Tesis Jose Antonio Sanchez Fajardo

Anglicisms in Cuban Spanish
José Antonio Sánchez Fajardo

DEPARTAMENTO DE FILOLOGÍA INGLESA
FACULTAD DE FILOSOFÍA Y LETRAS
ANGLICISMS IN CUBAN SPANISH
JOSÉ ANTONIO SÁNCHEZ FAJARDO
Tesis presentada para aspirar al grado de

DOCTOR POR LA UNIVERSIDAD DE ALICANTE
PROGRAMA DE DOCTORADO: FILOSOFÍA Y LETRAS
Dirigida por:
FÉLIX RODRÍGUEZ GONZÁLEZ
Agradecimientos
A Félix Rodríguez, por supuesto, por su incansable labor investigadora, por introducirme
en el mundo de la lexicografía, y por confiar en mí desde el primer momento. De verdad,
muchas gracias. A Ana María González, Lourdes Montero, y Aurora Camacho por sus
valiosísimos aportes. A Andrew Lynch por su apoyo y asesoramiento. A mis compañeros
de la Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche por su ayuda y amistad.
A mis amigos, por su paciencia durante estos largos cuatro años de ausencia. A mi
familia, mis padres, mi hermana, mi sobrino y abuela, que han sabido sacar siempre lo
mejor de mí.
A David, por toda la vida que le debo.
A Cuba, porque sí.
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Table of Contents
1. RESUMEN ....................................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Introducción ................................................................................................................. 1
1.2 Resultados de la investigación ..................................................................................... 5
1.3 Conclusiones.............................................................................................................. 14
2. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 17
3. ANGLICISMS IN CUBAN SPANISH: A HISTORICAL ACCOUNT ................... 23
3.1 The inevitable ascent of English ................................................................................ 23
3.2 Cuba and the English language (Colonial Period)..................................................... 24
3.3 Cuba and the English language (Neocolonial period) ............................................... 30
3.4 Cuba and the English language (Post-1959 period) .................................................. 35
4. LINGUISTIC BORROWING: TYPOLOGY ............................................................. 41
4.1 Exploring the process of borrowing .......................................................................... 41
4.2 The concept of anglicism ........................................................................................... 45
4.3 Anglicisms: pest or zest? ........................................................................................... 46
4.4 Lexical borrowing: subcategories .............................................................................. 47
4.4.1 Compendium of concepts and terminology ........................................................ 48
4.4.2 Types of lexical borrowings: a comprehensive chart ......................................... 52
4.4 A pragmatic distinction of borrowings ...................................................................... 58
5. BORROWINGS IN CUBAN SPANISH: A NORMATIVE AND DESCRIPTIVE
ANALYSIS ......................................................................................................................... 61
5.1 Phonological level and graphemic variations ............................................................ 62
5.2 Morphological level ................................................................................................... 65
5.2.1 Nouns .................................................................................................................. 66
5.2.2 Adjectives ............................................................................................................ 67
5.2.3 Adverbs ............................................................................................................... 68
5.2.4 Verbs ................................................................................................................... 68
5.3 Word-building processes ........................................................................................... 69
5.3.1 Derivation ........................................................................................................... 69
5.3.2 Compounds and combining forms ...................................................................... 69
5.3.3 Calques ............................................................................................................... 70
5.3.4 Semantics ............................................................................................................ 71
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5.4 Sociolinguistic remarks ............................................................................................. 72
5.5 Base-ball, baseball, béisbol, pelota ........................................................................... 76
6. PSEUDO-ANGLICISMS IN CUBAN SPANISH ....................................................... 79
6.1 Pseudo-Anglicisms: to be or not to be? ..................................................................... 79
6.2 Origin of pseudo-Anglicisms .................................................................................... 81
6.3 Typology of pseudo-anglicisms ................................................................................ 82
6.4 Sociolinguistic sources of pseudo-anglicisms ........................................................... 92
7. CUBAN-AMERICAN SPANISH ................................................................................. 97
7.1 Cuban-Americans: a brief historical and socio-cultural account .............................. 97
7.2 The concept of Spanglish ........................................................................................ 102
7.3 Lexical borrowing ................................................................................................... 105
7.3.1 Nouns: gender and number inflections ............................................................ 108
7.3.2 Adjectives ......................................................................................................... 111
7.3.3 Verbs................................................................................................................. 111
7.3.4 Adverbs ............................................................................................................. 112
7.4 Syntactic borrowing ................................................................................................ 113
7.5 Why is code-switching resorted to? ........................................................................ 117
8. DIFFERENTIAL CUBAN SPANISH GLOSSARY OF ANGLICISMS AND
CALQUES: METHODOLOGY AND ANALYSIS ..................................................... 121
8.1 Objectives ................................................................................................................ 121
8.2 Methodology ........................................................................................................... 122
8.3 Analysis of the data ................................................................................................. 131
8.4 Morpho-Syntactic Analysis ..................................................................................... 133
8.5 Semantic analysis of the data .................................................................................. 144
8.6 Cultural borrowings: general comments ................................................................. 149
8.7 Cuban Spanish and European Spanish: a general contrastive analysis ................... 150
8.8 Personal names and toponyms ................................................................................ 155
9. CONCLUSIONS .......................................................................................................... 159
10. BIBLIOGRAPHY ..................................................................................................... 169
11. ANNEXES .................................................................................................................. 177
11.1 Differential glossary of Cuban Spanish anglicisms and calques........................... 177
11.1.1 Abbreviations ................................................................................................. 177
11.1.2 Glossary ......................................................................................................... 179
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Resumen
1. RESUMEN
1.1 INTRODUCCIÓN
Los procesos de formación de palabras, en particular aquellos que describen los préstamos
léxicos y las lenguas en contacto, han fascinado a numerosos lexicólogos y lexicógrafos.
La complejidad en la formación de préstamos o calcos demuestra una necesidad creciente
de estudiar estos fenómenos con más detalle, y de ampliar el espectro de los campos de
investigación como son la sociología, la psicología, la antropología, etc. que intervienen en
dichos mecanismos de lexicogénesis. Una vez realizada la descripción y ejemplificación de
estos fenómenos, los especialistas cuentan con las herramientas necesarias para
comprender los distintos conceptos sociolingüísticos, y para dotar a los traductores de
procesos más específicos que permitan encontrar equivalencias léxicas y sintácticas más
exactas.
El español, debido a su extendida diseminación geográfica, ha tenido que entrar en
contacto con otras lenguas vecinas como el inglés, el francés, o el portugués. Fue
precisamente la colonización española de las Américas, y la amplia gama de variedades
lingüísticas lo que ha condicionado la necesidad de realizar estudios dialectales
contrastivos de lemas anglicados. El análisis del proceso de anglización en las regiones
americanas, en comparación con la variante de España, permite conocer de primera mano
la correlación significativa entre lengua y sociedad, en cuanto a préstamos lingüísticos se
refiere.
El hecho de que Cuba haya sido una colonia española durante casi cuatro siglos, y
su cercanía geográfica a los Estados Unidos (90 millas aproximadamente) representa la
concreción de hábitos, idiosincrasia, creencias, y lengua anglicados. Además, los cambios
socioeconómicos experimentados en la isla han hecho posible una innumerable variedad de
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fenómenos sociolingüísticos, en especial aquellos relacionados con los cambios semánticos

y sociolectos.
La presencia de anglicismos y calcos en el español de Cuba ha sido estudiada por
muchos autores (Pichardo, 1875; Ortiz, 1974; Cárdenas, 1999; Valdés, 1998, 2001, 2007;
Fasla, 2007-2008; Pérez, 2008; López Morales, 1971, 1987, 2003, 2013). Sin embargo, no
se han encontrado análisis más concretos sobre las características sociolingüísticas y
lexicográficas de los préstamos anglicados. Por esta razón, una vez revisados los materiales
disponibles, pude percibir la necesidad de realizar un estudio más minucioso sobre la
influencia del inglés, en particular la variedad norteamericana, en el español cubano, y de
elaborar un corpus y su correspondiente glosario de anglicismos y calcos diferenciales.
Una revisión detallada de las apartados con las que cuenta este estudio se puede consultar a
continuación.
El capítulo 3 ofrece un resumen histórico de la influencia del inglés en el español
cubano. El estudio diacrónico se basa en las contribuciones del léxico inglés y los estilos
de vida norteamericanos a través de tres períodos históricos relevantes en la historia de
Cuba: colonial (desde el siglo XVIII hasta 1898), neocolonial (desde 1898 hasta 1959), y
revolucionario (desde 1959 hasta la actualidad). A través de una descripción global de las
condiciones socioeconómicas y políticas, se muestran detalladamente los procesos
sociolingüísticos así como la evolución de los anglicismos y calcos, lo cual permite obtener
información relevante sobre la etimología y formación de estas unidades léxicas.
El capítulo 4 revisa las definiciones y los conceptos más recientes, que están
relacionados con la naturaleza del préstamo lingüístico. Este análisis es crucial para
establecer las bases teóricas de la investigación. Los conceptos están acompañados con
ejemplos auténticos de las variedades del español cubano y del europeo. Junto con las
teorías tradicionales, una sección muy breve del capítulo repasa las perspectivas
pragmáticas del préstamo, principalmente aquellas que se relacionan con la
intencionalidad del hablante, y la designación de conceptos. La descripción de los procesos
y la clasificación de las unidades extraídas permiten aclarar aspectos descriptivos de la
investigación del corpus.
Establecido el marco teórico necesario en el proceso investigador, es importante
contar con un análisis normativo y descriptivo para entender cómo los conceptos teóricos
son visibles en la variedad del español en Cuba. Consecuentemente, el capítulo 5 tiene
como objetivo repasar el proceso de préstamo lingüístico del inglés en el español de Cuba,
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Resumen
y los mecanismos de anglización que han afectado los diferentes niveles de la lengua. Los
epígrafes en su conjunto tienen la intención de sintetizar los tipos de patrones de
anglización, o sus respectivas variaciones, desde el punto de vista fonético, morfológico,
sintáctico y semántico. Además, se incluye un breve análisis de los cambios de grafía, y las
variaciones en los procesos de formación de palabras observados. De igual manera, me he
propuesto examinar los cambios sociolingüísticos en las unidades extraídas, lo cual permite
obtener una idea más clara de las actitudes del hablante hacia el uso del anglicismo, así
como las variaciones semánticas, estilísticas o diafásicas observadas en los lemas
compilados.
Un análisis sistémico de los anglicismos y calcos contribuye a comprender los
procesos lingüísticos en el nuevo concepto sociocultural. Por esta razón, he dedicado un
breve epígrafe al campo semántico del béisbol en el español cubano. La presencia de
mecanismos productivos de formación de palabras demuestra la importancia de este
deporte en el proceso de importación de voces foráneas.
En el capítulo 6, me he propuesto analizar el concepto de pseudo anglicismo con
más detalle. Además de ofrecer un compendio de aquellas definiciones más relevantes, se
exponen algunos criterios que permiten una mejor identificación de pseudo préstamos
derivados del inglés. El estudio de estas unidades representa un campo de investigación
novedoso dentro del área del préstamo lingüístico, el cual está directamente relacionado
con una gran variedad de procesos, por ejemplo: metonimia, homonimia, toponimia, etc.
La tipología descrita en este capítulo es amplia y compleja, y su descripción se
complementa con los mecanismos anteriormente descritos. Ya que esta investigación se
centra en relacionar el préstamo lingüístico con la pragmática, he detallado el análisis de
las motivaciones sociolingüísticas y la evolución semántica para poder discernir las fuentes
sociolingüísticas de los pseudo préstamos.
Debido al alto número de anglicismos del español cubano americano, el capítulo 7
examina las peculiaridades de esta variedad del español, especialmente localizada en el sur
de la Florida. Este análisis se basa en las características históricas y socioculturales de esta
comunidad arraigada en los Estados Unidos, el concepto de Spanglish, y los procesos de
préstamos léxico, sintáctico y semántico. Igualmente, uno de sus epígrafes se ha reservado
para examinar los fenómenos de alternancia de código de acuerdo con las funciones del
lenguaje, lo cual permite clarificar los orígenes del bilingüismo y el préstamo lingüístico.
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Una característica distintiva de este capítulo es precisamente el paralelismo trazado

