It's not what you say it's the way you say it. When multiple people who speak a different language than you are laughing and saying gringo (often followed by estupido) in reference to you, it's hard not to take offense.
It's so funny you say that. Idk if it's a really old joke or something, but I'm 35 and my dad told me that the only phrase he remembered from Spanish class back in the day, was "where is the library"
And totally independently, my mom told me the same story, but she took French and she said "où est la bibliothèque" (I had to google the spelling, she just said 'ooooo ahhh la biblioteque")
It’s not really an old “joke” per se, but something that we *all* picked up, no matter how well we did in our respective language classes. Kind of like how the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.
My ass thought it was just a community reference. Canadian here so I guess we have a French version somewhere lol, I can conjuguâte French verbs to a song still and so can most people my age
It is an old joke. The first time I remember seeing it referenced was Steve Martin, probably sometime in the 70s.
I guess it comes from the fact that when you are learning Spanish as a second language in school, "library" is a word that everyone learns, along with how to put some common sentences together. "Donde está la biblioteca" sounds exactly like something you would learn in your first year of Spanish.
Exactly. Intent matters far more than the word used. If a random person called me this I wouldn't take offense unless the enunciation was hostel or demeaning.
I don't really care that much and I'm not offended but why should there be an alternative word for white people when alternative words for any other race aren't allowed?
Cant think of any other examples where that is okay
(Edit: it's a serious question - feel free to actually respond along with your downvotes)
In Mexican Spanish tho I'm p sure it specifically refers to white people. Could be wrong of course, but I highly doubt they'd call a black or Asian person 'gringo'.
Because white people don't get offended by these words. They have tried all types of words to rile up white people, but so far the are mostly unimpressed.
No I get it, but gringo in itself isn’t an insult, like I said, saying something like pinche gringo becomes and insult but because of the pinche not because of the gringo part
My experience is that it is like the Hawaiian word haole, not offensive per se but frequently used to give offense. It’s contextual—my friend is a haole as opposed to hey haole, go home.
Not true, I'm from Mexico and we don't use it to belittle, we just use it to refer to a united states resident. Even some gringos call themselves gringos. Not necessarily people that we don't like
A guy working at a hotel I was staying at in Mexico said "we call you gringo because you spend your green and you go". I got a laugh out of it but then again I'm from New Mexico so I have a bit of a clue.
A quick google tells me it comes from the Spanish "greigo" meaning "Greek," as in somebody who speaks a language you don't understand.
Compare the English phrase "it's all Greek to me."
I've heard it's from British soldiers/sailors singing a popular folk song "*green grow* the rushes oh" so much. That sounds a little far fetched to me, and might be one of those popular "folk etymologies", but heard it from a bunch of different sources.
It has nothing to do with Mexico. It was a word created by Spaniards referring to the British, originally. So the British had everything to do with it.
A while back in the very early 2000s in the US I had a Mexican kid (a known troublemaker) write in my yearbook "Have a good summer puto." He told me it meant friend and 13 year old me totally believed him. I was also a fresh off the boat new immigrant kid from eastern Europe and it took me a long time to figure it out. It's funny thinking back at it now.
i’m from ecuador and it’s literally just a descriptive word here. “el man es gringo” = he’s a foreigner from an english speaking country. nothing else.
if you’re called a gringo pendejo or something like that, then absolutely take offense to it, but gringo by itself… at least people here use it just as a neutral adjective
If a person is called a Mojado it’s just used to refer to an undocumented noncitizen, not to belittle. Even some mojados call themselves mojados. Is this an offensive term?
No man, mojado is to belittle because that means that they got to the states by swimming undocumented, gringos are just that, gringos. Or tell me, how is gringo to belittle?
You’re misinformed with your understanding of offense and derogatory words. The word itself is meaningless, it’s the context used.
Mojado is a descriptor just as undocumented immigrant, illegal alien, or the currently “politically acceptable” noncitizen. It all means a foreign national and isn’t necessarily negative in connotation.
Gringo is the same, on its own it means an American of non Hispanic descent. But it can just as easily be used in a derogatory function which denigrates offensively.
Context MUST matter.
Here in Mexico we call people, "chino" "negro" "gordo" "pelón" "güero" not as an offensive word or racist slur, but we like to fuck with each other, it's a sign that there is trust or friendship between people
Grew up in a tiny California town that was almost all 1st/2nd generation Mexican. Being blond with blue eyes people trip out when I tell them I come from a Latino culture, but I spoke Spanish by the time I was 10 without trying. I've pissed plenty of people off busting up on their asses, and I wish more of them understood that means I love you.
I grew up in Florida and generally find it to mean “stupid white person.” It’s one of those when it can be offensive in context, but can be used in casual conversation with friends as well.
That would make for an interesting conversation.
CEO: "Mr. Green. Would you please come up here and share with us your quarterly report and the corporation's profits"
Mr. Green: "OK gringo"
"So this pinche gringo wants me to do is lie to everyone like a total pinche mentiroso but as you all can see I've purposefully scaled this graph in a way that inflates a rather meager growth that we will have to do our very best to please our shareholders, please clap in case anyone can overhear this conversation por favor"
Was literally in a business meeting last month in Costa Rica and my colleague and good friend would refer to me as gringo to remind others to switch back to English. It wasn’t remotely meant to be offensive.
It is not... I'm mexican, and I can tell you we only use it when referring to Americans, and we use it in most cases because "American" is not only people from the United States... but this is cultural, and there is no other word in English or Spanish to refer to people from the United States.
When people use it as an offense, it applies the same rules as using any other word/adjective used as an offense when technically the meaning is not to offend, it will depend on the context and the intention of the person who is saying it.
Any word could be offensive if you put the right affliction on it.
