CBEscapee, personally I think you’re taking offense where none was intended. Or else both of you are just speaking past each other? You both agree in the original meaning of the word, and that it can have different meanings (many of which are accepted even) in different places. Someone was just giving the standard/generic definition of the word. You were giving the slang meaning of the word (in your region).
As to the last part, I think it is because we tend to move away from using “our” slang (whatever it is) when meeting new people, and use more “standard/generic” Spanish. It’s only after talking to them for a while that slang may slip back in.
OTOH, seemingly innocuous words in one dialect are offensive/vulgar in others, and mix ups do happen.
My father got his degree in Spanish, and while he was in college he worked with a group of local hispanics (Fort Worth area).
He picked up a couple of curses from them: Vaya Chingala and Chingala Cabron (my apologies for not doing accents…)
Mom (and I) picked these up from Dad, which led to Mom saying (loudly) “Chingala Cabron” … in the middle of Mexico City. :eek: Dad nearly had a heart attack.
Although - since we were getting this essentially second hand, what mom really said probably sounded more like “Shingala cavaron”. No idea what THAT means.
This has morphed into a family curse of shingala shit, which Mom still uses.
Chingala Cabron means either “fuck a goat” or “goat fucker” - which is enough insult in itself, without the cuckold overtone. Just ask Hal Briston.
Taking the focus off of Latin American Spanish and Castilian Spanish for a few moments…
Ёб твою мать (and its censored version мать твою!) are not really used in the sense of “Go fuck yourself”, but more in the sense of “fuck you”. Indicating a desire that the listener go perform a generally physically impossible sexual act is better represented by:
Иди к ёбеной матери! Go to your fucked mother!
Иди на хуй! Go to the dick! (Censored version, but no less clearly understood: Иди на фиг! in which a rude gesture, with the thumb stuck between the index finger and middle finger while the other four are curled into a fist is substituted.)
No, I’m not going to teach you how to say them. These three phrases are a very good way of getting yourself punched dead in the face for starters. Also, the фиг is an offensive gesture in both Russia and Turkey so don’t get any cute ideas.