entre ambas variedades del español (el español de Cuba y el cubano americano). Ambos
códigos quedan expuestos al inglés a niveles muy diferentes, lo cual añade más relevancia
al estudio actual en lo que se refiere a los procesos de alternancia de código y préstamo
lingüístico.
El capítulo 8 se encarga de la elaboración y análisis del glosario diferencial de
anglicismos y calco en el español cubano. Esta etapa del proceso investigador constituye la
herramienta más conveniente para examinar las unidades léxicas con más exhaustividad.
La información extraída de los lemas anglicados aporta datos más precisos con respecto a
la frecuencia léxica, variaciones semánticas o de grafía, connotaciones sociolingüísticas, y
más importante aún, características léxico-semánticas diferenciales, en contraste con los
procesos observados en el español peninsular.
Los datos obtenidos son el resultado de un proceso de recopilación de materiales y
análisis del mismo, el cual es detallado en dicho capítulo. Además, el marco metodológico
descrito y el glosario de anglicismos son cruciales para familiarizarse con la información
compilada. El glosario de anglicismos y calcos en el español cubano, que se encuentra en
el apartado de anexos, representa la fuente sustancial de información en la investigación
actual, mediante la cual se describen los lemas y se aportan datos contextuales.
El análisis de los datos implica un examen cuantitativo y cualitativo, permitiendo
así un estudio más completo de los aspectos morfosintácticos y semánticos de los lemas,
así como una clasificación general, de acuerdo con los conceptos y definiciones
preestablecidos en capítulos anteriores. En este apartado se aborda igualmente el fenómeno
del préstamo cultural y se aportan definiciones ilustradas que permiten una mejor
comprensión de estos préstamos en las lenguas en contacto.
Un epígrafe breve dentro del último capítulo muestra un estudio contrastivo entre el
español cubano y el peninsular, el cual se centra principalmente en las variaciones
ortográficas, fonéticas, semánticas y pragmáticas. Al contrastar anglicismos y calcos, el
lector puede llegar a visualizar con más claridad las semejanzas y diferencias entre estas
dos variedades del español, y a entender las perspectivas dialectológicas y pragmáticas del
préstamo lingüístico.
En este capítulo se recopilan nombres propios y topónimos en el español de Cuba,
con el propósito de resaltar las singularidades de estas formas camufladas en el habla.
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Resumen
Aunque dichas unidades hayan sido excluidas del glosario, su presencia en el fenómeno de
préstamo lingüístico es sumamente relevante para futuras investigaciones de este tipo.
En general, este estudio diacrónico y sincrónico engloba la necesidad de estudiar
los préstamos lingüísticos con más profundidad, lo que conlleva inevitablemente la
elaboración de un glosario, y la correspondiente descripción de los lemas y variantes
léxico-semánticas. Junto con el análisis lingüístico, se requiere un estudio histórico y
sociolingüístico del proceso de anglización para llegar a comprender las complejidades de
los mecanismos de préstamo y alternancia de códigos.
1.2 RESULTADOS DE LA INVESTIGACIÓN
Uno de los primeros resultados de la investigación ha sido la observación de patrones

lingüísticos derivados de la influencia del inglés norteamericano, que dependen en gran
medida del período histórico al que se hace referencia. El período colonial (siglos XVIII y
XIX), a pesar de ser el más extenso, no es considerado relevante en cuanto al número de
anglicismos extraídos. Los primeros glosarios y diccionarios consultados (Pichardo, 1875;
Marinello, 1926-1927) revelan que los galicismos superan en número a los anglicismos,
siendo estos últimos más bien escasos. Sin embargo, una vez revisados un número
importante de diarios y revistas de la época (Diario de La Marina, Rosendo, Bohemia,
Juventud, etc.), hay indicaciones de que la influencia del inglés y el nivel de asimilación en
el español cubano fue mayor de lo que inicialmente se pensaba. En cuanto a los lemas
relacionados con el béisbol, este período representó el punto de partida de un largo proceso
de adaptación, cuya aportación en la variedad del español de la isla se extendió
enormemente y ha trascendido al español cubano contemporáneo.
Con el establecimiento de la República en 1902, y hasta el año 1959 (período
neocolonial), Cuba experimentó el más alto nivel conocido hasta ahora de exposición al
inglés, debido en su mayoría a un conjunto de factores: proximidad geográfica,
dependencia política y económica, préstamos culturales, un sociolecto alto muy
americanizado, etc. La importancia del inglés en esa época era especialmente palpable en
materiales escritos, y la compilación de los mismos es trascendental para entender la
etimología de los lemas y los cambios semánticos. En contraste con la conocida y
ampliamente estudiada correlación existente entre emigración y préstamo lingüístico, el
número de norteamericanos en Cuba antes del año 1959 (0,36% de la población) sugiere
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que la migración norteamericana no constituyó un factor fundamental a la hora de valorar

la presencia del inglés. Otros elementos socioeconómicos tuvieron un mayor peso.
A pesar de la disminución de elementos de origen inglés después del año 1959, este
tipo de préstamo continuó sin cesar, pero obviamente a un nivel diferente. El período
revolucionario, después de 1959, se caracteriza principalmente por el establecimiento de
nuevos mecanismos o canales de asimilación, que se encuentran mayormente
condicionados por la nueva situación socioeconómica imperante en la isla: una entrada
continua de anglicismos ya existentes en el español, y que están relacionados
principalmente con el deporte, electrodomésticos o los muebles; un incremento
considerable en aquellas palabras relacionadas con el sector turístico, que permite discernir
los marcadores semánticos (bus, guagua; cigar, tabaco); un aumento importante en la
asimilación de unidades léxicas del español cubano americano, y por consiguiente una
redistribución de la carga semántica. La mayoría de estos anglicismos (brother, bye-bye,
part-time, drinking) son fáciles de identificar ya que pertenecen a un sociolecto bajo.
El análisis de la influencia del inglés en el español cubano, en especial sus niveles
de la lengua, ha revelado patrones de anglización, fácilmente distinguibles del español
peninsular. En cuanto al nivel fonológico, existe una semejanza entre las vocales y los
diptongos del español cubano y los del inglés. Algunas palabras, como es el caso de
iceberg y wifi, muestran estos rasgos contrastivos entre ambas variedades del español,
diacrónica y sincrónicamente: las formas /áisber/ y /wáifai/ del español cubano se
reconocen con facilidad con respecto a sus parónimos europeos /iθebér/ y /wífi/.
Globalmente, existen tres fonemas vocálicos anglicados: /a/, /e/, y /o/, como en el caso de
ampaya < umpire, catcher, y bluff. Estos sonidos vocálicos sintetizan la romanización de
una gran variedad de fonemas ingleses, dejando claro la necesidad de un proceso de
asimilación fonética. La inserción de un sonido protético /e/ en ambas variedades del
español facilita la adaptación de grupos consonánticos propios del inglés, con s- inicial (sl-,
sm-, sp-, st-).
Una de las características más importantes de la integración ortográfica es el uso de
grafía española en el caso de aquellas que interfieren con variantes nativas: guarandol <
warandol, queno < keno. No obstante, los primeros préstamos, principalmente los que se
adaptaron durante la neocolonia, son más fáciles de detectar debido a sus grafemas
ingleses. Por consiguiente, los anglicismos arcaicos u obsoletos no se han excluido del
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Resumen
glosario ya que representan una valiosa fuente de conocimiento sobre los cambios
morfológicos, semánticos, y pragmáticos.
En términos de formación de palabras, la mayoría de los anglicismos compilados en
el glosario son sustantivos, lo cual se entiende por la naturaleza del proceso de préstamo
lingüístico. Los adjetivos son más escasos, y un recurrente proceso de formación de verbos
sugiere que la derivación de una base anglicada (tanto de origen nominal como adjetival) y
un sufijo nativo como ocurre en el caso de ampayar < umpire y clarear < clear, es
altamente productiva. A diferencia de los sustantivos animados, los inanimados muestran
una mayor arbitrariedad en cuanto al caso de género. En ocasiones, pueden seguir dos
patrones: adoptan el género de la palabra española con la cual el préstamo se asocia (la
barbecue), o siguen coherentemente con los mecanismos de sufijación españoles (la
reservación).
En cuanto a la marcación del plural, uno de los resultados más visibles indica la
existencia de dobletes, compuestos por un préstamo directo y un calco directo, en los
cuales estructuras traducidas son afijadas: catcher/receptor → receptores, center/jardinero
→ jardineros. Esta dicotomía pone de manifiesto una complementación necesaria de dos
formas semánticamente idénticas, y cuyas funciones sintácticas son esenciales para
explicar las variaciones morfológicas presentes.
Se ha identificado a un grupo limitado de sufijos formadores de sustantivos agentes:
-ero (a), -ista, -ador (a), -er, -man. Los tres primeros son altamente productivos en el
español cubano actual, y están morfológicamente relacionados con sus parónimos ingleses,
lo cual explica su uso y su carga combinatoria: fildeador < fielder, bisnero < business,
yatista < yacht. Los otros dos afijos solo se encuentran en préstamos no adaptados: big
leaguer, clubman.
En cuanto a los adjetivos, aunque son reducidos en número, los terminados en –al
denotan la existencia de dobletes: educacional/educativo, televisual/televisivo. Este patrón
de formación adjetival permite aclarar la naturaleza de los procesos anglicados de afijación
y productividad morfológica. Consecuentemente, un sufijo derivado del inglés puede ser
suficientemente productivo como para combinarse con bases o raíces españolas.
Como ha quedado demostrado en los capítulos anteriores, el sufijo –ar (o sus
correspondientes cognados –ear, -iar) es el más productivo con diferencia en cuanto a
formación verbal se refiere (Cárdenas, 1999: 52): guachinear ‘rechazar una discusión
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sobre política’ < to watch, machear ‘llevar alguna prenda de ropa que coincida con otra en
color, talla, etc.’ < to match.
La mayoría de las unidades compuestas son préstamos directos no adaptados, y su
presencia en el español cubano no implica que sus unidades constituyentes existan
igualmente en la variedad cubana: beamball, blueplate, comeback. Una característica
importante de estos lemas compuestos es su tendencia a ser adaptados o integrados en su
totalidad, y que sus formas resultantes logren camuflarse en el argot cubano como lexemas
de una sola base o raíz: chingala < shin-guard, tribey < three-base, cofiquei < coffeecake.
En cuanto a la semántica, y a diferencia del español peninsular (cf. Rodríguez &
Lillo, 1997), las unidades derivadas del inglés no son polisémicas. Los anglicismos y
calcos compilados son en su mayoría monosémicos. Desde un punto de vista histórico o
diacrónico, los lemas monosémicos son el producto de los procesos de extensión
semántica o transferencia metafórica, que han derivado en polisemia, y en ocasiones, a
calcos semánticos. Además, muy pocos ejemplos de homónimos han sido encontrados.
Estas estructuras muestran diferentes variantes de préstamo léxico, y su naturaleza
homonímica tiene que ver con la descripción semántica de las acuñaciones anglicadas:
panel (significado 1) < panel truck y panel (significado 2) ‘grupo de personas que posee
conocimiento, habilidades o experiencia para aconsejar o tomar decisiones.’
Sin duda, uno de los resultados más relevantes tiene que ver con las metáforas del
béisbol, y su compleja adaptación en el español estándar de Cuba. El estudio de estas
unidades engloba la evolución sociolingüística de las unidades derivadas del inglés en el
español cubano. No sólo son prominentes en cuanto al número de compilaciones y la
productividad demostrada, sino que también son el resultado de la complejidad del
préstamo y su cambio semántico: jugar en los files ‘estar en la parte trasera de un lugar’ <
to play in the fields.
Una característica importante del análisis normativo y descriptivo del préstamo
lingüístico ha sido establecer una correlación directa entre préstamos y calcos con factores
pragmáticos. Consecuentemente, tres motivaciones diacrónicas han sido descritas: lenguas
en contacto, necesidad social e institucionalización. La revisión de periódicos y
diccionarios también sugiere dos puntos de inflexión trascendentales en cuanto a variación
semántica se refiere, mayormente motivados por un impacto sociolingüístico. El primer
punto coincide históricamente con el comienzo del período neocolonial, en el cual un
número de préstamos, en particular los no adaptados, fueron asimilados por miembros de
~8~
Resumen
la clase alta, lo cual hace pensar que adquirió aceptación y prestigio positivo. El segundo
punto corresponde con el triunfo de la Revolución en 1959. El número de nuevas unidades
anglicadas acuñadas cayó después de esta fecha, y una gran parte de las mismas han sido
asociadas con un sociolecto bajo. El estudio de la aceptación actual del préstamo, tanto en
el sistema como en el habla, representa un área de conocimiento fascinante, y que debería
ser revisada con más detalle en futuros proyectos de investigación. El estudio del proceso
sociolingüístico en Cuba permitiría aclarar cómo influyen las actitudes de los hablantes
hacia la anglización en procesos lingüísticos como la frecuencia léxica, la productividad, y
el cambio semántico.
Durante la investigación, he destacado la importancia del fenómeno de pseudo
anglicismo debido al número de unidades compiladas de este tipo y al concepto de
productividad léxica. Conjuntamente con las bases teóricas actuales, se ha descrito
detalladamente cómo estas unidades léxicas se forman, y cinco procesos globales resumen
la formación de pseudo préstamos: 1) un elemento extranjero es prestado y asimilado en la
lengua nativa, o traducido (los rasgos extranjeros no son siempre tan fáciles de detectar por
hispanohablantes) como en el caso de bisne ‘negocio ilegal’; 2) un elemento extranjero es
prestado y mantiene su estructura no adaptada (los rasgos extranjeros son fácilmente
detectados por hispanohablantes) como en dancing ‘discoteca’; 3) a un elemento nativo se
le añade una unidad morfológica o fonética extranjera: corring ‘correr’; 4) elementos
extranjeros se combinan en la lengua receptora, sin respetar las reglas sintácticas o
gramaticales tanto de la lengua de salida como la de llegada: fit-doing ‘ok’; anglicismos
adaptados sufren un proceso de extensión del significado, dando lugar a homónimos, cuyos
nuevos sentidos rompen en su totalidad con sus parónimos anglicados como es el caso de
fotingo ‘culo’ < foot it and go.
La clasificación de los pseudo préstamos confirma la complejidad de este proceso.
Una forma práctica de estudiarlos es a través de los niveles de la lengua afectados: léxico,
morfológico, semántico, fonológico y sintáctico (cf. Rodríguez, 2013). Otra clasificación
tiene que ver con los procesos de formación de palabras que estas unidades experimentan y
la naturaleza de estos mecanismos: composición autónoma (fit-doing ‘ok’ < fit + doing),
derivación autónoma (footing ‘jogging’), elipsis de los compuestos center ‘posición del
jugador de béisbol’ < center field), mutación morfológica (dancing ‘discoteca’ < dancing
place), acortamientos (par ‘el cable que tiene dos cables’ < paired cable), reduplicación
(tifi-tifi ‘theft’ < thief), cambio semántico (péter ‘tableta de chocolate’ < Peter Paul),
~9~
cambios funcionales (left-field se encuentra como lugar y como jugador), anglicismo