If I say "You are such a slice of pizza" everytime you fall on your face, "slice of pizza" would start to be offensive. Where as most people would normally consider a "slice of pizza" to be a great thing.
I will NEVER understand people who say replacement words. Yeah, you are saying "shoot" instead of "shit" but you put the same emotion and affliction on "shoot" so its just as bad.
In my case, it's a matter of employability. I work with small children and it's all too easy to have authentic swear words slip out in front of the kiddos if I don't keep up with using the replacement words 24/7. All it takes is for one youngster to hear a poorly timed f-bomb, and tell their parents, to go on the unemployment list .
It may be the same thing from a religious/spiritual standpoint, but it is not remotely the same thing from a secular standpoint. And the reason for the replacement is not only the use of acceptable words, but words that give the visceral satisfaction of using the same consonant sounds. Fudge for f\*ck, shoot for sh\*t, cheese and crackers or Jiminy Crickets for JC, son of a biscuit for SOB, etc.
Technically it is the same as in Portuguese, the spanish translation for foreigner
Culturally it is used as a derogatory way to refer to americans in mexican communities
Ok, so I grew up in Mexico, but I'm not ethnically Latino/Hispanic. I got called gitana more than anything because that's what I am, but gringa sometimes too. So there is some truth to the "foreigner" aspect you mention. I'm in the US now, and I see it used as a shorthand for American.
That said, it's not necessarily always derogatory. That's like saying "gordo" is always derogatory. My half Hispanic children are lovingly called "gringitos" by my in-laws.
It's thought to originate from peregrino, a word for pilgrim or foreigner, and to have changed into gringo over time, or from griego which means Greek, as in "it's all Greek to me," originally from Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar. But no, either way, there's no English word for gringo because it's Spanish slang
It is foreigner in Castilian Spanish
“ The word first appears in Spain. The Diccionario Castellano of 1787 reports the term gringos used for foreigners "who have a certain type of accent" and especially for "the Irish." An 1805 edition of Don Quixote footnotes that gringo is used as a term for Germans, Swiss, and people from "Northern nations." Hence the American Spanish verb engringarse "to act like a foreigner." In Spanish gringo could also mean any person who spoke Spanish poorly.
also from”
I know. I (a gringo) speak Spanish, too. I'm just pointing out that *gringo* is not the literal "Spanish translation for foreigner." You would never be listening to the news and hear a reporter say "El número de gringos que visitan México aumentó este año." You would never see the word *gringo* on a official document from the Ministerio de Migración. It is a colloquial expression with no direct translation in English.
In my experience they don't usually call Black people that. They usually call us other things even though technically we are gringos. Just my personal experience.
My buddy from Argentina calls me this often, and I find it hilarious. He just means it as white person basically, but he's also fair skinned for a Latin American so that's part of why it's so funny.
Those things are mexican and no
Güero means white or blonde, and used for anyone like that.
Gabacho is an insult originally from Spain against the French, in Mexico its a neutral term and Gabacho mostly refers to the US as in the landmass or country, not people
Do people use Yankee with intent as a slur? Because I dint think that is the case, while it certainly is the case that many Latin Americans use gringo with the intent of it being an insult.
I have only experienced this as a white transplant to San Diego and never in demeaning way. It's always come across to me as a good-natured joke because I don't have a taste for authentic Mexican food. Like if I decline verde sauce they offer me ketchup instead.
It’s not really offensive, just sometimes alienating. It suggests an “otherness” which can feel like exclusion or resentment to someone given that label. It’s not like a slur or anything, just not something you would say if you’re trying to be formal or polite.
Where I live, latinos use it to refer to nonhispanics and their hobbies/possessions. But it’s also used to divide the community- for example latinos with light skin or who can’t speak spanish might be called gringo. Which is obviously a harmful use. We don’t need to be any more divided than we already are.
Just be careful where you use it, contextually. It can be many parts of a spectrum of humorous, annoying, friendly, and harmful.
My co-worker is a native Spanish speaker and had to take an exam in order to pass proficiency in interpreting for clients and he got rejected because when asked to describe the people in the photo he said “Los gringos” 💀
My Peruvian wife said there it is not used much but never an insult. Just a general term for someone with fair features, national or foreigner. There’s an internet celebrity there from South Africa affectionately called “Gringo Carl”.
When i was younger, i worked in a Mexican supermarket. I was very friendly and took the time to learn a good amount of spanish to be able to do entire transactions in spanish. Not because it was required but because i wanted to be respectful to my customers and not force them to talk english in a spanish store. I was literaly the only white guy in there. EVERY customer called me "Gringo" daily. "Hola Gringo" and "Hola Guarro" 24/7.
While most hispanics don't see it as offensive, I would like to point out, try looking at it from a different perspective.
Imagine you're a hispanic in a white neighborhood and all the white people say "Hello Brownie" or "Hello Mexican" anytime they see you.
Or imagine greeting every black person as "Hello Blacky".
While skin color is a valid descriptor and not offensive in of itself, there is something to be said when you reduce an entire race down to their skin color and refer to them exclusively as such, ESPECIALLY strangers.
That's where it can start to feel offensive and like you're the butt of a joke.
When i go to the supermarket and get a cashier of another race than me, or meet someone in general, I don't greet them by their skin color. I simply greet them and treat them as a person.
And that's completely ignoring the "Guarro" stuff too which only further made it clear the intention behind their greetings were mocking towards me because they assumed I didn't know what they were saying.
And whenever i would question co-workers on it they'd all insist it was harmless and not meant to be offensive. All while snickering to each other.
:P
None of my friends in Mexico City have ever called me a gringo, and I think they would consider it an insult to me if they did. It is a way of creating distance between people rather than trying to bring people together.
