cavala

See also: Cavala

Franco-Provençal

Etymology

Borrowed from one or more of the following: Occitan cavala, Piedmontese cavala, Italian cavalla.

Noun

cavala f (plural cavales) (ORB, broad)

1. female horse, mare

   Synonyms: èga, jument

   Coordinate term: chevâl m

References

• jument in DicoFranPro: Dictionnaire Français/Francoprovençal – on dicofranpro.llm.umontreal.ca
• cavala in Lo trèsor Arpitan – on arpitan.eu

Further information

• AIS: Sprach- und Sachatlas Italiens und der Südschweiz [Linguistic and Ethnographic Atlas of Italy and Southern Switzerland] – map 1062: “un cavallo; la cavalla” – on navigais-web.pd.istc.cnr.it
• ALF: Atlas Linguistique de la France^[1] – map 736 – on lig-tdcge.imag.fr

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ka.va.la/
• Homophones: cavalas, cavalât

Verb

cavala

1. third-person singular past historic of cavaler

Occitan

Etymology

Inherited from Latin caballa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kaˈβalo]

• Audio (Béarn):

  (file)

Noun

cavala f (plural cavalas)

1. mare

   Synonym: èga

Piedmontese

Etymology

Inherited from Latin caballa.

Noun

cavala f

1. mare

Portuguese

Alternative forms

• cavalla (pre-reform spelling)

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈva.lɐ/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈva.lɐ/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈva.la/

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kɐˈva.lɐ/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kɐˈva.lɐ/
  • (Northern Portugal) IPA^(key): /kɐˈba.lɐ/ [kɐˈβa.lɐ]

• Rhymes: -alɐ
• Homophone: Cavala
• Hyphenation: ca‧va‧la

Etymology 1

From Latin caballa. Compare Spanish caballa.

Noun

cavala f (plural cavalas)

1. mackerel (edible fish of genus Scomber or Scomberomorus)

   Synonym: sarda

   • 1922, Manuel Raimundo Querino, “Moqueca de xaréo”, in A Arte Culinária na Bahia, Bahia: Papelaria Brasileira, published 1928, page 17:

     Entre os peixes mais saborosos destacam-se pampo da espinha molle, cioba gorda, cavalla, dentão, curimã, pescada, olho de boi, bicuda, tainha, corvina, taóca, vermelho e outros de preço inferior.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

2. (slang) knockout; stunner (woman of stunning beauty)
   • 2009 September 21, Bruu :] <bruninh...@gmail.com>, “Domingo tambem tem jogo”, in liga-das-engenharias-da-puccamp‎^[2] (Usenet), retrieved 2025-7-3, message-ID <ccDghPiVrmoJ>:

     Dei uma choradinha ..agora eu vejo o resultado no pé,daquelas cavalas! / UHEIuehiuh

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   • 2024, Silas Corrêa Leite, “Jonathas Raif Agnefli e Carolina Mautner”, in O Sequestro do Sonho, São Paulo: Calêndula, →ISBN, unnumbered page:

     Carolina é uma “cavala” mesmo. Quando ama, quando reclama, quando goza ou quando compra uma causa, saí^{[sic – meaning sai]} de baixo!

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

3. (humorous) female equivalent of cavalo (“mare”)

   Synonym: égua

   • 2018 June 10, Epic Sax CEO, “Now Playing - 2018”, in Outer Space‎^[3], Brasil, archived from the original on 3 July 2025, section #569:

     Alguém assistindo Uma Musume? O anime de corrida de cavalas?

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

4. (derogatory) female equivalent of cavalo (“rude person”)

Derived terms

• cavala-africana
• cavala-aipim
• cavala-branca
• cavalinha

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

cavala

1. inflection of cavalar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Further reading

• “cavala”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “cavala”, in Dicionário infopédia da Lingua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2026
• “cavala”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026
• “cavala”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2026, →ISBN
• “cavala”, in Dicionário inFormal (in Portuguese), 2006–2026

Spanish

Verb

cavala

1. second-person singular voseo imperative of cavar combined with la