cuacholote

[Maria]

It is cuachalote and it does not quite mean clumsy. It means untidy,
badly dressed, dirty. Cuachalote is often used to diminish someone who
concducts himself or herself in a careless manner. Mira nomás qué
cuachalote is also used as the equivalent of fachoso or dejado... 
Maria


"We don´t see things as they are,
We see things as we are."
Anais Nin
 
Dr. María D. Bolívar
MBOLIVAR at san.rr.com
 
 

-----Original Message-----
From: Nahua language and culture discussion
[mailto:NAHUAT-L at LISTS.UMN.EDU] On Behalf Of robert barkaloff
Sent: Wednesday, May 19, 2004 11:26 AM
To: NAHUAT-L at LISTS.UMN.EDU
Subject: Re: cuacholote

Joanna M. Sanchez wrote:

> I am analyzing the Mexican Spanish slang term /cuacholote/, which
> refers to a clumsy or untalented person, for its Nahuatl root.  Would
> it be /cuauh-xeloa/, or should /cua-xolotl/ be considered /?/

Just a note:  I grew-up hearing this word at me -- thank's mom.   I do
remember the pronounciation as "cua-cha-lote."  This may be a regional
variation, though  I have never heard the word pronounced as
"cua-cho-lote."   I also assumed it to be "cuah-xolotl," though I'm not
sure of it's derivation.  In the context which I understood the word, it
refers to someone who is sloppy or unkempt in appearance or in their
doings.

Robert