caramba

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish caramba, a euphemism for the real expletive carajo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kaˈɹam.ba]

Interjection

caramba

1. (non-vulgar) Exclamation of surprise or dismay.; gosh!, darn!

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:wow, Thesaurus:dammit

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish caramba, a euphemism of carajo. In Portuguese, it is similarly used as an euphemism for caralho.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈɾɐ̃.bɐ/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈɾɐ̃.bɐ/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈɾɐ̃.ba/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kɐˈɾɐ̃.bɐ/

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɐ̃bɐ
• Hyphenation: ca‧ram‧ba

Interjection

caramba!

1. (colloquial) gee, gosh (an expression of shock, surprise or anger)

   Synonyms: caracha, concho

Further reading

• “caramba”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2025
• “caramba”, in Dicionário infopédia da Lingua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2025
• “caramba”, in Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisboa: Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, 2001–2025
• “caramba”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025
• “caramba”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2025

Spanish

Etymology

Euphemism for carajo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kaˈɾamba/ [kaˈɾãm.ba]
• Rhymes: -amba
• Syllabification: ca‧ram‧ba

Interjection

¡caramba!

1. (euphemistic) gee, gosh, shucks, blimey, darn (an expression of shock, surprise or anger)

Derived terms

• ay, caramba

Further reading

• “caramba”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024