chingon

[cheen-gohn]

adjective

1. awesome, admirable, or impressive.

   It’s a very chingon movie, lots of action and great effects.

   I’m new to the site and hoping to meet some real chingon people in the chat.

2. (especially of a man) competent, intelligent, bold, and assertive, sometimes to the point of being tough or aggressive and intimidating.

   That cop was such a little dude, but he was acting all chingon!

noun

1. someone, especially a Latino man, who is competent, intelligent, bold, assertive, and successful.

   Come party on one of our spacious patios, and live life like a chingon!

   He began as a graffiti artist and has now founded a hub to support other emerging artists—a real chingon.

2. someone, especially a Latino man, who is tough or aggressive and intimidating.

   Now that you got all that anger out, had your say, and validated yourself as a super gangster chingon, can we move on and get to the point?

Word History and Origins

Origin of chingon¹

First recorded in 1975–80; from Spanish, from ching(ar) “to bother, have intercourse with” (from Caló čingarár “to fight,” from Romani; compare Welsh Romani čiṅār “a quarrel”; perhaps cognate with Hindi ciṅghāṛnā “to scream, screech”) + -ón, augmentative suffix ( -oon ( def. ) )

Example Sentences

With Doug Sahm, Augie Meyers and fellow Tejano chingón Freddy Fender, Jiménez formed the Texas Tornadoes, whose oeuvre blasts at every third-rate barbecue joint from the Texas Hill Country to Southern California.

From Los Angeles Times

This week, eyewitnesses report fists were flying at Fort Worth bar/Mexican restaurant, El Chingon, and it was Cowboys fans trading punches with Steelers fans.

From Fox News

“Está chingón!” he’d tell her.

From Los Angeles Times

Urrea’s prose style is pure chingón: confident, sleek and funny.

From The Guardian

Si estás mucho tiempo en la calle te vas a topar con alguien más chingón y vas a estar en riesgo siempre.

From The Guardian