chico

[ chee-koh ]

noun

Informal. a boy or young man (often used as a nickname or form of address): Sorry, chico, but that’s not the killer argument you’d like to think it is!We hoped we looked like just a couple of laid-back chicos out for a stroll.

Origin of chico

First recorded in 1965–70; from Spanish: “boy,” of expressive origin, representing a common Romance stem found in words for small things; compare Latin ciccum “bagatelle, trifle, worthless object” (see chinchy )

See also chica (def. 1).

Words Nearby chico

Other definitions for chico (2 of 3)

chico²

[ chee-koh ]

noun,plural chi·cos.

greasewood (def. 1).

Origin of chico

Short for chicalote

Other definitions for Chico (3 of 3)

Chico

[ chee-koh ]

noun

a city in central California.
a male given name.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use chico in a sentence

Ross’s, like many other retail companies with female CEOs, like JCPenney, Kohl’s and chico’s, faces strong headwinds at a time when people are shopping less at stores and more on the websites of male-run tech companies.
I Tried to Live Off Women-Owned Businesses. Turns Out, Men Still Run Everything | Alana Semuels | July 21, 2021 | Time
They turned the box around, opened the lid and out jumped chico.
Siegfried Fischbacher, half of large-animal magic team Siegfried & Roy, dies at 81 | Matt Schudel | January 14, 2021 | Washington Post
Needless to say, they end up getting Harpo and chico Marx to play on the team instead.
7 Great Football Flicks From Horse Feathers to Friday Night Lights | The Daily Beast | January 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Orlando “chico” Morales was convicted of the crime 32 years ago, but the organization strongly believes he is innocent.
Could Ariel Castro Be Linked to the 1981 Murder of Tammy Seals? | Christine Pelisek | May 11, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
Your final gambit has been the chico Marx line—“Who you gonna believe, me or your own eyes”?
Leslie H. Gelb: Israel and Netanyahu, Pipe Down the Threats of War on Iran | Leslie H. Gelb | February 6, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST

Beaten out of a nomination by little-heard-of movies like A Cat in Paris and chico Rita?
Oscar Nominations 2012: 11 Snubs and Surprises | Jacob Bernstein | January 24, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Rodgers hails from chico, Calif., an idyllic pristine town in Northern California about a three-hour drive from San Francisco.
Aaron Rodgers: the NFL’s Best Quarterback of All Time | Allen Barra | January 15, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
All his life he planted trees and built roads, and at his great Rancho chico is one of the largest orchards in the state.
Stories of California | Ella M. Sexton
The remainder of the day we spent going down the left bank of the chico, encountered again at Nanong.
The Head Hunters of Northern Luzon From Ifugao to Kalinga | Cornelis De Witt Willcox
In due course we came to an affluent of our old friend the chico, and had to ford.
The Head Hunters of Northern Luzon From Ifugao to Kalinga | Cornelis De Witt Willcox
We dropped anchor under the lee of a little island in the Boco chico, but our engines were throbbing again by break of day.
The Pirate of Panama | William MacLeod Raine
chico had trouble with his teeth, and Sancho was in great distress about it.
Daisy | Miranda Eliot Swan

British Dictionary definitions for chico

chico

/ (ˈtʃiːkəʊ) /

nounplural -cos

another name for greasewood (def. 1)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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