carajo
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[edit] Spanish
[edit] Etymology
The etymology is unknown, but the most plausible source on the basis of both semantics and historical phonology appears to be unattested Latin *c(h)araculum, which would have been a Latinized diminutive of Greek charax 'stick'. This also provides a single, phonologically coherent source for the cognates Portuguese caralho and Catalan carall. Attempts to attribute carajo and Italian cazzo to the same etymon fail on phonological grounds, as the /r/ of carajo (or its absence in cazzo) remains unexplained, and no Latin phonological sequence develops as both /x/ in Spanish and /tts/ in Italian.
[edit] Pronunciation
- IPA: /kaˈɾaxo/
[edit] Noun
carajo m. (plural carajos)
- (Spain) penis
- crow’s nest
[edit] Synonyms
- chota f.
- garompa f.
- pene m.
- papirola f.
- picha f.
- pico m.
- pichula
- pija f.
- pipe m.
- pirula f.
- pirulo m.
- pito m.
- polla f.
- poronga f.
- poste m.
- tranca f.
- verga f.
[edit] Interjection
carajo
- (South America, Northwestern Spain) shit!
- ¿Qué carajo quieres? — What the shit do you want?
- ¡Vete al carajo! — Go to hell!
- Me importa un carajo. — I don’t give a shit.
- ¡Aquí hay un pueblo digno, Yanquis de mierda! ¡Vayanse al carajo cien veces! — We are a dignified people, you bullshit-assed Yankees! Go to shitting hell 100 times! (Used by Hugo Chávez about George W. Bush.)
[edit] Usage notes
This is considered to be a taboo word by many in South America and is replaced by the euphemistic forms caramba or carrizo depending on the context and in which country the term is used.