híbrido (manigüiti ‘theft’ < money).
Una de las conclusiones más significativas en el estudio de los pseudo préstamos es
quizás una mejor comprensión de la extensión semántica, ya sea polisemia u homonimia,
en la legua receptora. Estos elementos anglicados pueden derivarse de la asimilación de
una variante léxico-semántica o de un lexema completo. El primer proceso ha sido acuñado
como evolución semántica en ‘forma de reloj de arena’, el cual describe la forma primaria
de préstamo y sus unidades homonímicas o polisémicas resultantes. El segundo, aunque es
poco común, ha sido denominado proceso de extensión con ‘forma piramidal’, y describe
la asimilación de un lexema en la lengua de llegada. Los procesos de extensión semántica y
transferencia de significado funcionan eficazmente dentro de la lengua receptora, y sus
formas no son identificables por hablantes del inglés, como es de esperar.
El estudio del español cubano americano es de gran ayuda para examinar la
etimología de muchos préstamos anglicados y el proceso de alternancia de códigos entre el
español cubano y el inglés norteamericano. Por consiguiente, se puede observar que un
grupo de préstamos con rasgos culturales y lingüísticos propios del inglés han entrado en el
español cubano a través de su homólogo del norte: afideibi < affidavit, cuora ‘twenty-five
cent coin’ < quarter, pin, strapless, part-time. Algunos calcos compilados han sido
igualmente reconocidos en ambas variedades: llamar para atrás < to call back, no mucho
< not much. El análisis de las peculiaridades del Spanglish cubano americano, sus reglas y
paradigmas intrínsecos permite un estudio más detallado y completo del español cubano.
Un total de 14 diccionarios y glosarios fueron consultados. Estos materiales de
consulta representaron las fuentes directas disponibles. Se complementó dicha revisión con
otras fuentes de lemas y contextos: 61 blogs, foros y artículos online; 10 revistas y
periódicos online; 41 libros; 4 corpus y enciclopedias. La tipología de las fuentes denota
una preferencia visible hacia el discurso escrito, y su variedad refleja una amplia variedad
de registros y géneros, así como información contextual especificada. La recopilación de
anglicismos, exclusivamente usados en Cuba, constituye un mapa general del proceso de
anglización en el español de Cuba, y crea una importante base de datos para futuros
estudios comparativos y normativos.
En cuanto a los datos cuantitativos, el total de lemas extraídos fue de 921, y el de
variantes léxico-semánticas 1053. Las variantes léxico-semánticas que comparten
significado con sus homólogos europeos no fueron excluidas, con el objetivo de percibir
~ 10 ~
Resumen
mejor los fenómenos de homonimia, polisemia o transparencia semántica. Fueron

detectados 74 frases idiomáticas, que se caracterizan en su totalidad por ser el producto de
la extensión semántica, y en su mayoría están relacionadas con lemas deportivos, sobre
todo del béisbol. Estas frases son coloquiales, y su sintaxis española, unido a la naturaleza
adaptada de sus unidades hacen que los préstamos descritos estén enteramente integrados:
comerse un cake /kéi/ ‘sentirse decepcionado por algo o alguien’ < cake.
La información extraída del glosario muestra que los sustantivos y las frases
nominales constituyen una mayoría: 77,7%. Los otros tipos de palabras en orden
descendente son: verbos y frases verbales (14.8%), adjetivos y frases adjetivales (5.8%),
adverbios y frases adverbiales (1.2%), e interjecciones (aproximadamente 0.5%).
Aparentemente, la superioridad de los procesos de formación de sustantivos responde a
uno de los conceptos básicos del préstamo lingüístico: la designación de referentes
desconocidos en la lengua de llegada. La mayoría de los sustantivos son inanimados, lo
que explica que una gran parte de ellos no sigan ningún patrón, lo cual contrasta con los
sustantivos animados que contienen marcas gramaticales significativas. Uno de los grupos
más productivos identificados corresponde a los agentes u ocupaciones: pipero (a) < pipe,
panquelero (a) < pancake.
En cuanto a los procesos de formación de verbos, el número de verbos transitivos,
intransitivos y frases verbales representa el 22,6%, 28%, y 49,4% respectivamente, de
todas las formas verbales recopiladas. Así que la extensión semántica de los significados
literales en préstamos de-verbales es altamente productiva.
El análisis de unidades compuestas indica que la mayoría de las unidades extraídas
son unidades no adaptadas ortográficamente: baby-doll, background, handball. Aunque
parezcan al lector hispanohablante como palabras formadas por una sola base, son en
realidad palabras compuestas cuyas bases han sido altamente asimiladas: béisbol <
baseball, dogao < dug-out, o calcadas: aeromoza < air-hostess, cargabates < bat-carrier.
Estos ejemplos demuestran que inclusive aquellos procesos de formación de palabras poco
frecuentes en la lengua de llegada pueden ser prestados, dando lugar así a formas no
gramaticales.
Los sufijos formadores de sustantivos más recurrentes en el caso de préstamos
adaptados son: -ero(a), -ista, -o, -ería, ito(a). Los dos primeros están especialmente
relacionados con el campo semántico de las profesiones: bisnero < business, pantrista <
pantry. El sufijo –ero(a) también se utiliza para formar adjetivos, y se encuentra
~ 11 ~
frecuentemente en adjetivos con semas negativos o con sentido de hilaridad: palmolivero

