chimba

What it means

1. 1.

   Excellent, brilliant. '¡Qué chimba!' is the strongest everyday expression of enthusiasm Colombians have, and 'una chimba de carro' is a fantastic car.

2. 2.

   With de, the exact opposite: 'de la chimba' means fake, shoddy or not happening at all. Context and preposition carry the whole meaning.

3. 3.

   Vulgar term for the vulva. This sense is the reason the word is not neutral, and the reason older or more conservative speakers wince at it.

Examples with translations

• ¡Qué chimba de concierto, parce!

  What an incredible gig, man!

• Ese reloj es de la chimba, se lo compró en el semáforo.

  That watch is a knock-off, he bought it at a traffic light.

  Note: The negative sense. Same word, opposite verdict.

• Se ganó la beca. — ¡Ah, qué chimba!

  He got the scholarship. — Oh, that's amazing!

Where it comes from

Origin genuinely obscure. In Antioquian parlache the word also named a home-made pistol, and the anatomical sense is recorded across the country; which came first is unresolved. The widely repeated Quechua derivation has no solid support.

Other forms

Spellings and variants:

chimbo, chimbita