cholo

[ choh-loh ]

noun

, Chiefly Southwestern U.S.

, plural cho·los.

1. (especially among Mexican Americans) a teenage boy who is a member of a street gang.
2. Usually Disparaging. a term used to refer to a Mexican or Mexican American.
3. a mestizo of Spanish America.

Sensitive Note

When used of a Mexican or Mexican American, the term cholo usually refers disparagingly to an immigrant who is considered to be low-class and poorly educated. However, cholo is also a term of self-reference used by Mexican American youths.

Word History and Origins

Origin of cholo¹

First recorded in 1850–55; from Mexican Spanish: “mestizo, peasant,” possibly a shortening of Cholollán (from Nahuatl Cholōllān, modern Cholula ), a city-state in pre-Columbian Mexico

Example Sentences

The Cholo leads us into South America, where for the present; we leave it.

From Project Gutenberg

The slight wound was followed by such severe inflammation and swelling that the features of the Cholo were not recognisable.

From Project Gutenberg

The youngsters of the pueblo were the bane of Cholo's existence and the torment of his infirmity and old age.

From Project Gutenberg

I'll have that cholo and Rondeau sent down with the next trainload of logs to the company hospital.

From Project Gutenberg

How long are you going to tolerate the presence of this healthy lot of cholo loafers and grafters, Farrel?

From Project Gutenberg