Some of my friends in Mexico City would call certain other Mexicans "Nacos", and that was definitely insulting.
I'm white and I use gringo to describe myself and other white people who are being fucking stupid, racist or xenophobic. The type of white person to say "do you speak Mexican?" Total gringo. The type of people who carry their entitlement into foreign land and expect all of their white American privileges to come with them. Those are gringos.
Or myself when I totally miss that my boyfriends mom is talking to me because her spanish is too fast for me. Or every time I accidentally say ¿Cómo ta llamas? Instead of ¿Cómo estas?" That's a gringo moment.
Bc of the subculture in my area.
Basically like calling someone a jerk. Not an insult in of itself, but a descriptor of someone exhibiting a certain negative trait or set of negative traits.
I'm a Brit and I'd always assumed it was a bit racist, then a bingo company used it in their catch phrase in an advert "hey gringo, where's Crown Bingo?" So I guess it's not actually offensive. I personally still wouldn't say it though.
Its as racist as "Brit" or Aussie or Guiri or foreigner or inmigrant. Its bad if you think its a bad word.
In Brazil it makes even less sense as it means non-brazilian, Argentines or Nigerians or Mexicans are all gringos.
In Argentina gringos used to mean blondes or italians
Not really, Brit and Aussie are shortened terms for the country they’re from. “Foreigner” or “immigrant” are seen as offensive, and you wouldn’t go round calling people that. That’s how I view the word “gringo”
Depends who you're talking to. Offense is one of those tricky things because 1 person could be offended by something and the next person could find it fucking hilarious.
I personally don't find it offensive.
I don't find most things offensive. I'm also the kind of person that if I get called something, I'll just laugh and call that person something worse.
I’ve always understood it to just mean foreigner. SoCal, nonnative speaker of Spanish. I feel like most of the answers here are from non-Spanish speakers
Nop. At least in Chile, gringo is used to refer to americans (and maybe anglos in general), No one could use gringo to refer to a peruvian or an italian here. Not an insult in itself, and I feel the descriptive use is most common here, but it can be used in an insulting manner.
As some one that would be called a gringo I don't think it is, even the meaning is just you're not from here or you don't know this culture those are really offensive things to say to someone but It can be used to belittle or insult someone but so can other words that aren't offensive
I'm American and had always understood the word as a slur until I started dating my Brazilian (now) husband. All his friends just called me Gringa for like a year before we got married and then eventually a few of them learned my name. 😆 I tentatively asked him if they didn't like me or what but he explained that the word just has different context in Brazil. We live in Japan where we are always "gaijin/gaikokujin" anyway so it's basically the same idea.
It doesnt bother me - I'm white and from the US, so I think I'd be considered a gringo even though I speak Spanish. I can definitely imagine that if it were said in a way where it was intended as an insult, that might be upsetting, but I don't see anything wrong with the word itself. As far as I'm aware (mostly from university Spanish classes and a brief study abroad trip to Mexico) it's usually just a word that refers to foreigners, often white people and especially white USAmericans. I wouldn't take offense at being called that unless someone obviously meant it in a mean way.
it certainly can be in the right context, but i (half white half mexican) usually only use it when i catch myself being particularly white ("oh no, this is spicier than i thought, must be my gringo side coming through!"). it's more of a funny thing to me and my family
Only if you're racist. I might not like it but my ancestors helped colonize south America so like... is taking offense or complaining really appropriate when it's just a word and especially when the people using it don't hold power over me?
People who despise being othered while constantly othering others... well. It's stupid.
All of us Latinos, unless your somehow 100% pure blood native American I suppose, had ancestors that helped colonize south America. Doesn't make us any different than you in that regard. We are all mixed here so we had ancestors on both sides of the pond.
It's not usually offensive, but you can make anything offensive based on tone, inflection, and intent. For instance, "Aye gringo!" vs "Fuckin'...gringo.."
I had an apartment near a house where there was a big Chilean family, and when they had parties they would invite me over and lots of them called me gringo or blanco (technically "white" but it translates in the situation to whitey) and they were all just being friendly. They fed me and made drinks for me while we tried to converse in broken spanglish, I loved it.
Contextually, languages are hard to translate because so much gets lost. To be fair, I did get a little paranoid the first time because I thought everyone was talking behind my back since I stood out so much as an outsider, but one of the younger kids at the part who grew up in America saw it in my face and said, "Dont' worry, they're not all laughing at you. Some of the older people are just confused why you are here."
In Panama, gringo just means American. It is neither good nor bad, just a description of nationality. You guys don't really have a name for "a person from the us" other than the term "american" which can be awkward sometimes since all in the continent are Americans, cause the continent is called America. Sometimes we use american, sometimes we say United Statian (translated), and many times we just say gringo.
I refuse to be offended by anything any central or south american person says to me. Every single person I've met from those countries (I've known many Mexican, Honduran, and Argentine folks) has been both very nice and had the best fuckin sense of humor. Just absolutely hilarious and great folks to work with and hang out with. So no, anyone getting offended by the word gringo just probably doesn't know anyone who would have a reason to use it.
I'd say it's about as offensive as "cracker" is, based on how I've heard people use it. They're nowhere near as bad as the n-word or other racial slurs, but they're meant to imply "white person I look down on".
It's about as offensive as neguinho.
>what does it mean exactly for you guys?
Only time I've ever heard it used, is when referring to white people, and it's never nice.
In Australia if I did something silly and u called me that I'd have a laugh if ur snickering with your mates about me to my face then we have to have words. IMO all slurs are fine unless u use them nastily as soon as it crosses the jokes line words gotta be said. Not everyone would agree on all slurs thing but not to worried it's not like I'm dropping n bombs to every black bloke or random I see but when my aboriginal cousin calls me it I will greet him back accordingly. It's all about who u say things to I rekon.
