Uuy… I’ve been called that one more than once. As a matter of fact, there’s a rather funny story about how big of a Chiflado I was as a kid. It involves my two eldest sisters, my cuñado, and a banana… that somehow ended up splattered all across my hair by the end of the night. It’s a long story, LOL! Mejor, read the linked post.
Today, I wanted to talk to you about that pesky little label that so many of us got growing up – ¡Chiflado! Subsequently, I think us guys sort of get the short end of the stick when it comes to being called Chiflados as adults too. It’s like anything we ask for that requires even the teeny tiniest of extra efforts automatically results in us being called big old Chiflados. Pero, I guess that’s a tale for another time. My problem with the word Chiflado is not necessarily being called it. Instead, being called a “spoiled brat” – yes, that’s the translation in English – for no good reason.
Say for example, a man says echame un lonche mañana, please. You guessed it! Yes, he’s a Chiflado. If he doesn’t like certain things like body wash, only jabón by the bar… yup, Chiflado. He won’t cook if there’s nothing to eat. He claims to not know how to iron. He’ll only eat certain foods, and sometimes only from one or two particular brands. He can’t get his hair cut from any other place that’s not the one he likes. Oh yeah, all grounds for being Chiflado. Now I won’t say any of these don’t merit the label, but you know, it’s only human nature to want to be chiflado (pampered in this instance) every once in a while.
Remember when you were a kid? If you didn’t want to get out of bed until your mother came to caress your hair, if you got all excited when mamá would make your favorite dish, if you didn’t want to share your brand new toys, if you grasped too many candies in one handful, if you cried because they made you share, if you talked back or stuck your tongue out… you were always a Chiflado! Right, you didn’t like it verdad?
Nobody does!
So the next time you get the urge to call someone a Chiflado, make sure they actually deserve the label. Especially if it’s the man in your life, jaja! Consider this a public service announcement 🙂
But back to the point of this post. What does Chiflado actually mean?
The Urban Dictionary says: 1. Conceited 2. thinks he/she is too fly 3. Vain 4. A know- it- all 5. Cocky 6. To act with attitude
The Merriam-Webster dictionary says: 1) the adjective means nuts, crazy 2) the noun means crazy person, lunatic
They’re both kind of right, but not really. To me chiflado as a noun or an adjective means spoiled. Either being spoiled or wanting to be spoiled. Pero, hey that’s just this Chiflado’s opinion.
I’m always on the hunt for new mexi-vocabulario.
What other words would you like me to include in the mexi-vocabulario? If you have one that you would recommend please share it with me here.
Writer’s Disclaimer: When I say mexi-vocabulario I don’t necessarily mean these words are exclusively Mexican, or only used by Mexicans. This is simply an expression of how they were introduced to me in our Mexican Spanish.
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7 thoughts on “Mexi-Vocabulario: ¡Chiflado!”
Great word! Also, the 3 Stooges were Los Tres Chiflados, that’s mostly how I’ve always associated the word but I’ve heard it referred to a pampered, picky kid too.
Thanks, Joe!
I looked up chiflada just now because my housekeeper’s daughter called her, and after a short conversation she told me her daughter (grown woman) was hungry and wanted her to bring food when she came back. I said, but doesn’t your daughter have a car? And money? The answer, Yes, but “CHIFLADA.” I asked what it meant and she tried to explain, but I didn’t get it. Your answer was a BINGO. Thanks.
Oh how funny, thank you for sharing!
This is why it’s so important to know where a person is from. In the Cuban Spanish I grew up with, Chiflado meant someone full of himself, puffed up with self-importance, conceited, not a spoiled child or someone stupid . El Chiflado is how I refer to a certain someone in the White House, although I admit, the other two definitions do apply as well.
chiflado (chiflao) : to love, to want something real bad. ie
Que chiflao, por su belleza le quite el pan a la vieja….tango by Carlos Gardel (Esta noche me emboracho…
This is a possible translation however it is primarily incorrect. It is VASTLY used to refer to someone being “crazy” it’s like in English someone whistling the little tune of “coo coo”.