‘se refiere a alguien que bebe alcohol diariamente’ < Palmolive, blofero ‘que se caracteriza
por alardear, o por ser muy pretensioso’ < bluff. El sufijo –ito se utiliza para formar los
diminutivos; su uso es relativamente frecuente y se encuentra en lemas que tienen que ver
principalmente con la ropa: shorcito < shorts, pulovito < pull-over, blumito < bloomers.
La selección y estudio de los llamados pseudo afijos es muy interesante. Estas
formas agramaticales se aplican para anglicanizar las bases a las que se adhieren. Su carga
combinatoria está relacionada con las estructuras fonéticas, no en su estructura semántica:
gratindei ‘free’ < gratis + -dei, ameriquein < Americano + -ein.
El análisis de las variantes léxico-semánticas demuestra que el 21,7% de estas
unidades constituyen préstamos indirectos, es decir calcos y préstamos semánticos. Casi la
mitad de los préstamos indirectos son de tipo semántico, lo cual confirma su productividad
en el español cubano. Por otra parte, los préstamos directos alcanzan el 78,3% de las
unidades compiladas, el 80,1% de las cuales son préstamos tanto adaptados como no
adaptados. El proceso de asimilación de las unidades varía de muy poco adaptadas
(payama < pajama, raspe < rasp) a casi imperceptibles (chalina < shawl, jaba < handbag).
Un patrón recurrente observado tiene que ver con los lemas polisémicos, en los
cuales el sentido más literal corresponde a un calco, y el otro sentido es el resultado del
proceso de extensión metafórica: correr para tercera base ‘acudir a la burla o la evasión
para hacer algo’ < to run to third base. Este tipo de variante léxico-semántica lo he
denominado calco metafórico. Se ha distinguido del resto de procesos semánticos debido a
su alta productividad y frecuencia. Su origen es precisamente el calco y la traducción, y no
son para nada discernibles por hablantes del inglés. Una gran mayoría de los mismos son
frases derivadas del argot del béisbol.
El estudio refleja que los campos semánticos más comunes son: el deporte, la ropa,
palabras técnicas, la comida, el transporte, la casa, términos médicos o relacionados con el
cuerpo, profesiones. El deporte ocupa el primer puesto con un 25,7% de los lemas
anglicados. Este tipo de estudio por campos semánticos es crucial para interpretar el grado
de influencia sociolingüística que el inglés norteamericano pudo haber tenido en el español
cubano. Los pasatiempos, la tecnología, y la moda son en efecto los campos a los que
pertenecen la mayoría de las unidades compiladas.
~ 12 ~
Resumen
El número de coloquialismos alcanza la cifra de 137 variantes léxico semánticas,

que representa casi el 13% de los significados revisados. Esta cifra confirma la relevancia
sociolingüística de los préstamos en sociolectos bajos en el caso del español cubano.
La inclusión de formas obsoletas en un estudio de este tipo permite analizar el
cambio semántico diacrónicamente y describir el proceso de anglización con más
precisión. El número de lemas con voces obsoletas es 73, la mayoría de las cuales se
relacionan con la moda y los pasatiempos: baby shower, bride maid, maid of honor. El
análisis de evolución de estas variantes léxico-semánticas a través de períodos históricos
concretos me ha permitido ejemplificar con más claridad los conceptos de cambio
semántico y obsolescencia léxica.
Algunas expresiones son equivalentes semánticamente en ambos idiomas, en
términos de sociolecto y registro: cana ‘prisión’ < can, amarillo ‘cobarde’ < yellow, barato
‘vulgar o mal educado’ < cheap, palanca ‘una persona con influencia que se utiliza para
alcanzar un resultado deseado’ < leverage. Esta coincidencia es poco frecuente, y estos
ejemplos contrastan con otros en los que la estructura semántica ha sufrido variaciones
pragmáticas de importancia: bacha ‘una fiesta íntima muy ruidosa’ < batch, bonche ‘un
fiesta callejera’ < bunch.
Algunos de los lemas constituyen préstamos culturales en potencia ya que no sólo
son formas lingüísticamente asimiladas por la lengua de llegada, sino que también añaden
novedad cultural e innovación: Santa Claus, boy-scouts. Además de cubrir cierto vacío
cultural, estas formas describen la naturaleza referencial de los préstamos con más
exactitud.
Un análisis contrastivo entre el español cubano y el peninsular muestra la existencia
de homógrafos: ace, backup, quaker. Curiosamente, algunos de los lemas denotan procesos
de formación de palabras paralelos en ambas variedades, cuyas estructuras semánticas
difieren considerablemente. Por ejemplo, mientras que bisne y friqui en el español europeo
están semánticamente relacionados con sus parónimos ingleses, business y freaky, las
unidades del español cubano han evolucionado hasta los respectivos significados de
‘negocio ilegal’ y ‘alguien que se opone al gobierno de Fidel Castro’. Este tipo de estudio
contrastivo revela información muy valiosa en lo que se refiere a la evolución semántica y
la connotación, lo cual explicaría el hecho de que estos homógrafos y homófonos poseen
un alto nivel de homonimia y polisemia en el español cubano: background, bluf (o blof) <
bluff.
~ 13 ~
1.3 CONCLUSIONES
El estudio de la relación entre los períodos históricos y el proceso de anglización

representa una característica distintiva de la variedad cubana del español: los cambios o
variaciones semánticas y pragmáticas son visibles a muy corto plazo. Esto permite concluir
que el vínculo entre la inestabilidad social y política, y la asimilación de anglicismos, es
perfectamente tangible, lo cual permite extrapolar este tipo de proceso para explicar las
dimensiones sociolingüísticas del préstamo.
Es quizás la conclusión más palpable el hecho de que el proceso de anglización en
el español cubano ha sido más importante de lo que se pensaba. Si tenemos en cuenta que
sólo a nivel diferencial se han detectado más de novecientos lemas, sin contar las unidades
globalizadas que comparte la variedad cubana con otras variedades del español. Aunque el
uso de términos especializados denote un sociolecto alto, el análisis de los datos demuestra
que los coloquialismos anglicados son numerosos, por lo cual no se podría establecer
preferencias de patrones anglicados según los registros de la lengua.
Como ocurre en el español peninsular, la variedad cubana es más propensa a
incorporar anglicismos que calcos. Curiosamente, los periódicos de la isla del período
revolucionario, acuden al calco con más frecuencia, es decir, la sustitución de unidades
derivadas del inglés por unidades españolas. Una de las conclusiones que se desprenden de
este aspecto es que los términos especializados se caracterizan por mantener préstamos
directos no adaptados: backup, dugout, gingham, jingle, mientras que aquellos préstamos
asimilados en el argot popular sufren una adaptación fonética u ortográfica, o un proceso
de calco.
La confección del glosario y el corpus ha permitido extraer información valiosísima
sobre el proceso de anglización en el español de Cuba. Como no ha sido posible realizar la
compilación de datos in situ, tuve que establecer un procedimiento de varias etapas para
recopilar la mayor cantidad de datos posible. Así que hubo dos etapas fundamentales: la
recopilación de datos y el análisis de los mismos, lo cual facilitó la consecución del
proceso investigador. Estas etapas podrían ser igualmente útiles para continuar
enriqueciendo el glosario actual, y de esta manera, llegar a conclusiones más concretas
sobre el proceso de formación de palabras derivadas del inglés.
Sin duda alguna, el estudio global del proceso de anglización en el español cubano
refleja la complejidad del proceso, desde el punto de vista sociolingüístico y pragmático.
La elaboración de un glosario diferencial y su correspondiente análisis muestra una
~ 14 ~
Resumen
reconocida asimilación de estructuras derivadas del inglés. La mayor aportación del

estudio realizado es quizás la creación de una base de datos y análisis íntegro que permita
continuar investigaciones análogas en el futuro, sobre todo, con respecto al complejo
proceso de anglización en el español cubano.
~ 15 ~
Introduction
2. INTRODUCTION
Don Manuel, viejo guajiro a La Habana ha regresado.

No la había visto más desde hacía treinta años.
Pero al ver La Habana de hoy, Don Manuel quedó asombrado:
aquello le parecía territorio americano.
Vio carteles que decían hotdog, cocktail, beauty parlor,
grocery, parking, nightclub, picking chicken, up and down.
La gente decía thank you, good bye, so long, I beg your pardon.
(“La Habana de Ayer”, Luis Carbonell, 1988)
The processes of word formation, particularly those describing lexical borrowing and
language contact, have continuously puzzled lexicologists and lexicographers. The
complexity portrayed by a loanword or calque denotes an ever-increasing need to study the
phenomenon more closely, and to widen the spectrum of fields involved, e.g. sociology,
psychology, anthropology, etc. By depicting, classifying and illustrating these phenomena,
specialists are provided with effective tools to have a better understanding of
sociolinguistic concepts, and to assist translators in their painstaking process of finding
accurate lexical and syntactic equivalence.
Spanish, due to its extensive geographical spread, has necessarily come into contact
with other neighboring languages like English, French, or Portuguese. It was precisely the
Spanish colonization of the Americas and the prominent range of linguistic variants across
the continent, that has led to paralleled dialectal studies of English-induced coinages. The
analysis of the anglicization process in American regions, as opposed to their European
counterparts, sheds more light on the outstanding correlation of language and society, as
far as linguistic borrowing is concerned.
Cuba, being a long-standing Spanish colony and located just 90 miles away from
the United States, represents the concretion of anglicized manners, social standards,
beliefs, and of course, language. Likewise, the shifting socio-economic conditions on the
~ 17 ~
island have resulted in an unprecedented display of sociolinguistic phenomena, especially