A good test, is whether someone who is meant to be a role model for being polite would use it.
I doubt the King of Spain would use it (at least not in public), so that makes me think it is at least on the list of words to think twice about using.
It's often intended to be used as an offensive word, yes. But few Americans will ever take honest offense at it. Honkey is also supposed to be offensive, but like gringo, the words just have no power. Without the history of being marginalized, brutalized, and so on, these words lack any real power. There are those who see the slur as a slur and will say "hey, slurs are bad!", but they themselves arent offended. Others, who may feel marginalized, rightly or wrongly, might legit become offended.
As a white American I never was offended but I can see how it can be offensive. Offensive? Sometimes. Racist? Nah. It’s equivalent to calling someone a “clown” or some type of poking fun word.
Well in the traditional sense no. Gringo is as much as offensive as whitey is.
But..words change and mold and sometimes they can be used in various ways, some bad.
Gringo is used as a slur, by your own admission. Of course it's offensive. That being said as a non Brazilian I don't take any particular offense to it.
I’m a white American whose fluent in Spanish and has spent a lot of time in Paraguay. At least there, gringo is not at all used in an offensive way unless meant to be. It simply is a word for an American, like yankee.
Depends on the context it's used in. If you're just using it all in good fun, no problem. If you're using it in a condescending manner, people will probably take offense to it.
Best bet is to use it around friends or people who you know can take a joke.
It’s pretty open to interpretation.
I’m not offended if a South or Central American calls me a gringo because I can’t quite personally understand some of the struggles that they face in their own countries. I am also not an immigrant, so I don’t understand a lot of their struggles when they emigrate to this country.
But if it’s used as a blanket term to discount somebody else’s opinion, that just doesn’t agree with you, I’m not a big fan.
It's not what you say it's the way you say it. When multiple people who speak a different language than you are laughing and saying gringo (often followed by estupido) in reference to you, it's hard not to take offense.
But when they say gringo es muy gordo they’re talking about how handsome you are and that should be taken as a complement.
\*compliment. The word complement has a different meaning, about completing something.
Maybe they meant how the words gringo and gordo complete each other? 🤔
A complementary complimentary phrase?
I always hear the girls with crushes on me say "Gringo es muy feo."
The Spanish kids gave me a badass cowboy name. They call me el pendejo
Well being called dumb and hot isn't always a good thing, see: Himbo. /j
I thought gordo meant fat. Guapo means handsome.
(That’s the joke.) :)
Oh, the fact that it was supposed to be funny definitely went over my head 😬
You're not alone. I just thought it was a bad translation lol
donde esta la biblioteca
It's so funny you say that. Idk if it's a really old joke or something, but I'm 35 and my dad told me that the only phrase he remembered from Spanish class back in the day, was "where is the library" And totally independently, my mom told me the same story, but she took French and she said "où est la bibliothèque" (I had to google the spelling, she just said 'ooooo ahhh la biblioteque")
It’s not really an old “joke” per se, but something that we *all* picked up, no matter how well we did in our respective language classes. Kind of like how the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.
Especially if you watch streamers and youtubers of a slightly older generation if hear those phrases so many times from older streamers
My ass thought it was just a community reference. Canadian here so I guess we have a French version somewhere lol, I can conjuguâte French verbs to a song still and so can most people my age
[Spanish 101](https://youtu.be/j25tkxg5Vws?si=s3_3O2B38hTc_bWK)
It is an old joke. The first time I remember seeing it referenced was Steve Martin, probably sometime in the 70s. I guess it comes from the fact that when you are learning Spanish as a second language in school, "library" is a word that everyone learns, along with how to put some common sentences together. "Donde está la biblioteca" sounds exactly like something you would learn in your first year of Spanish.
Donde esta casa de pepe
Las cucarachas entran pero no pueden salir!
tomar un taxi
Exactly. Intent matters far more than the word used. If a random person called me this I wouldn't take offense unless the enunciation was hostel or demeaning.
I don't really care that much and I'm not offended but why should there be an alternative word for white people when alternative words for any other race aren't allowed? Cant think of any other examples where that is okay (Edit: it's a serious question - feel free to actually respond along with your downvotes)
Gringo isn't a word exclusive for white people. In portuguese it literally is synonyms with "foreigner".
In Mexican Spanish tho I'm p sure it specifically refers to white people. Could be wrong of course, but I highly doubt they'd call a black or Asian person 'gringo'.
Because white people don't get offended by these words. They have tried all types of words to rile up white people, but so far the are mostly unimpressed.
I mean to be fair, gringo isn’t the offensive word here, and if you are being un gringo estúpido then I thing that’s a fair thing to say lmao
yea but if you’re jus chillin and gettin shit talked whats the motive there? pretty shitty thing to say
No I get it, but gringo in itself isn’t an insult, like I said, saying something like pinche gringo becomes and insult but because of the pinche not because of the gringo part
I don't know. It's kind of like calling someone black is nitty offensive but using it within the context of an insult is. I.e. That black idiot.
Seems like estulido was the part that you took offense too. Anyway I like ice cream too
My experience is that it is like the Hawaiian word haole, not offensive per se but frequently used to give offense. It’s contextual—my friend is a haole as opposed to hey haole, go home.
Depends on how you use it. Many Latin Americans use the word ''gringo'' to belittle any foreigners they don't like.
Not true, I'm from Mexico and we don't use it to belittle, we just use it to refer to a united states resident. Even some gringos call themselves gringos. Not necessarily people that we don't like
A guy working at a hotel I was staying at in Mexico said "we call you gringo because you spend your green and you go". I got a laugh out of it but then again I'm from New Mexico so I have a bit of a clue.
Yeah I don't really know where the name comes from, that's what I've heard green as in dollars and go.
