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cholo

[choh-loh]

noun

Chiefly Southwestern U.S.

plural

cholos 
  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.



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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.
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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
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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.

Fifteen years since the comedian made his YouTube debut with “CholoFit with Creeper,” the L.A. local struck gold in the content game by poking fun at cholo culture as an authentic foo looking to shed light on the culture.

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Onstage, Ortega masterfully transforms her solo act into an ensemble performance, through her many quirky accents and mannerisms alone; her characters range from her three Peruvian tías to an imaginary cholo critic and a perky, silicone-bloated nurse.

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El Cholo, on Western Avenue, just celebrated its 100th birthday as a “Spanish” café.

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The group eagerly reminisces about a fan they met at a show in France who had never set foot in California but loved the culture so much that he dressed the part of a classic cholo.

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The decibels erupted when Paul appeared wearing the colors of the Mexican flag on his robe as he walked to the ring to the rhythm of Kilo’s “Dance Like a Cholo.”

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