in terms of semantic change and sociolects.
The coinage of anglicisms and calques in Cuban Spanish has been widely
recognized (Pichardo, 1875; Ortiz, 1974; Cárdenas, 1999; Valdés, 1998, 2001, 2007; Fasla,
2007-2008; Pérez, 2008; López Morales, 1971, 1987, 2003, 2013). Nevertheless, not much
analysis has been attested to the sociolinguistic and lexicographical features of English-
induced loans. Hence, after revising the available research materials, I noticed there existed
a need to study the influence of English, especially American English, on the Cuban
variant of Spanish more thoroughly, and to elaborate a corpus, and its corresponding
glossary, of differential Cuban anglicisms and calques. A more detailed review of the
sections this study consists of is provided below.
The third chapter is aimed to provide a brief historical account of the influence of
English on Cuban Spanish. This diachronic study is based on the contributions of English
lexis and North-American lifestyles throughout three relevant periods in Cuban history:
Colonial (from eighteenth century to 1898), Neocolonial (from 1898 to 1959), and Post-
Revolution (from 1959 to present day). Through a comprehensive depiction of
socioeconomic and political conditions, not only are sociolinguistic processes clearly
described but also the evolution of English-induced loans and calques, resulting in relevant
etymological information when examining the lexical units extracted.
The fourth chapter is necessarily involved with the review of state-of-the-art
definitions and concepts referring to the nature of lexical borrowings. This analysis is
crucial to set up what theoretical foundations our research is based on. The concepts
provided are mostly illustrated with Cuban Spanish lexical units, contributing thus to an
indispensable conceptual correlation of definitions and authentic examples. Along with
traditional theories, a brief section has been dedicated to the pragmatic perspective of
borrowing, in particular that of the communicative intentionality of speakers, and the
designation of concepts. By depicting the processes and classifying the collected units
more accurately, the clarity of the present descriptive and corpus-driven research is
assured.
Once a theoretical framework is provided, a normative and descriptive analysis is
needed to understand how the preceding concepts are visible in the Cuban Spanish variant.
Consequently, the fifth chapter is intended to revise the process of English-induced
borrowing in Cuban Spanish, and how anglicizing mechanisms have influenced the oft-
~ 18 ~
Introduction
quoted linguistic levels. This section is conceived to synthesize what sorts of anglicizing
patterns or variations are liable to occur in the levels of phonetics, morphology, syntax and
semantics. Further attention has also been paid to the fields of graphemic changes and
word-building processes. This is complemented by an examination into the sociolinguistic
shifting of these units, which might provide a clear-cut picture of the speakers’ attitude
towards the use of anglicisms, stylistic or diaphasic variations, or semantic modifications
undergone by the lexico-semantic variants compiled.
A systemic analysis of anglicisms and calques of this type contributes to
comprehend both linguistic processes and units in an anglicizing context. An individual
section has been devoted to the realm of baseball in Cuban Spanish. A number of distinct
and productive mechanisms of word formation reveal the importance of this sport in the
anglicization process.
The sixth chapter deals with the concept of pseudo-anglicism in detail. A
compendium of definitions is provided, as well as the criteria used in the recognition of
English-induced pseudo-loans. The study of these units represents a novel field within the
area of linguistic borrowing, which is largely related to an array of processes, e.g.
metonymy, homonymy, eponymy, generic trademark, toponymy, etc. Therefore, the
typology depicted in this section is wide-ranging and complex, consistently stemming from
the prior mechanisms outlined. Since this research, on the whole, is chiefly aimed to relate
linguistic borrowing and social pragmatics, the analysis of sociolinguistic motivations and
semantic evolution has also been drawn so as to discern the sociolinguistic sources of
pseudo-loans.
Owing to the recognizably high number of anglicisms of Cuban-American Spanish
origin, the fifth chapter aims to examine the peculiarities of this variant of Spanish, largely
located in south Florida. This brief analysis is based on the historical and socio-cultural
features of this long-existing community in the United States, the concept of Spanglish,
and the processes of lexical, syntactic and semantic borrowing. In addition, this section is
intended to study the phenomenon of code-switching according to the functionality of the
language, which might clarify the origins of code-switching, tag-switching, bilingualism
and linguistic borrowing.
One distinctive feature of this chapter relies on the exceptional parallelism outlined
between the two variants of Spanish, i.e. Cuban Spanish and Cuban American Spanish.
Being exposed to English at visibly different degrees, this study could be advantageous to
~ 19 ~
decipher the process of code-switching and linguistic borrowing more exhaustively. These
fine-grained considerations are fundamental to understand the corpus-driven lexico-
semantic variants, and their etymologies, morphological structure and/or semantic
variations.
The seventh chapter concerns the elaboration and analysis of a differential Cuban
Spanish glossary of anglicisms and calques. This practical stage of the research constitutes
the most convenient means to examine these lexical units more closely. The information
provided by the anglicized lemmas are related to lexical frequency, graphemic or semantic
variations, sociolinguistic connotations, and more importantly, differentiating lexico-
semantic features, as opposed to European Spanish’s anglicization and calquing processes.
These findings result from a multiple-stage process of data collection and analysis,
which is depicted in detail throughout the chapter. Furthermore, the methodological
framework described and the corpus-driven glossary are paramount to get acquainted with
the data portrayed. The Cuban Spanish glossary, which is found in the Annexes, represents
the primary source of information of this project, providing the reader with both an in-
depth description of the lemmas and contextual support.
The data analysis stage involves quantitative and qualitative considerations,
entailing a morpho-syntactic and semantic examination of the lemmas attested, and a
general classification of the information gathered, according to the concepts and definitions
pre-established in earlier chapters. This section is also conceived to study the phenomenon
of cultural borrowing more comprehensively, and to provide definitions and illustrations to
ascertain the coinage of these loans in languages in contact.
A brief section within this chapter is devoted to a contrastive analysis between
Cuban Spanish and European Spanish, leading to setting up variations in spelling,
pronunciation, semantics and pragmatic information. By contrasting loanwords and
calques, not only are similarities and disparities studied but also the process of
anglicization in two variants of the same language, shedding more light to the
sociolinguistic and dialectological perspectives of borrowing.
This chapter also includes a brief account of anglicized personal names and
toponyms in Cuban Spanish, with the aim of pointing out the singularities of these
camouflaged forms in the language. Though largely excluded from the glossary, their
existence is bound to be attested and examined.
~ 20 ~
Introduction
In summary, this research embodies the need to study English-induced linguistic

borrowings more profoundly, which inevitably entails the elaboration of a glossary, and the
resulting description of lemmas and lexico-semantic-variants. Along with the linguistic
depiction, a historical and sociolinguistic analysis of the anglicization process is required
to understand the processes of borrowing and code-switching more fully.
~ 21 ~
Anglicisms in Cuban Spanish: a historical account
3. ANGLICISMS IN CUBAN SPANISH: A HISTORICAL ACCOUNT
3.1 THE INEVITABLE ASCENT OF ENGLISH
The dominance of the English language over other in-contact languages, to a lesser or
greater degree, has undoubtedly prevailed over the last two hundred years. Thus, a number
of twentieth-century linguists have foreseen the anglicization of Spanish lexis and syntax:
Alfaro (1948), Seco (1977), López Morales (1971), Lope Blanch (1972), Lorenzo (1996).
It is an unquestionable fact the way English has become the language of commerce and
technology, and a vibrant international lingua franca, whose influence scope is in some
cases regarded as a threat to other languages and local cultures (cf. Mallo, 1954),
especially in developing countries.
The earliest extralinguistic factors, recognized to be highly influential, date as far
back as the defeat of the Franco-Spanish fleet in Trafalgar in 1805, the Battle of Waterloo
in 1815, and the economic and political splendor undergone in England during the reign of
Victoria I. The industrialization era and the politically influencing British Empire extended
to Spain and the American Spanish-speaking regions, in which navigation and trading
terms were chiefly loaned: the names of cardinal points, ron < rum, monis < money,
tiquete > ticket, corte ‘courtroom’ < court (Montes, 1987: 177). “In the nineteenth
century, coinciding with the emergence of Britain as a world power, English began to exert
a significant influence on Spanish as it did on other European languages, and this influence
increased as time went on, with English replacing French as the main source of foreign
loans” (Rodríguez, 2002: 128 ).
Nevertheless, it was the recently-founded North American nation of the United
States of America, which truly wielded its emerging economic and political significance
over its neighboring American countries. Throughout the twentieth century, the English
language, particularly the North American variant, was responsible for transmitting and
~ 23 ~
spreading newly-coined words, especially those in relation with technology, economics,

politics, and social traits. American Spanish-speaking countries have ever since undergone
a tremendous process of linguistic intrusiveness, which has variably been assimilated by
the Spanish language in conjunction with the geographical and socio-political features of
the countries involved. “Pero ahora se halla la lengua de las naciones hispánicas
amenazada por otra invasión deformante y desnaturalizadora, la de los anglicismos,
producida por la acción del inglés de los Estados Unidos y derivada de la influencia
económica y cultural de este gran país” (Mallo, 1959: 115). {Nowadays Hispanic nations
are threatened by another deforming and distorting invasion, the one concerning
anglicisms, caused by the action of American English and brought about by the economic
and cultural influence of this great nation}.
Not all Latin-American regions, as far as their geographical and historical
characteristics are concerned, are expected to be influenced equally by English. The
Antilles and Mexico are obviously the regions in which this linguistic phenomenon is more
clearly perceived (Valdés, 2001a: 110). Needless to say that those bordering North-
American territories (New Mexico, Florida, California, etc.) convey a clear-cut, two-way
linguistic borrowing, leading to both an anglicization of Spanish and a hispanization, or
romanization, of English, i.e. Spanglish.
3.2 CUBA AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (COLONIAL PERIOD)
From a diachronic perspective, the contribution of English lexis to Cuban-Spanish was

nearly inexistent in the eighteenth century, not even during the eleven-month occupation of
Havana by the British (1762-1763). According to the cabildo1’s minutes revised, scribes
didn’t need to resort to anglicisms to depict Havana’s sceneries and endeavors at the time,
even though economic and cultural activities were fully in the invaders’ hands (Valdés
Bernal, 2001a: 110).
Despite the absence of anglicisms and lack of willingness to loan these lexical
elements into Spanish, there existed certain Spanish-based utterances describing the
attitude of the invaders in a humorous way. One example that has remained until these
days is trabajar para el inglés ‘working for the Englishman’, which implies the
unprofitable nature of such an economic activity. However, those who are in contact with
South Florida Spanglish, particularly Cubonics, will spot this eighteenth-century utterance
A former Cuban municipal administrative unit governed by a council.

1
~ 24 ~
among those Cuban-Americans whose English calques of Cuban Spanish sayings seem to
be increasingly common.
Meanwhile, a young North-American nation, comprised of thirteen English
colonies in its earlier years, was naturally lured by the geographically nearby and wealthy
Cuban city, especially those who lived under Spanish governance in Florida. Smuggling
and trafficking of goods were especially common between Florida and Havana. This was
the beginning of progressively growing commercial ties between these two territories, and
the preface to bittersweet times of cultural and linguistic assimilation.
The United States represented an economic revelation for Cuban settlers,
particularly those interested in establishing new trade routes. The reason relied on the
short-distance and low-cost nature of the journeys needed (Valdés Bernal, 2001a: 112).
Europe, on the other hand, was regarded as a risky trade partner, whose geographic
location involved costly goods packaging and transportation.
Fearing independence outbreaks, Madrid would successively prohibit Cuban
settlers from trading with non-Spanish ships. Yet Capitanes Generales (Governor-
Generals) on the island disobeyed, since they were more inclined towards strengthening
trade ties with the North-Americans. Consequently, in the early nineteenth century the
economic dependence of Cuba on the United States was getting molded, leading to
subsequent influxes of social standards, and let alone an irreversible linguistic loaning.
The social and economic repercussions of the Spanish foreign affairs were felt in
Cuba. Due to continuous confrontations with other European powers, especially the
Napoleonic occupation of the country (1808-1813), and the independence warlike
outbreaks taking place all along the South-American territories, Spain needed to take
further measures to find new sources of income. Therefore, Cuba was immersed in a free
trade area, which was meant to bring about not only prosperity for the Spanish settlers both
on the island and on the peninsula, but also for the North-American entrepreneurs, eager to
foster commerce and navigation.
The openness of the island to the empowering Northern neighbor also raised
Cubans’ awareness of the technological advances made in the new nation. Islanders felt
appealed to the American standards of living and how a freshly-established economic order
was run. From this period on, the relations between Cuba and the United States were direct
and non-stop. The progress made by the American people, their customs, and their
pastimes started to influence the Cubans (Portell, 1938: 199).
~ 25 ~
Manufacturing and industrial production were significantly developed by the