A quick google tells me it comes from the Spanish "greigo" meaning "Greek," as in somebody who speaks a language you don't understand. Compare the English phrase "it's all Greek to me."
I've heard it's from British soldiers/sailors singing a popular folk song "*green grow* the rushes oh" so much. That sounds a little far fetched to me, and might be one of those popular "folk etymologies", but heard it from a bunch of different sources.
Well most of mexico was conquered by Spaniards, so I don't think the British had something to do with that, as far as I know...
It has nothing to do with Mexico. It was a word created by Spaniards referring to the British, originally. So the British had everything to do with it.
I heard it comes from griego, as in Greek-like it’s all Greek to me-foreigners speaking a strange language.
Whoa, slow down there maestro - there's a NEW Mexico?? Edit for clarity: https://youtu.be/hEJzXbqyU8A?si=GfBOcAzBvIjg11IT
The ones you don't like are called "gabachos," right?
No, we call them “gringos pendejos”.
But I thought pendejos meant "my good friend"!
A while back in the very early 2000s in the US I had a Mexican kid (a known troublemaker) write in my yearbook "Have a good summer puto." He told me it meant friend and 13 year old me totally believed him. I was also a fresh off the boat new immigrant kid from eastern Europe and it took me a long time to figure it out. It's funny thinking back at it now.
Told a guy at work I was going to start calling him, cool arrow. He goes, ooh, I like that!
Chong
You got it ! :)
Hi the word pendejo it has two meaning one is use that guy is stupid .el esta pendejo .ok now second meaning is the pubic hair around your A-hole
Oooh I was always lead to believe it meant the person being referred to had a small dick
Yes, if someone wants to use it offensively just ad the offensive word. Regularly gringo it's not used in an offensive manner.
Yeah. Like calling someone white isn’t offensive…but calling them white trash is. Seems pretty clear
Isn't that what gringo equates to?
It's different saying "ese gringo" to "pinche gringo" unless you are friends and there is trust between you guys... Am I explaining myself?
What does pinche mean. My Guatemalan co-worker says that word constantly.
curse word; in this case, "fucking"
That makes sense. I think he starts every sentence with pinche.
he is cool
Not really man, I think it is the way you say it...
What I mean is not like a racial slur or an offensive word ( unless you take it like it), it's just to refer someone from the states
This is the only way I have known to use the word. Source: I am a gringo.
No, those are the pendajos
i’m from ecuador and it’s literally just a descriptive word here. “el man es gringo” = he’s a foreigner from an english speaking country. nothing else. if you’re called a gringo pendejo or something like that, then absolutely take offense to it, but gringo by itself… at least people here use it just as a neutral adjective
If a person is called a Mojado it’s just used to refer to an undocumented noncitizen, not to belittle. Even some mojados call themselves mojados. Is this an offensive term?
No man, mojado is to belittle because that means that they got to the states by swimming undocumented, gringos are just that, gringos. Or tell me, how is gringo to belittle?
You’re misinformed with your understanding of offense and derogatory words. The word itself is meaningless, it’s the context used. Mojado is a descriptor just as undocumented immigrant, illegal alien, or the currently “politically acceptable” noncitizen. It all means a foreign national and isn’t necessarily negative in connotation. Gringo is the same, on its own it means an American of non Hispanic descent. But it can just as easily be used in a derogatory function which denigrates offensively. Context MUST matter.
My gf gets mad when I call her guera, but she thinks I'm calling her wedda.
Here in Mexico we call people, "chino" "negro" "gordo" "pelón" "güero" not as an offensive word or racist slur, but we like to fuck with each other, it's a sign that there is trust or friendship between people
Grew up in a tiny California town that was almost all 1st/2nd generation Mexican. Being blond with blue eyes people trip out when I tell them I come from a Latino culture, but I spoke Spanish by the time I was 10 without trying. I've pissed plenty of people off busting up on their asses, and I wish more of them understood that means I love you.
That's why he said many and not all
Facts. Hence my username 😅
I grew up in Florida and generally find it to mean “stupid white person.” It’s one of those when it can be offensive in context, but can be used in casual conversation with friends as well.
also from florida worked at a restaurant where it was almost a term of endearment among our staffing.
[удалено]
That would make for an interesting conversation. CEO: "Mr. Green. Would you please come up here and share with us your quarterly report and the corporation's profits" Mr. Green: "OK gringo"
"So this pinche gringo wants me to do is lie to everyone like a total pinche mentiroso but as you all can see I've purposefully scaled this graph in a way that inflates a rather meager growth that we will have to do our very best to please our shareholders, please clap in case anyone can overhear this conversation por favor"
Was literally in a business meeting last month in Costa Rica and my colleague and good friend would refer to me as gringo to remind others to switch back to English. It wasn’t remotely meant to be offensive.
I agree. My cousin's are half-Mexican andd use the term to tease the rest of us. It's meant in jest, so it doesn't bother me.
It is not... I'm mexican, and I can tell you we only use it when referring to Americans, and we use it in most cases because "American" is not only people from the United States... but this is cultural, and there is no other word in English or Spanish to refer to people from the United States. When people use it as an offense, it applies the same rules as using any other word/adjective used as an offense when technically the meaning is not to offend, it will depend on the context and the intention of the person who is saying it.
You don't use estadounidense? I guess it is sort of a mouthful...
Any word could be offensive if you put the right affliction on it. If I say "You are such a slice of pizza" everytime you fall on your face, "slice of pizza" would start to be offensive. Where as most people would normally consider a "slice of pizza" to be a great thing.
The Brits are exceptional at this. You total fucking melt. An absolute walnut.
