspond to such case. The etymology of the word itself immediately confirms its genuinely Peninsular Spanish origins and preponderance, as opposed to other profanities perhaps more linked to Latin America: it is the combination of the
Caló jili, usually translated as "candid", "silly" or "idiot", and a word which according to different sources is either
polla (listed
above) or a colloquial evolution thereto of the Latin
pulla (
bladder). Perhaps due to the alternative origins of the latter part of the word, there has been some controversy concerning its status as a
real profanity, although its clear phonetic evocation of the word
polla leaves little room for doubt, at least in its common daily use. It is due to this that attempts at a
euphemism have at times become popular, as is the case with
gilipuertas (
puerta standing for
door). Recently, similar phrases have appeared, especially in Spain, although most of them (such as
soplapollas, "cock-blower") delve much further into plain profanity. A usual derivation of the word
gilipollas into an
adjective form (or a false
adjectival participle) is
agilipollado/
agilipollada. For example:
… está agilipollado/a would mean "… is behaving like a
gilipollas." Regardless of whether or not such condition or irreversible, the verb
estar is always used, as opposed to
ser. Another Spanish construction with similar rationale is
atontado, derived from
tonto ("silly"). A noun form of the word is
gilipollez, meaning "stupidity" or "nonsense."
Capullo Capullo (lit: "
cocoon" or "
flower bud", also slang for
glans penis) is nearly always interchangeable with that of
gilipollas. The main difference between the two of them is that while a
gilipollas normally behaves as he does out of sheer stupidity, a
capullo normally acts like one by applying certain amount of evil intentions to his acts. While one can act like a
gilipollas without being one, in the
capullo instance that is not possible. A near-exact English translation is
wanker. In English
to be means at the same time both the permanent/ fundamental characteristics and the non-permanent/ circumstantial ones of anything, in Spanish
to be separates into two distinct verbs:
ser and
estar which respectively reflect the aforementioned characteristics. So, to say about anyone that
es un gilipollas means that he is stupid/ annoying permanently, while to say
está agilipollado reflects both his present state and the fact that it could change at any time to a non
agilipollado one. This is not true for a
capullo: if someone thinks about someone else that he is a
capullo, he thinks so permanently, because the degree of evil he sees in the ''capullo's
actions tends to be thought of as a permanent characteristic, inherent to the capullo'
s personality. So the correspondent verb ser
would be used: es un capullo
, and the estar'' verb would never be used. Whenever used as an affectionate or heavily informal form of teasing rather than as an insult, though,
capullo is used a bit more often. This may be because someone who does not have an intention to offend will resort to a lower amount of syllables, hence rendering the expression less coarse and ill-sounding. Therefore, expressions such as
venga ya, no seas ___ ("come on, don't be silly") would use
capullo more frequently than
gilipollas.
Buey/huey/güey/wey/we/way Buey/Huey/Güey/Wey/We is a common term in Mexico, coming from the word
buey that literally means "ox" or "steer". It means "stupid" or a "cheated husband/boyfriend/cuckold". It can be used as a less offensive substitute for
cabrón when used among close friends. Mexican teenagers and young
Chicano men use this word routinely in referring to one another, similar to "dude" in English.
Vato is the older Mexican word for this.
Joto Joto () is a slang term in
Mexican Spanish and other Latin American varieties of Spanish. It is primarily used as a derogatory word for
gay men, though its meanings and cultural significance have varied over time. The term has been documented since the late 19th century and remains widely recognized in colloquial usage. The origin of the word is uncertain. One proposed etymology links it to the
Nahuatl word xôtoj, meaning homosexual. Another explanation suggests a connection to the Spanish word
jota ("J"), possibly through its association with the
jack and
wildcard in card games. A widely circulated account attributes it to Mexico City's
Lecumberri prison (1900–1976), where inmates in
cellblock J (
jota) were allegedly homosexual men. This theory is disputed, as the term appears in written sources as early as 1885, predating the prison. Its association with prisons further underscored the marginalization of queer individuals in institutional and cultural contexts. Over time,
joto became embedded in literature, media, and everyday speech, often reinforcing stereotypes linked to
machismo in Latin American societies. Since the late 20th century,
joto and the derived noun term
jotería have been
reappropriated within Mexican LGBTQ+ community.
Madre Madre, (mother) depending on its usage (for example:
madrear—"to beat" or
hasta la madre—"full"), is an insult to one's mother. This dishonors her, and the reputation of the family. It can be profane in Mexico.
Chinga tu madre ("Fuck your mother") is considered to be extremely offensive.
Tu madre culo ("Your mother's ass") combines two Spanish profanity words, madre and culo (see above), to create an offensive jab at one's mother or mother-in-law.
Madre could be used to reference objects, like
¡Qué poca madre! ("That's terrible!") and
Este madre no funciona ("This shit doesn't work"). It can also be used with an ironically positive connotation, as in
¡Está de poca/puta madre! ("It's fucking awesome!").
Madrazo, in Colombia, refers to insults in general, and "echar madrazos" means "to insult/curse somebody out."
Puta madre can also be used to insult someone ("motherfucker"), as well as to describe something of great excitement ("the shit", "awesome") as mentioned before.
Pinche Pinche has different meanings, depending on geographic location. The word is not offensive in Spain and it mostly refers to a kitchen
scullion, who acts as an assistant to chefs and is assigned to menial kitchen tasks such as preparing ingredients and utensils, though it may also extend to
bussing staff and dishwashers. It is seldom used as an insult, as in
pinche güey ("loser"), or to describe an object of poor quality,
está muy pinche ("It really sucks"), but only to a lesser extent. Many restaurants in Spain have the name "El Pinche", to the great amusement of Mexican and Chicano tourists. In Mexico, the saying can range anywhere from semi-inappropriate to very offensive depending on tone and context. Furthermore, it is often equivalent to the English terms "damn", "freakin'", "bloody" or "fuckin'", as in
estos pinches aguacates están podridos… ("These damn avocados are rotten…");
Pinche Mario ya no ha venido… ("Freakin' Mario hasn't come yet"); or
¿¡Quieres callarte la pinche boca!? ("Would you like to shut your fuckin' mouth?"), but most likely should be translated to the euphemism "frickin'" in most situations. Therefore, it can be said in front of adults, but possibly not children, depending on one's moral compass. Sometimes
pinchudo(a) is said instead. It also refers to a mean-spirited person or someone who is stingy: "Él es muy pinche." ("He is very stingy.").. In Chile, the
noun pinche is not vulgar, and it refers to the people involved in an informal romantic relationship with each other. The verbal form
pinchar can be translated as "kissing" or "make out".
Pinchar also means "to ping" (the act of calling someone and then hanging up with the intent of having them call back). The
adjective pinche has seen a rise in usage, as a "lightly vulgar" form of the "puta" adjective: "La pinche inspectora." instead of "La puta inspectora." ("That darn inspector." instead of "That fucking inspector."). In Puerto Rico,
pinche simply refers to a
hairpin, while
pincho has the same meaning in Dominican Spanish.
Puta Puta literally means
whore, and can be extended to any woman who is sexually promiscuous. This word is common to all other Romance languages (it is
puta also in Portuguese and Catalan,
pute/
putain in French,
puttana in Italian, and so on) and almost certainly comes from the Vulgar Latin
putta (from
puttus, alteration of
putus "boy"), although the
Royal Spanish Academy lists its origins as "uncertain" (unlike other dictionaries, such as the
María Moliner, which state
putta as its origin). It is a derogatory way to refer to a prostitute, while the formal Spanish word for a prostitute is
prostituta. It is used similarly to the English word
bitch. ==Racial and ethnic derogatives==