freshly economic dealings. During the second half of the nineteenth century, the value of
manufactured goods increased sevenfold, and the number of factories quadrupled, and
industrial capital increased fourfold (Pérez, 2008: 65).
The Cuban market was flooded by American products, and Cuban exports reached
a highest volume of operations. It was precisely the United States which benefitted most
from the free trade agreement in Cuba. From 1818, the annexation to the US was seen as
an indispensable means to ensure the economic control of the prosperous island (López
Segrera, 1989: 45). It has been estimated that between 1841 and 1860, 80 percent of all
merchant maritime transportation in Cuba was handled by U.S. merchant ships, and in
1868, the United States was receiving 82 percent of all Cuban exports (Cervantes-
Rodríguez, 2010: 107). This flow of commodities, ideas, information and technology
resulted in higher political contributions and involvement between both nations.
The number of Americans living in Cuba doubled in one year: from 1,260
inhabitants in 1863 to 2,500 in 1864. Aspirations and motivations were shifting under the
era of modernity: the ambition of any youngster seemed to be to go to el Norte whereas
women considered the United States a dream country, where life and freedom were fully
enjoyed (Hazard, 2007: 86). Curiously, the toponym of el Norte has long-lived, and it is
still used to refer to North-America, regardless of the political connotations that might have
overruled its original sense. The expanding economic trade between the two nations was
reflected in the growing presence of Americans in the island. “Although a number of
Cubans had acquired U.S. citizenship (and, therefore, it would be inaccurate to state that all
U.S. citizens living in Cuba lacked Cuban ancestry), a growing number of U.S. citizens
with no Cuban ancestry arrived on the island in the last decades of the nineteenth century”
(Cervantes-Rodríguez, 2010: 135). There was an array of occupations the American
settlers were mostly involved with: technicians and professionals (engineers and chemists);
others represented or owned enterprises on the island; others were simply investors in real
estate.
Equally significant was the way Cubans were in flight, and never before had they
fled in such large numbers. Between the 1860s and the 1890s, tens of thousands of Cubans
emigrated north, an astounding exodus that confirmed the proximity of intercourse
between both nations. “In 1892 a Senate Committee on Immigration estimated that
between 50,000 and 100,000 persons traveled annually between Cuba and the US. During
~ 26 ~
the latter third of the 19th century, hundreds of thousands of Cubans moved constantly back
and forth between the island and the US mainland to vacation, work, live, and plot
revolution” (Pérez, 2006: 37).
In short, the nineteenth century was crucial in the formation of Cuban nationality
and language. Not only was immigration decisive in the sociolinguistic anglicization of the
island, but also in the undertaking of American habits and standards, denoting thus the
consolidation of a long-term process of cultural and social assimilation, particularly
observed in subsequent periods.
It was sport, without doubt, which really accentuated the assimilation of English-
based lexical units. Boxing, horse-riding, and more importantly baseball, contributed
greatly to the import of the highest terminological word stock of all: uppercut, ring, inning,
catcher, etc. Never before had such a massive influx of loanwords entered Cuban Spanish
so rapidly and dispersedly, as some of the most important Havana-based weeklies show: El
Sport, El Base-Ball, El Sportsman Habanero, El Club, La Pelota, El Pitcher, El Catcher,
El Score, and El Pelotero. Even some of these periodicals or magazines are preferably
named in English in conjunction with the current assimilation process. Nothing in baseball
was translated. In 1881, El Base-Ball published a glossary describing baseball terms, in
which terms and moves were clarified to readers; not even definitions could escape from
English usage: “foul ball (pelota que al ser golpeada se dirige al terreno ‘foul’)” (Pérez,
2008: 78).
This borrowing process was continuously productive, and some of the lexical units
underwent further lexical-phonological variation: fielder < fildeador < jardinero (a player
who is in the field while another player is batting); base-ball < béisbol < pelota. These
units have co-existed throughout specific stages of Cuban history, and their preference of
usage mostly depended on the extralinguistic factors.
In the mid- and late nineteenth century, various Cuban newspapers and magazines
were clearly influenced by those American standards, and they served to exemplify how
North-America would hold sway over Cuban sport, cultural, literary and social life. El
Sport, whose title is, in and of itself, a lexical borrowing would portray valuable
information on the extent of how printed Cuban Spanish was a reflection of the social
standards shifting. Its 1888 edition (No. 14, III) shows sport-related terms, in reference
with hunting (bull’s eye, American target, score); horse-riding (jockey, practicar el turf);
navigation (yacht, steam yacht, sportsman, scull, beam); baseball (base-ball, which in time
~ 27 ~
derived in béisbol). Sport borrowings are certainly one of the most important sources of
loaned lexical units in Cuban Spanish, thus proving the high-levelled awareness of these
sports and their terminology.
English began to enter into constructs of class and status. European clothing
fashion and mannerism was no longer in vogue. The utterance of “ok” and the act of
chewing gum, for example, denoted a symbolism of modernity and personal aspirations. In
Leonela (1893), a Cuban novel by Nicolás Heredia, one of the characters (John
Valdespina), who returns to the island after many years of residence in the US, blindsides
residents by behaving so yankee.
Needless to say that Spanish language, as a mirror of the technological and
scientific laggardness of the Iberian metropolis, was in want to resort to various technical
lexical units, borrowed from England, the United States, France and Germany, in which an
industrialization era was, on the other hand, being brewed. Even José Martí, on the grounds
of the necessary and unstoppable terminological borrowing, complemented the work of
Néstor Ponce de León, author of Diccionario terminológico inglés-español y español-
inglés, in 1883 (Valdés, 2001a: 123): “Hambre e invierno son padres de ciencias. Por lo
que no hay que buscar en castellano muchos vocablos científicos; y el industrioso erudito
cubano Néstor Ponce de León hace bien en injerir con discreción y propiedad la lengua
corriente y necesaria de la industria y el comercio en el idioma español, para expresar los
estados del alma muy propio y rico”. {Hunger and winter are the parents of science. There
is no need to create in Castilian numerous scientific terms; and the industrious Cuban
scholar Néstor Ponce de León does it well by ingesting correctly and discretely the
common and necessary language of the industry and commerce in the Spanish language, to
express the states of the soul, suitable and rich}. By correctly and discretely, J. Martí
probably meant the graphemic and phonetic adaptation of the new English-derived lexico-
semantic variants.
The increasingly economic dependence of Cuba on the United States, especially
during the peace period between 1878 and 1995, was equally accompanied by a number of
American land-ownership investors, whose anglicizing footprints are still palpable
nowadays by their alterations of place names, e.g. Wajay < Guajay (native g was replaced
by Anglosaxon w); Kawama < Caguama (c replaced by k).
According to Valdés (2001a: 120), the influx of anglicisms at that time was still far
smaller, in comparison to gallicisms: In the Diccionario Provincial (1875), Pichardo only
~ 28 ~
registered 6 anglicisms as opposed to 36 gallicisms. The anglicisms referred to before are:

bifteq (< beefsteak), bloque (< block), brandi, bul-dog, yanqui, yin (< gin). Based on the
first data collected from nineteenth-century publications, the number of anglicisms could
have been higher than the one listed by dictionaries. Presumably, those anglicisms being
merely terminological (yacht, baseball, jockey, etc.), keeping its phonetic and morpho-
syntactic traits unadapted, or possibly conveying specific paradigmatic features (register,
sociolect), would have been a solid reason to be ruled out.
As to the sociolinguistic influence of North-America on Cuban literature, the
character of North-Americans (or yanquis) was assimilated by humorous one-act farces to
depict comical situations in a progressively mixed society. Hereafter a sketchy list of the
most outstanding ones: El novio de mi mujer (1842), by José Agustín Millá; Debajo del
tamarindo (1861), by Bartolomé Crespo; Caneca torero (1891), by José Ma. De Quintana;
and El proceso del oso (1882), by Ramón Morales. Those yanquis appearing in the plays
utter anglicism-sprinkled speeches, conveying grammatical interferences and linguistic
incoherence:
Mr. Denton
Do you speak English?
What do you come for;
Usted no entender ingles.
Esa caballera estar en la equivocación…
Él entrar en mi room.
Mr. Burton
¡Oh, carramba, venca un abrazo!
Not only were one-act farces penetrated by a number of anglicisms, but also
modernist and romantic Cuban writers, e.g. José María Heredia, in its famous Oda al
Niágara: “Yo digno soy de contemplarte: siempre lo común y mezquino desdeñando, ansié
por lo terrífico y sublime”. Terrífico is a clear-cut example of semantic borrowing; its
sense is closer to the English word terrific meaning great, incredible. What is not precise is
whether that anglicism was acquired on the island or during his forced exile in North-
America.
One of the most interesting phenomena registered in glossaries and dictionaries at
the time was the building of reduplications, which were mostly derived from English or
~ 29 ~
Amerindian words. Esteban Pichardo’s Diccionario provincial casi razonado de vozes y

frases cubanas (1875) includes some of these English-derived lexical reduplications:
luculucu ‘to look or to watch’ < to look; guasi-guasi ‘to wash’ < to wash; pisipisi ‘to piss’
< to piss; tifitifi ‘to steal’ < thief; napinapi ‘to sleep’ < to nap. López Morales (1971: 39-
40) also refers to other reduplications of this type registered in the 1836 edition of
Pichardo’s Dictionary and F. Ortiz’s Los negros esclavos: estudio sociológico y de derecho
público (1916): meri-meri ‘to be drunk’ < merry; soqui-soqui ‘to fornicate’ < to suck.
Linguistically speaking, these reduplications were intended to intensify the meanings
of verbs, adjectives and adverbs, and they are still in existence in colloquial Cuban Spanish
(Perl, 1988: 64). The origin of these English-derived duplications might have been a
standardized lexicon used among slave traders, who were as well strongly influenced by
the Portuguese language due to its control of slave routes on the Eastern coast of Africa
and the Caribbean colonies. Some lexical traits were occasionally found between the
bozal2 language in Cuba and the creole languages in the rest of the Caribbean territories.
The choice of English reduplications was basically a reflection of the empowered English
and North-American slave traders, who would provide these colonies with a considerable
number of slaves, and consequently their bozal trading lexicon.
3.3 CUBA AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (NEOCOLONIAL PERIOD)
Unquestionably, it was the intervention of the United States in the Cuban-Spanish war
(1895-1898) that established a historical turning point as to the influence of the English
language in Cuban Spanish. The progressive borrowing and calque processes would be
irreversibly fostered by the imposition of new extralinguistic features: the absolute
economic and political dependence of Cuba on the United States; and the completion of
invasive American ways of living, only paralleled with the late-twentieth-century
globalization process.
One of the first linguistic disruptions carried out by the new American authorities
on the island was to issue a decree to impose the learning process of English inasmuch
teachers needed to be prepared to teach elementary English, according to the ‘Decreto de
las escuelas primarias y superiores de Cuba’, published in Gaceta de La Habana on
December 6, 1899 (Valdés, 2001a: 136). Many Cuban teachers were as well dispatched to
(muzzle in English): language used by Africa-born slaves.