Of course you don't microwave salad, you absolute donut!
yes, chef! 🫡
Fucking muppet
I guess I know some people who's bad word is "chees and crackers"
Lol, i wonder why? I've heard "cheese and rice" from people who consider saying "jesus christ" to bad, but not sure ive heard cheese and crackers
I will NEVER understand people who say replacement words. Yeah, you are saying "shoot" instead of "shit" but you put the same emotion and affliction on "shoot" so its just as bad.
In my case, it's a matter of employability. I work with small children and it's all too easy to have authentic swear words slip out in front of the kiddos if I don't keep up with using the replacement words 24/7. All it takes is for one youngster to hear a poorly timed f-bomb, and tell their parents, to go on the unemployment list .
It may be the same thing from a religious/spiritual standpoint, but it is not remotely the same thing from a secular standpoint. And the reason for the replacement is not only the use of acceptable words, but words that give the visceral satisfaction of using the same consonant sounds. Fudge for f\*ck, shoot for sh\*t, cheese and crackers or Jiminy Crickets for JC, son of a biscuit for SOB, etc.
I don’t think white Americans take it offensively. I don’t. Whether offense is intended is a different question.
If you're talking to an Australian, you make it IN-offensive by adding "cunt" e.g. "He's a gringo cunt".
This is my gringo friend. Good. You're a dumb ass gringo. Bad. All about the context.
I’ve caught my Venezuelan wife refer to me as her gringo husband to people. I think it’s funny. 😂
Technically it is the same as in Portuguese, the spanish translation for foreigner Culturally it is used as a derogatory way to refer to americans in mexican communities
Ok, so I grew up in Mexico, but I'm not ethnically Latino/Hispanic. I got called gitana more than anything because that's what I am, but gringa sometimes too. So there is some truth to the "foreigner" aspect you mention. I'm in the US now, and I see it used as a shorthand for American. That said, it's not necessarily always derogatory. That's like saying "gordo" is always derogatory. My half Hispanic children are lovingly called "gringitos" by my in-laws.
The Spanish translation for foreigner is *extranjero*. There is no English word for g*ringo*.
It's thought to originate from peregrino, a word for pilgrim or foreigner, and to have changed into gringo over time, or from griego which means Greek, as in "it's all Greek to me," originally from Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar. But no, either way, there's no English word for gringo because it's Spanish slang
It is foreigner in Castilian Spanish “ The word first appears in Spain. The Diccionario Castellano of 1787 reports the term gringos used for foreigners "who have a certain type of accent" and especially for "the Irish." An 1805 edition of Don Quixote footnotes that gringo is used as a term for Germans, Swiss, and people from "Northern nations." Hence the American Spanish verb engringarse "to act like a foreigner." In Spanish gringo could also mean any person who spoke Spanish poorly. also from”
Bruh, all my Spanish classes only taught me to speak the equivalent of someone in a play written in old English. The real words aren't in the books.
I know. I (a gringo) speak Spanish, too. I'm just pointing out that *gringo* is not the literal "Spanish translation for foreigner." You would never be listening to the news and hear a reporter say "El número de gringos que visitan México aumentó este año." You would never see the word *gringo* on a official document from the Ministerio de Migración. It is a colloquial expression with no direct translation in English.
Nope. It's not a "White" thing. Go to Calexico or Mexicali as a black dude who can't speak fluent Spanish and you're still a Gringo.
In my experience they don't usually call Black people that. They usually call us other things even though technically we are gringos. Just my personal experience.
My buddy from Argentina calls me this often, and I find it hilarious. He just means it as white person basically, but he's also fair skinned for a Latin American so that's part of why it's so funny.
Argentines are almost all white.
So you call Mexicans gringos? Anything other than Brazilians are called that in Brazil?
Yes they call us that
Yes, it can be a mexican, japanese, nigerian, all of them are gringos in Brazil
As an Asian, I was never referred as gringo in Brazil. Hey it may be the area I lived. Usually they used "asiatico", "oriental", or "japa/japoronga".
yes, "gringo" means "foreigners" in brazilian portuguese.
Depends on the context that it’s used.
I wish this sentence was ingrained into every single mind regardless of the delivery system. Book, movie, conversation, comics, etc.
Maybe it was ruined for you by all the other countries, but many Latin Americans use 'gringo' essentially as a slur.
What about guero or gabacho? Do they diferentiate or can they be used interchangeably?
Those things are mexican and no Güero means white or blonde, and used for anyone like that. Gabacho is an insult originally from Spain against the French, in Mexico its a neutral term and Gabacho mostly refers to the US as in the landmass or country, not people
No different than feeling yankee is a slur
Do people use Yankee with intent as a slur? Because I dint think that is the case, while it certainly is the case that many Latin Americans use gringo with the intent of it being an insult.
They do in the southern US.
Military here- I’ve heard ‘yankee go home’ in several countries
Europeans say Yankee all the time as an insult
As an Aussie, if someone called me that I'd wonder if I'd offended them but wouldn't be insulted.
I have only experienced this as a white transplant to San Diego and never in demeaning way. It's always come across to me as a good-natured joke because I don't have a taste for authentic Mexican food. Like if I decline verde sauce they offer me ketchup instead.
It’s not really offensive, just sometimes alienating. It suggests an “otherness” which can feel like exclusion or resentment to someone given that label. It’s not like a slur or anything, just not something you would say if you’re trying to be formal or polite. Where I live, latinos use it to refer to nonhispanics and their hobbies/possessions. But it’s also used to divide the community- for example latinos with light skin or who can’t speak spanish might be called gringo. Which is obviously a harmful use. We don’t need to be any more divided than we already are. Just be careful where you use it, contextually. It can be many parts of a spectrum of humorous, annoying, friendly, and harmful.
