caudillo
Americannoun
-
caudillos
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of caudillo
1850–55; < Spanish < Late Latin capitellum, equivalent to Latin capit- (stem of caput ) head + -ellum diminutive suffix; see -elle
Explanation
A Spanish warlord or powerful military leader is known as a caudillo. Usually, a caudillo exerts complete control over the country's armed forces. The term caudillo, which is used in Spain and Latin America, comes from the Latin caput, or "head." The most well-known caudillo in history was one who proudly assumed the title, though it's often used in a derogatory way. During the Spanish Civil War, Spain's General Francisco Franco began calling himself caudillo, inspired by the German Führer and Italian Duce, both titles for authoritarian military rulers.
Vocabulary lists containing caudillo
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Tabasco-born caudillo sought to revive a centralized Mexico.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 11, 2026
So why are they backing the caudillo for president?
From Washington Post ● Nov. 5, 2020
“The attraction to a caudillo is a characteristic that many Latin American countries share,” the Peruvian journalist Diego Salazar told me.
From New York Times ● Feb. 20, 2018
Ironically, he might have been relegated to history’s footnotes, as a minor Latin American caudillo or strongman, had it not been for the U.S. invasion of Panama.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2017
Though Urquiza was a caudillo he had no such ambition for supreme power as plagued Rosas.
From The South American Republics Part I of II by Thomas C. Dawson
Many countries fell under the domination of caudillos, or strongmen whose power stemmed from financial control of the land’s resources.
From Barron's ● Jan. 18, 2026
When the novel was published in the mid-'70s, the composite model for this imperishable tyrant was Spain’s Francisco Franco and the rogues’ gallery of Caribbean and Latin American caudillos, or “strong men.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2021
On the campaign trail in 2018, I heard stories about caudillos from recent immigrants who fled these regimes.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 2, 2019
Their popularity in Europe and the United States gave millions of Latin Americans the sense that they were part of a borderless, highly original culture that produced more than just caudillos, guerrilleros and boleros.
From New York Times ● Mar. 13, 2018
So broad were their notions of liberty that the several provinces maintained a substantial independence of one another, while within each province the caudillos, or partisan chieftains, fought among themselves.
From Hispanic Nations of the New World; a chronicle of our southern neighbors by William R. (William Robert) Shepherd
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