Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
Here are some words or phrases from the Spanish language that are sometimes used in English language slang, but have not entered the standard lexicon. There is also a list of English words of Spanish origin.
- De nada – "You're Welcome" lit. "Of nothing"
- El Dorado (lit. the golden one) – a mythical golden city
- El Niño (lit. the boy child - referring to the Child Jesus/Christ child) – a major temperature fluctuation in the tropical Pacific Ocean, so named because it often started around Christmas time near Peru
- Ella – She
- entre la espada y la pared (Between the sword and the wall); used in same way as "Between a rock and a hard place."
- fiesta – party (the meanings of fiesta festival and holiday are standard English)
- flan – Spanish dessert custard
- gracias – thank you
- grande – large
- gringo – Derogatory. North American person (from the United States, regardless of race)
- machete – a large broad-bladed knife used as a cutting tool or weapon
- madre – mother
- mañana lit. tomorrow.
- mano – hand, but in English it is mostly used in reference to a fight (see mano-a-mano)
- mano-a-mano or mano a mano (lit. "hand to hand") – a confrontation with cooperation
- matador – bullfighter (lit. killer)
- me gusta ... – I like ... (lit: "it pleases me") (ex: Me gusta la cerveza - I like beer)
- mi... – my ... (Ex: Mi coche. = My car.)
- mi casa es su casa – (lit: my house is your house) – make yourself welcome
- muchacho – young man, but also male help
- mucho – a lot, a lot of (as in Bésame Mucho)
- muy – very
- no comprende – Do(es) not understand (but in Spanish it corresponds to the 3rd person of the verb comprender; no comprendo is lit. I don't understand.)
- nada – Nothing.
- no problema – misspoken form of "No problem" (correct term is no hay problema in Spanish), often misspoken by English speakers as "no problemo"
- número uno – Number one
- padre – Roman Catholic priest (its main meaning in Spanish is "father")
- pendejo – a stupid person; an asshole; in Ecuador the man who is betrayed by his woman; in Cuba a person who refuses to defend himself
- piñata – a game using a colorful suspended candy-and-toy-filled container that children try to break open with a stick
- pícaro – hardened rogue; star of the picaresque novel
- piñón pine/piñón – pine nuts
- plaza (lit. "square") – a public square
- poncho – a garment made of cloth or other material that has a hole in the middle for the head. In Mexico, is Sarape
- pronto (lit. "soon") – immediately
- pueblo (lit. "village" or "people"/"populace") – the distinctive towns of the Pueblo people, tribes of Native Americans.
- puerto – port as in a harbor, not the wine
- rodeo (lit. "surrounding") – a spectacle of cowboys and wild cattle.
- rico suave (lit. "rich smooth") – once a popular hit song in the 90's, also describes people with a smooth character.
- salsa – a spicy Mexican-style usually tomato-based sauce (in Spanish, any kind of sauce or gravy), also a style of Latin music or dancing
- sangre – blood.
- sangría – a wine cooler drink.
- señor – Mr. or Sir (El Señor being "The Lord")
- señorita – ("Miss", dim. of Señora – "Mrs.") unmarried girl or woman
- sierra (lit. "saw") – a mountain range
- siesta – a nap
- sombrero – a very large-brimmed hat (in Spanish, it refers to any kind of hat)
- ¡salud! – "Cheers" (a toast) or "Bless you" (after a sneeze) (lit. Health)
- suave – smooth (also a brand name shampoo)
- supremo – the person in charge; chief.
- tamal – mixture of meat, peppers, and spices, wrapped in corn meal dough and corn husks, then steamed (Spanish grammatical singular of "tamales")
- taco – A shell made of cornmeal fill with meat, cheese and/or vegetables
- tapas (lit. "covers") – finger food. In Mexico,Botana; in other parts of Latin America, Boquitas or Pasapalos
- toreador or torero – bullfighter
- tres – three (as in the Cuban instrument of three strings)
- un/una – "A" as indicating one of something (ex: Un coche - A car, Una ventana - A window)
- uno – one, as the number
- unos/unas – "some" indicating a number of something that has finite quantities (ex: unos carros - some cars) - See "algunos/algunas" for "some" relating to things that do not come in finite quantities (like water, food, feelings, etc)
- vamos – let's go (also lit. We go) (alt: ¿Nos vamos? Shall we go?)
- vámonos – let's go, or come on
- vaquero – cowboy (cf. "buckaroo")
- vino – Wine
- wop – insult for olive-skinned people (from guapo – "pimp"[1], now "handsome" in Spain and "brave" in Spanish America, ultimately from Latin vappa "brigand", passed to American English through Neapolitan guappone, "bravado man")
[edit] References
- ^ Diccionario Crítico Etimológico Castellano e Hispánico vol. III, Joan Corominas, José A. Pascual, Editorial Gredos, 1989, ISBN 84-249-1365-5
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