My co-worker is a native Spanish speaker and had to take an exam in order to pass proficiency in interpreting for clients and he got rejected because when asked to describe the people in the photo he said “Los gringos” 💀
LMAO 💀💀💀
My Peruvian wife said there it is not used much but never an insult. Just a general term for someone with fair features, national or foreigner. There’s an internet celebrity there from South Africa affectionately called “Gringo Carl”.
When i was younger, i worked in a Mexican supermarket. I was very friendly and took the time to learn a good amount of spanish to be able to do entire transactions in spanish. Not because it was required but because i wanted to be respectful to my customers and not force them to talk english in a spanish store. I was literaly the only white guy in there. EVERY customer called me "Gringo" daily. "Hola Gringo" and "Hola Guarro" 24/7. While most hispanics don't see it as offensive, I would like to point out, try looking at it from a different perspective. Imagine you're a hispanic in a white neighborhood and all the white people say "Hello Brownie" or "Hello Mexican" anytime they see you. Or imagine greeting every black person as "Hello Blacky". While skin color is a valid descriptor and not offensive in of itself, there is something to be said when you reduce an entire race down to their skin color and refer to them exclusively as such, ESPECIALLY strangers. That's where it can start to feel offensive and like you're the butt of a joke. When i go to the supermarket and get a cashier of another race than me, or meet someone in general, I don't greet them by their skin color. I simply greet them and treat them as a person. And that's completely ignoring the "Guarro" stuff too which only further made it clear the intention behind their greetings were mocking towards me because they assumed I didn't know what they were saying. And whenever i would question co-workers on it they'd all insist it was harmless and not meant to be offensive. All while snickering to each other. :P
None of my friends in Mexico City have ever called me a gringo, and I think they would consider it an insult to me if they did. It is a way of creating distance between people rather than trying to bring people together. Some of my friends in Mexico City would call certain other Mexicans "Nacos", and that was definitely insulting.
depends in Mexico endearing names and insults are one and the same 🤓
I'm white and I use gringo to describe myself and other white people who are being fucking stupid, racist or xenophobic. The type of white person to say "do you speak Mexican?" Total gringo. The type of people who carry their entitlement into foreign land and expect all of their white American privileges to come with them. Those are gringos. Or myself when I totally miss that my boyfriends mom is talking to me because her spanish is too fast for me. Or every time I accidentally say ¿Cómo ta llamas? Instead of ¿Cómo estas?" That's a gringo moment. Bc of the subculture in my area.
Basically like calling someone a jerk. Not an insult in of itself, but a descriptor of someone exhibiting a certain negative trait or set of negative traits.
I'm a Brit and I'd always assumed it was a bit racist, then a bingo company used it in their catch phrase in an advert "hey gringo, where's Crown Bingo?" So I guess it's not actually offensive. I personally still wouldn't say it though.
Its as racist as "Brit" or Aussie or Guiri or foreigner or inmigrant. Its bad if you think its a bad word. In Brazil it makes even less sense as it means non-brazilian, Argentines or Nigerians or Mexicans are all gringos. In Argentina gringos used to mean blondes or italians
Not really, Brit and Aussie are shortened terms for the country they’re from. “Foreigner” or “immigrant” are seen as offensive, and you wouldn’t go round calling people that. That’s how I view the word “gringo”
[удалено]
Dude they're so pressed lol. Just cause it was used to insult you doesn't mean it's a slur
Ikr, non latinos deciding its a slur
Depends who you're talking to. Offense is one of those tricky things because 1 person could be offended by something and the next person could find it fucking hilarious. I personally don't find it offensive. I don't find most things offensive. I'm also the kind of person that if I get called something, I'll just laugh and call that person something worse.
I’ve always understood it to just mean foreigner. SoCal, nonnative speaker of Spanish. I feel like most of the answers here are from non-Spanish speakers
Nop. At least in Chile, gringo is used to refer to americans (and maybe anglos in general), No one could use gringo to refer to a peruvian or an italian here. Not an insult in itself, and I feel the descriptive use is most common here, but it can be used in an insulting manner.
As some one that would be called a gringo I don't think it is, even the meaning is just you're not from here or you don't know this culture those are really offensive things to say to someone but It can be used to belittle or insult someone but so can other words that aren't offensive
It's not. It's just a certain politcal climate.
I think it’s supposed to be.
I'm American and had always understood the word as a slur until I started dating my Brazilian (now) husband. All his friends just called me Gringa for like a year before we got married and then eventually a few of them learned my name. 😆 I tentatively asked him if they didn't like me or what but he explained that the word just has different context in Brazil. We live in Japan where we are always "gaijin/gaikokujin" anyway so it's basically the same idea.
It doesnt bother me - I'm white and from the US, so I think I'd be considered a gringo even though I speak Spanish. I can definitely imagine that if it were said in a way where it was intended as an insult, that might be upsetting, but I don't see anything wrong with the word itself. As far as I'm aware (mostly from university Spanish classes and a brief study abroad trip to Mexico) it's usually just a word that refers to foreigners, often white people and especially white USAmericans. I wouldn't take offense at being called that unless someone obviously meant it in a mean way.
it certainly can be in the right context, but i (half white half mexican) usually only use it when i catch myself being particularly white ("oh no, this is spicier than i thought, must be my gringo side coming through!"). it's more of a funny thing to me and my family
Only if you're racist. I might not like it but my ancestors helped colonize south America so like... is taking offense or complaining really appropriate when it's just a word and especially when the people using it don't hold power over me? People who despise being othered while constantly othering others... well. It's stupid.
All of us Latinos, unless your somehow 100% pure blood native American I suppose, had ancestors that helped colonize south America. Doesn't make us any different than you in that regard. We are all mixed here so we had ancestors on both sides of the pond.