2
~ 30 ~
Harvard University and schools in New York to become better acquainted with up-to-date
educational methods (Fairford, 1926: 25).
The American political strategies were oriented to guarantee and favor the
economic intervention, since annexation was regarded as a threat by many Americans,
particularly with regard to competitiveness and price. Consequently, President W.
Mckinley (1897-1901) took all the necessary steps to have Cuba be subject to the United
States by establishing an ‘independent’ republic, and thus everyone was satisfied: those
who wanted to strengthen American economic dominance on the island, and those who
rejected the annexation. By 1907, there were already in Cuba a total of 13,000 American
settlers, whose possessions and investments were worth fifty million pesos (cf. Guerra,
1958).
An evident illustration of the Americanization of identity and language is observed
on the Isle of Pines (Isla de la Juventud), in which an estimated 4,850 registered US
property owners claimed to own more than half of the island. Even new communities were
modeled in a physical and toponymic fashion after American towns: Columbia, McKinley,
Palm Grove, Westport, San Francisco Heights, Santa Barbara Heights. “English became
the dominant language and US currency the medium of exchange (…) Two weekly
newspapers were published in English: the Isle of Pines Appeal, the Isle of Pines News”
(Pérez, 2008: 110).
A social influx that might have had as well a linguistic impact on Cuban Spanish
(clearly on a lesser degree than the Americans) was the arrival of Jamaicans, whose
population in the Eastern part of Cuba was promoted. Jamaicans were somehow preferred
over Haitians due to their cultural level, their condition of being British citizens, and last
but not least, their being English-speaking cheap labor. The latter represented a significant
socio-linguistic condition, which led to a lesser social discrimination (Valdés, 2001b: 140).
Some historical documents of the time, especially those depicting Cuba as a
melting pot before the eyes of Anglo-Saxon travelers, would stress out the coexistence of
Spanish-speaking citizens with English ones: “Today, the population of Cuba (2,045,000)
is composed of Spaniards, Cubans, Americans, English, Canadians, Germans, Chinese and
several other nationalities” (Fairford, 1926: 23).
Even though the Americanization of Cuban society was a fact, the degree of such a
process affected social groups in a different manner. While middle and upper classes
embraced these new American standards naturally, intellectuals were against this invasive
~ 31 ~
process. “It is not so trivial as many foolish people believe but, on the contrary,
profoundly affects the future of the Cuban people, whose first sign of doom and ruin will
surely be first the corruption and later the complete disappearance of their language.” 3
Even though a remnant part of society still minds the corruption of the language, it
was inevitable that the Cuban variant of Spanish was being flooded by numerous
superfluous borrowings, defining the Republican times as the most productive in terms of
English-derived lexical borrowings and calques.
Another significant sociological feature of that period was that the emerging
bourgeoisie was inclined to embrace the fetishist American consumerism. Thus, “the
Cuban language would undergo the impact of this dissemination: beauty parlors, canasta
parties, baby showers, country clubs, business academies, etc.” (López Segrera, 1989:
185). The bourgeoisie was most likely to consume both American material products and
cultural works, which explains the disconnection existing between the Cuban bourgeois
and national identity. One significant aftermath of the lack of identity conveyed and of
empathy within the bourgeoisie was “an intense intra-class conflict” (Padula, 74: 8), which
resulted in the social pressure to climb up to the upper social stratum, “fostered by intense
American-style advertising, and by the knowledge that it was possible indeed to get
ahead.”
Simultaneously to the new technological era, newer Cuba-based companies had
English names, probably in an attempt to gain more credibility from scratch: Cuban
Telephone Company, Cuba Lumber Company, Havana Construction Company, the Regla
Iron Works Company, the Cuban Electrical Supply Company, etc. So did a number of
shops, department stores, or retailers, whose names were subsequently kept in the
vernacular to refer to the buildings where they were once based in: Sears (pronounced
/sía/), Tent Cent (pronounced /tensén/), Harris Brothers, etc. Besides, the escalating
number of American tourists visiting the island (between 1920 and 1940 more than two
million visited Cuba, to a record 356,000 in 1957) encouraged many Cuban and American
investors to establish bars, clubs, and hotels, whose names were originally conceived in
English: the Albany Hotel, Lincoln Hotel, Vanderbilt Hotel, Hotel Packard, Hotel Cecil,
Hotel Biscuit, Hotel Bristol, Hotel Palace, Hotel Boston; Dirty Dick’s, Hollywood Cabaret,
Diario de la Marina, June 19, 1901, p. 2; Juan Antonio Barinaga to Editor, September 20, 1900. (In Pérez,
3
2008: 149)
~ 32 ~
Pennsylavania, Johnny’s Dream Club, Tally-Ho, High Seas, Skippy’s Hideaway, Turf
Club, etc. (cf. Roberts, 1950).
The proliferation of English language reached newspapers and magazines, almost
as many as Cubans had published in the US. The leading Havana dailies (La Lucha, La
Discusión, and Diario de la Marina) published English-language sections. The media
turned into a first-hand loanword showroom, through which a significant number of these
lexical units were silently coming in unnoticed into Cuban Spanish. Thus, grocery was
preferred over bodega; collector over coleccionista; hall instead of pasillo; market instead
of mercado; etc. Now Cuban residents were becoming more familiar with the English
language, and what it implied: sophistication and la jai (high life). “English-language
words entered Spanish as a function of social relationships, particularly unequal power
relationships. Use of English words and phrases was to be taken as evidence of acceptance
and adaptation, but it also served as proof of sophistication” (Pérez, 2008: 377).
This is probably one of the most noteworthy features of English-derived loanwords
in Cuban Spanish: English turned from novelty and intrusiveness back in colonial times,
into the language of classiness and obligation in neocolonial times. Not only was Cuban
Spanish word-stock enriched by technological inventions, brands, and pastimes, but also
by a major semantic shifting of anglicisms in the language. These lexical units were no
longer deeply alienated by intellectuals and publications, in an attempt to protect the
language from linguistic corruptions. This time, as post-colonial periodicals show,
English-derived loanwords are more likely to be assimilated, to be used as a ‘sophisticated
touch of modernity’, not as an oft-quoted italicized word, implying a disruption of the
language.
Not surprisingly, English was the means to success. “English was the route to
advantage and advancement” (Pérez, 2008: 150). Due to a swelling demand of English-
speaking personnel, a great deal of language schools or academias increased abruptly, as
well as a growing number of ‘English spoken here’ all over large cities, implying the rising
correlation between speaking English fluently and finding a job. Consequently, education
in English was progressively gaining importance in neocolonial times due to work
requirements and social standards. Primary schools were intended to provide students with
three or four courses of English. The creation of the Universidad Católica de Santo Tomás
de Villanueva in 1946 meant the peak of the relation of higher learning institutions and
English inasmuch some of its lectures and courses were rather conducted in English.
~ 33 ~
Some of the assimilation channels used by anglicisms to penetrate into Spanish

language (which could be easily applied to neocolonial times in Cuba) have been
summarized by José J. Montes (1982: 111): 1) “daily press through hasty pseudo-
translations made by news agencies, careless translations of English articles and books,
film dubbing containing many syntactic and semantic calques”. 2) new inventions keeping
their English names (or conveying figures of synecdoche), e.g. frízer < freezer, frigidaire,
colcrím < cold cream; fab or ase (detergent brands). 3) those people who spend some time
working or studying in English-speaking places and come back with ‘anglicanized habits’
of speech. 4) the mentality of authorities who would find the introduction of anglicisms
elegant and cutting-edge: lounge, meeting, doméstico.
In addition to the above-mentioned channels, there existed powerful economic
interests, which were responsible for a remarkable number of anglicisms. These lexical
units were assimilated through massive publicity campaigns that are noticeable in old
Havana’s photographs and publications at the time (Bohemia, Rosendo, Ellas, Diario de la
Marina, La Nación, etc.). Not a single corner of Havana or its most popular written
publications escaped the flooding of English-speaking publicity and social references:
delivery, baby-shower, buffet-supper, irombeer, drink, cocktail, party, yacht, lounge,
beauty fashion show, camp-fire, etc. The wealthiest social stratum was targeted, and their
response relied on a deeper assimilation of the American way of life: English words and
utterances turned into a symbol of wealth and social empowering.
The first half of the twentieth century also witnessed the continuity of an invasive
wave of anglicisms, already started in late nineteenth century, taken from American
pastimes: baseball (béisbol, pitcher, quetcher < catcher, jonrón < home-run, inning, bola <
ball); boxing (boxeo, noquear < knock); tennis (tenis ‘sport shoes’, raqueta, match, net).
This lexical assimilation of sport-like units was the product of a cultural assimilation
starting as early as the first decades of the twentieth century, in which cricket, tennis, golf
and baseball was played everywhere in Havana (Fairford, 1926: 24).
The existence of English-speaking towns has been registered by travel-guide
writers at the time, who dared not hide their amazement before such a surrealistic scenery;
“Hershey, twenty-eight miles by rail from Casa Blanca on the east side of Havana Harbor.
This is the sugar central of a North American company which has operated in Cuba for a
generation or two. The trip is enjoyed by tourists because they are greeted in English and
made to feel thoroughly at home” (Roberts, 1950: 271).
~ 34 ~
It is thought that continuous migration to the United States started after 1959, but
by the 1950s, “Cuba showed a greater relative importance as a source country of
emigration to the United States. Among the independent republics of Latin America, the
island was second only to Mexico in immigration to the United States. This can be seen in
the number of Cuban immigrants, nonimmigrants, and naturalized persons compared to the
rest of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America between 1950 and 1959”
(Cervantes-Rodríguez, 2010: 147).
In summary, the influx of the English language reached its highest influence over
the Cuban Spanish with the establishment of the so-called Republic at the beginning of the
twentieth century, in parallel with extra-linguistic factors such as the enormous dependence
on the United States’ economy and foreign policy. Geographical proximity, and more
importantly, an irrefutable economic situation of dependency weighed more significantly
over the migration of Americans to the island at the time (Valdés Bernal, 2001b: 150).
According to the percentage of English-speakers throughout the first part of the last
century (0,46 % in 1899, approximately 1,0 % in 1917, and 0,36 % in 1953), there is no
room for doubt that the migration impact was not as meaningful as other dialect variants; it
was rather extralinguistic reasons (economic and political dependence) and not the
presence of migrants as historically referred to as natural language-carriers.
The republican period meant a time of social transition, in which a growing number
of children and adolescents, mainly of the upper and lower strata of the middle class, were
being raised to expect a U.S. education and to live and work the American way. “The North
was where many Cubans went or were expected to go to make something of themselves
and return ‘made’, appropriately formed by the North American experience and prepared
to succeed in Cuba” (Cervantes-Rodríguez, 2010: 150).
From a sociolinguistic perspective, English was in Neocolonial times (1902-1958)
the second language in importance in the country, and the process of anglicization of the
language found an even more favorable situation than French did as early back as the
eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
3.4 CUBA AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (POST-1959 PERIOD)
The triumph of Fidel Castro’s Revolution in 1959 brought about radical changes with
regard to, among other socio-cultural fields, the North-American linguistic ‘penetration’.
In 1961, the relations between the United States and Cuba were interrupted indefinitely by
~ 35 ~
President Eisenhower, and the imposition of an embargo to the island that has prevailed
until today; thus the main source of anglicisms’ acquisitions was seemingly interrupted
(Holešová, 2013). The creation of their own editorial agencies to avoid the oft-quoted
pseudo-translations might have had repercussions on the number of anglicisms imported.
Thus, Cuban Spanish witnessed a different era in which English-induced units, both
already-coined and newly-coined, were likely to undergo semantic variations:
“Nadie puede negar que con el triunfo de la Revolución Cubana, disminuyera

grandemente el uso del idioma inglés oficialmente al sustituir toda una serie de
anglicismos por términos equivalentes en nuestro idioma. Sin embargo, tampoco se
puede negar que, a pesar de los cambios producidos en nuestra sociedad, la influencia
de la lengua inglesa sea fuerte, pues existen otros fenómenos o motivaciones que
coincidan su uso. Así lo demuestra e impone el propio contacto y desarrollo de
determinadas esferas y tecnologías en la actualidad, y en consecuencia, la
incorporación y empleo de palabras como: stress, test, líder, pitcher, show, bar,
barman, block, champú, hit, marketing, ticket, bisté, cake, file, printer, mitin, spray,
zipper, bloumer, coctel, bacon, frigidaire, etc.” (cf. Valdés, 1998). {No-one can deny
the fact after the triumph of the Revolution, the official usage of English decreased
greatly, by replacing those anglicisms by their equivalent words in our language. Yet,
we cannot deny either that, in spite of the changes taking place in our society, the
influence of English remains solid since there exist other motivations leading to its
usage. This is widely proved by the current development and contact of specific fields
and technological advances, and the corresponding acquisition and usage of words:
stress, test, líder, pitcher, show, bar, barman, block, champú, hit, marketing, ticket,
bisté, cake, file, printer, mitin, spray, zipper, blúmer, cóctel, bacon, frigidaire, etc.}
Nevertheless, the coinage of newer anglicisms was palpable through other means of
linguistic assimilation:
➔ An increase in the nmber of Cuban migrants living in the United States, or Cuban-
Americans, who would visit the island regularly and would be direct carriers of
language-contact lexicon and phraseology: estraples ‘an item of clothing’ <
strapless, jeans, shorts, kiss ‘a chocolate delicatessen’, nice, fula ‘stupid, bastard’ <
fool, shopping, parole, llamar para atrás < call back. It is difficult to track down
the etymology of the English-loaned units and calques, but studies have shown that
~ 36 ~
their generalization has taken place during the post-revolutionary period (Holešová,
2013: 44).
➔ The development of tourism, especially in the 90s, has led to an acquisition of a

