Cubacandela
noun, adjective · Colloquial · kahn-DEH-lah
Estar en candela: to be in serious trouble, or for a situation to be dire. Applied to a person, a marriage, the economy or the weather.
+2 more senses
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Cuba
Cuban Slang for Insults & Complaints
11 Cuban slang terms for insults & complaints, each with its meaning, how it is pronounced and an example of it in use.
Terms for fools, annoyances and things gone wrong. Register matters enormously here — several of these words are affectionate between friends and fighting words between strangers.
cheo
adjective · Informal · CHEH-oh
Tacky, naff, corny. Of clothes, music, a chat-up line or a party — anything that is trying to be stylish and failing.
+1 more sense
chivatón
noun · Colloquial · chee-vah-TOHN
An informer. In Cuba this is not a playground word: it means someone who reports neighbours or colleagues to the authorities, typically through the block committee, and it is about the heaviest social accusation that can be made in ordinary conversation.
+1 more sense
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comemierda
noun, adjective · Vulgar · koh-meh-MYEHR-dah
A pretentious fool: someone who puts on airs, stands on ceremony, or thinks they are above the people around them. This snobbery sense is the primary one in Cuba and is what separates it from the same word elsewhere.
+1 more sense
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de pinga
adjective, phrase · Vulgar · deh PEENG-gah
Superb, outstanding. Está de pinga about a film, a meal or a party is high praise.
+2 more senses
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fula
noun, adjective · Informal · FOO-lah
The US dollar, and by extension hard currency in general. Cien fula is a hundred dollars.
+1 more sense
guapo
noun, adjective · Colloquial · GWAH-poh
A tough, a bully, someone who throws his weight around and is looking for a fight. Not 'handsome' — this is the standing trap for Spanish speakers arriving from elsewhere.
+1 more sense
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gusano
noun · Colloquial · goo-SAH-noh
A counter-revolutionary; someone who left Cuba, or who wants to. In official and pro-government mouths it is a straightforward political insult.
+1 more sense
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jamonear
verb · Vulgar · hah-moh-neh-AR
To grope someone in a crowd — on a packed bus, in a queue, at a concert — exploiting the press of bodies. The noun jamonero names the man who does it.
+1 more sense
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palestino
noun, adjective · Colloquial · pah-les-TEE-noh
A Cuban from the eastern provinces who has moved to Havana. Used by habaneros, condescendingly, about internal migrants — the standing joke being that they are people without a homeland who cannot be sent back.
+1 more sense
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singao
noun, adjective · Vulgar · seen-GOW
Bastard, son of a bitch. The strongest everyday personal insult in Cuban Spanish and a genuine fighting word between strangers.
+1 more sense
Use with care