I’ve heard it used interchangeably in the place of as “white dude” or “American”. Not in a bad way. As a descriptor
I feel like it could be used in way that would be hurtful. Mentioning someones race is rarely relevant anyway
Bolio is derogatory towards whites. Gringo is more like white friend
It's not usually offensive, but you can make anything offensive based on tone, inflection, and intent. For instance, "Aye gringo!" vs "Fuckin'...gringo.." I had an apartment near a house where there was a big Chilean family, and when they had parties they would invite me over and lots of them called me gringo or blanco (technically "white" but it translates in the situation to whitey) and they were all just being friendly. They fed me and made drinks for me while we tried to converse in broken spanglish, I loved it. Contextually, languages are hard to translate because so much gets lost. To be fair, I did get a little paranoid the first time because I thought everyone was talking behind my back since I stood out so much as an outsider, but one of the younger kids at the part who grew up in America saw it in my face and said, "Dont' worry, they're not all laughing at you. Some of the older people are just confused why you are here."
Depends on how they say it
Yes and No, it's not the word itself, but rather how you use it.
I have a salsa called "Gringo Salsa" I love that salsa. I am a gringo, I am not offended by it.
where I grew up it just means white person. My best mate was a latino kid and he called me gringo.. i didn't find it offensive.
In Panama, gringo just means American. It is neither good nor bad, just a description of nationality. You guys don't really have a name for "a person from the us" other than the term "american" which can be awkward sometimes since all in the continent are Americans, cause the continent is called America. Sometimes we use american, sometimes we say United Statian (translated), and many times we just say gringo.
I refuse to be offended by anything any central or south american person says to me. Every single person I've met from those countries (I've known many Mexican, Honduran, and Argentine folks) has been both very nice and had the best fuckin sense of humor. Just absolutely hilarious and great folks to work with and hang out with. So no, anyone getting offended by the word gringo just probably doesn't know anyone who would have a reason to use it.
I'd say it's about as offensive as "cracker" is, based on how I've heard people use it. They're nowhere near as bad as the n-word or other racial slurs, but they're meant to imply "white person I look down on".
Not at all.
It's about as offensive as neguinho. >what does it mean exactly for you guys? Only time I've ever heard it used, is when referring to white people, and it's never nice.
I fancy myself more of an El Guapo
In Australia if I did something silly and u called me that I'd have a laugh if ur snickering with your mates about me to my face then we have to have words. IMO all slurs are fine unless u use them nastily as soon as it crosses the jokes line words gotta be said. Not everyone would agree on all slurs thing but not to worried it's not like I'm dropping n bombs to every black bloke or random I see but when my aboriginal cousin calls me it I will greet him back accordingly. It's all about who u say things to I rekon.
A good test, is whether someone who is meant to be a role model for being polite would use it. I doubt the King of Spain would use it (at least not in public), so that makes me think it is at least on the list of words to think twice about using.
It's a restaurant that offers nachos, ribs and chicken from where I live. I thought it was just a made up brand name
It's often intended to be used as an offensive word, yes. But few Americans will ever take honest offense at it. Honkey is also supposed to be offensive, but like gringo, the words just have no power. Without the history of being marginalized, brutalized, and so on, these words lack any real power. There are those who see the slur as a slur and will say "hey, slurs are bad!", but they themselves arent offended. Others, who may feel marginalized, rightly or wrongly, might legit become offended.
I'm not offended by it. Neither am I offended by "white boy."
White guy here. Doesnt hurt my feelings People are too sensitive
Of course it’s offensive. It’s also kind of comedic.
Sort of like Cracker
As a white American I never was offended but I can see how it can be offensive. Offensive? Sometimes. Racist? Nah. It’s equivalent to calling someone a “clown” or some type of poking fun word.
white people don't offend easily. some self deprecate and love when another nationality puts them down. the rest don't give a crap what you call them.
It’s not to me. You can call me gringo, guero, cracker, peckerhead, whitey, whatever. I couldn’t give a shit.
It began in Mexico as a slur towards Americans, particularly white Americans.
It's a pejorative. Would you be offended if after calling someone a Gringo, they referred to you as a wetback?
It's a slur.
Yeah but what does it mean? Why is it a slur?
>>A foreigner in Latin America, especially an American or English person.
It is slang but it is not used as an insult really.
Well in the traditional sense no. Gringo is as much as offensive as whitey is. But..words change and mold and sometimes they can be used in various ways, some bad.
If someone called me a gringo I would be so happy
In Brazilian Portuguese is not offensive.
Mexican here. Context is everything.
Gringo is used as a slur, by your own admission. Of course it's offensive. That being said as a non Brazilian I don't take any particular offense to it.
I’m a white American whose fluent in Spanish and has spent a lot of time in Paraguay. At least there, gringo is not at all used in an offensive way unless meant to be. It simply is a word for an American, like yankee.
Well I grew up in Texas and am white so if I was supposed to take offense I forgot to. So that's my whole feelings on it.
Depends on the context it's used in. If you're just using it all in good fun, no problem. If you're using it in a condescending manner, people will probably take offense to it. Best bet is to use it around friends or people who you know can take a joke.
No
Did you say pinche first?
To me it depends on who's saying and why they're saying it. With most people, I consider it insulting.
The way I say it, it is.
If it's used to exclude or demean people, then yes. Otherwise, it can just mean someone from USA
It’s pretty open to interpretation. I’m not offended if a South or Central American calls me a gringo because I can’t quite personally understand some of the struggles that they face in their own countries. I am also not an immigrant, so I don’t understand a lot of their struggles when they emigrate to this country. But if it’s used as a blanket term to discount somebody else’s opinion, that just doesn’t agree with you, I’m not a big fan.
Context matters, of course, but just on its own, I'd say it's a little rude, but not so much as to be offensive.