cabrón

Cabrón begins as a “male goat,” with chiva as its female counterpart. But Spanish speakers are clever, and earthy, with their slang.

Goats have a reputation for eating anything, hence their association with the lowly likes of a “bastard.” But, as is often the case in slang, negative words can get a positive spin. Think bad, sick, ill, or wicked in English. This inversion also took place for cabrón, which evolved to name someone who is exceptionally skilled at something—a badass.

So, is cabrón bad or good?! Well, if you’re an English speaker, you can tell the difference just fine between calling something shit as opposed to calling something the shit. Spanish speakers do this for cabrón.

Many English speakers will encounter cabrón in reggaeton, a genre of music massively popular throughout Latin America and the US. A few notable songs include 2015’s “Flow Cabrón” (badass sense) by Dominican-American singer Arcángel and “Esta Cabrón” (bastard sense) by Puerto Rican rappers Ñejo and Gotay.

A more mainstream instance comes from American rockers The Red Hot Chili Peppers, who released a song called “Cabrón” in 2002. The song, whose chorus repeats cabrón, is about frustrations with a menacing individual, possibly a gang member, hence cabrón.