bulk of English-derived units, e.g. transfer, cigar, tip, resort, voucher, driver. They
have apparently subscribed to tourism-related utterances, but in fact they are
commonly used among Cubans, who deal directly or indirectly with this new
economic sector.
➔ The import of undubbed American materials (films, series, documentaries). The

media have undoubtedly been identified as a potential boosting factor capable of
spreading a globalizing anglophile culture, contributing thus to the growing
increment of anglicisms within our linguistic community (cf. Lorenzo, 1996). Even
though the first decades of the twentieth century were of great importance, the
situation changed drastically after 1959 since “the new sociolinguistic era derived
from this historical point favored the continuous disappearance of many anglicisms,
mostly passed on through the media” (cf. Fasla, 2007-2008: 76). Curiously, Cubans
have always found a way through the consumption of foreign TV materials,
especially from the U.S. These mechanisms vary from the primary copies of
American films and series to a more sophisticated interception of satellite signals
and “their widespread diffusion across neighborhoods” (Cervantes-Rodríguez,
2010: 230). Not only were Cubans exposed to English programs but also to a
plethora of Cuban-American ones, in which Spanglish forms are easily noticed.
Notwithstanding the lack of materials on lexical borrowing in post-1959 period, it is

widely recognized that the number of anglicisms registered in Cuban Spanish is currently
lower than elsewhere in the South-American region. Extra-linguistic factors, e.g. Fidel
Castro’s Revolution, have greatly contributed to diminishing the bulk of systemic units and
shifting their connotational meaning in the learned norm of the language.
Without being too critical towards a changeable pragmatic phenomenon involving
social and political circumstances, there should be objectively remarked a semantic shifting
of the elements studied. Some of the English-derived borrowings and calques listed in our
corpus, especially fresher ones (drinking, laguer, break, tri < three, llegar de fly), are
~ 37 ~
merely regarded as vulgarism or containing antisocialness traits, i.e. a low-register word-

and phrase-bank contrasting with the high sociolect of pre-revolutionary period’s
anglicisms. However, there are studies showing that present-day anglicisms convey a high
level of frequency in high sociolects, with the exception of referential or daily-activity
terms, namely blúmer < bloomers, chanse < chance, cloche < clutch, panqué < pancake,
ponchar < to punch, soya < soy, etc., which are socially scattered regardless of social
stratums and registers (Fasla, 2007-2008: 86). A reminiscence, perhaps, of well-assimilated
English borrowings during the neo-colonial times.
Even though our primary objective is not entirely to draw a diatropic and diastratic
study of these lexical units in Cuban Spanish, a point of interest would be to differentiate,
if possible, their implicit etymology, semantics and pragmatics; in an attempt to gather as
much information as possible on the evolution and variation of lexemes, i.e. lexico-
semantic variants.
It is as well pertinent to point out that these endemic Cuban anglicisms have naturally
co-existed with other imported anglicisms, mostly taken from other Spanish-speaking
countries and through some of the channels described above (beicon < bacon, suéter <
sweater, mouse, mitin < meeting, champú < shampoo, etc.). The so-called par-excellence
borrowings (lifting, drinking, fit-doing) tend to keep the newly-coined words
morphologically and phonologically identical to the original words they are derived from.
In conclusion, post-1959 period is clearly characterized by (1) a continuity of usage
of long-existing anglicisms in the language, especially those having to do with sport,
pastimes, household appliances or furniture, which are evidently too well-assimilated or –
rooted to be disrupted (catao < cut-out, pitcher, frigidaire, etc.); (2) a significant decrease
of the number of these lexical units (exclusive of sport-related terms) used on official
newspapers and magazines, and a return to symbolic italicized words, frequently
accompanied by a rephrasing or explicative utterance; (3) a considerable increase of
tourism-related words, mostly used as differentiating terminology (cigar / tabaco, bus /
guagua); (4) the ever-increasing assimilation of pure loanwords derived from Cuban-
American Spanish, and used in a low-status sociolect, which might explain why most of
these newly-coined words are colloquial or vulgar (drinking, estraples < strapless, money,
brother, bye-bye).
The evolution of English-derived loanwords and calques throughout Colonial, Neo-
colonial, and Post-1959 periods is by far a distinctive feature of Cuban Spanish, in contrast
~ 38 ~
with other variants of Spanish in the region. Geographical proximity, unstable political and
social unrests, and a highly productive capableness of specific sociolects (both high- and
low-status) to assimilate a significant number of loanwords have endowed Cuban Spanish
with an unparalleled sociolinguistic uniqueness.
~ 39 ~
Linguistic borrowing: typology
4. LINGUISTIC BORROWING: TYPOLOGY
4.1 EXPLORING THE PROCESS OF BORROWING
Linguistic borrowings and calques have co-existed with the cultural phenomena of
language contact and transculturation, which implies a more complex underlying linguistic
process involving both linguistic and extralinguistic semes. This process has been hastened
nowadays through globalization, migration, technology and the emergence of a borderless
world.
The study of concepts and definitions referring to the nature of borrowings and
calques is of great importance to establish the theoretical foundation where this project
departs from. The definitions are naturally accompanied with authentic examples of
borrowings and calques, especially taken from Cuban Spanish. A review of present-day
typology is needed to provide our descriptive and corpus-driven research with an updated
theoretical framework. Thus, word-building concepts and processes are more liable to be
singled out.
The problem of conceptualizing the process of linguistic borrowing relies on the
fact that it has clearly focused on the lexical unit, probably because the mainstream
borrowings correspond to the lexical level. A primary formula to describe the borrowing
process has been provided by Rey-Debove (1973: 109-110), which has been detailed as
well by Gómez Capuz (1998: 20):
L2 → L1 for W2 (E + C) (between T and T’)
This synthetized formula conveys the process through which a word (W2) from a
source language (L2) moves towards a target language (L1). W2 consists of a form of
expression (E) and content (C), whose synchronic aspect is limited by two temporal points
~ 41 ~
of reference (T and T’). This conceptual formula sheds some light on the intralinguistic
nature of the process, but it makes no clear reference to extralinguistic factors, i.e.
diastratic and diatopic ones. If we take a look at the words cigar / puro / tabaco / habano in
Cuban Spanish, whose contents coincide but their forms and paradigmatic traits differ:
cigar (lexical borrowing) is an anglicism and it is chiefly used by cigar-smugglers in big
cities; puro (dialect borrowing) is the technical term adopted by Spanish cigar-importers;
tabaco is the referential word par excellence among Cubans; and habano is merely a
synecdochic transference. In sum, regardless of the differences of forms and etymology,
and the exactness of their denotational meanings, their connotational semes are clearly
influenced by socio-cultural, geographical and sociolect factors.
The question of extending the definition of linguistic borrowing beyond the lexical
level has prevailed: L. Deroy (1956: 325-227) shows how phonological and morpho-
syntactical changes are palpable in contact languages, which can also be referred to as
‘mélange ou de fusion de langues’. In Language (1994: 444-445), Bloomfield makes
reference to the so-called ‘cultural borrowing’, which explains the acquisition of speech
forms from the dialects and languages with which the individual and group come into
contact. What seems clear is that the term borrowing is synonymously, and hence
erroneously, paralleled with lexical borrowing, probably led by the visible structure these
units convey, or by the ‘considerably more loosely structured’ nature of the vocabulary of
a given language, compared to its phonemics and grammar (cf. Weinreich, 1953).
Coincidentally, or not, this conceptual discussion is a reminder of the long-existing notion
of word, or lexical unit. What we usually conceive as a word is at times misleading in
terms of the linguistic levels of the language: ish ‘about’ or start from scratch, whose
syntactic functions are easily identifiable within an utterance, reveal morphological or
phraseological features respectively.
Starting from the idea that borrowing should be regarded in its wider sense, it is
necessary to establish the typology based on the levels of the language affected. This
proposal opens up a fresher perspective of the capacity of borrowing to enrich a given
language, and “not as a mere incorrectness in normative terms”; allowing us to diagnose
and study in depth those levels affected most (cf. Gómez, 1997), and thus to have a better
understanding of the oft-quoted ‘sense of adoptability’ of words or linguistic units to be
borrowed (Haugen, 1950: 223-225).
~ 42 ~
Earlier classifications of borrowing, or interference as it was initially called, have

been resorted to (Weinreich, 1953; Haugen, 1950; Humbley, 1974) and complemented by
semantic- and culture-oriented perspectives (Seco, 2000-2001; Rodríguez, 2005; Gómez,
1997). Consequently, the following typology of linguistic borrowing takes into
consideration: 1) the linguistic and formative levels of the language; 2) the dual nature of
the linguistic sign (signifier and signified); 3) the transference of pragmatic traits between
contact languages; 4) the indisputable supremacy of lexical borrowing as the commonest
source of neological enrichment, which explains the existence of subcategories within this
productive level.
Consequently, six global categories can be distinguished as per the normative
depiction of the borrowing process. These categories are isolatedly described to ascertain
how this process might occur in any of the given levels, but these categories are necessarily
symbiotic (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Global Categories in Linguistic Borrowing
Phonological Borrowing (PhB): the loans are chiefly phonological assimilations,

especially anglicized phonemes inexistent in the recipient language: /ʃ/ is especially found
in initial position in some direct loans, such as shopping, chingala < shin-guard.
Lexical Borrowing (LB): the resulting units represent the loans as we know it. It
consists of an array of subcategories, which are described in detail further in this section.
This process might be the product of any of the other borrowing mechanisms combined. Its
result is most likely visible through graphemic and phonemic alterations (if any): ampaya
< umpire, party, elevador < elevator.
~ 43 ~
Morphological Borrowing (MB): this type of borrowing is necessarily dependent on

the loanwords assimilated in the language. Borrowed lexical units are responsible for
morphemic variations and productivity. These bound units are not frequently borrowed,
but occasionally they are used productively in the recipient language: -ing, e.g. puenting,
edredoning, balconing, etc.
Syntactic Borrowing (SB): the alteration of syntax is highly felt by native speakers,
especially when word order, collocates or prepositional phrases are changed. This
borrowed syntax is the product of long-existing language contact or bilingualism, leading
to a loan ‘syntactic framing’ in the recipient language. The degree of syntactic borrowing
of a language is most likely an accurate meter of the intrusiveness level of a foreign
language. Native (or L1) speakers are characterized by being more reluctant to assimilate
foreign structures, since it requires variations of morphological and lexical units combined
within the utterance: déjame traerte agua < let me bring you water.
Semantic Borrowing (SeB): this form of borrowing is clearly represented through the
process of calquing or semantic loan. In both cases, the semantic structure is borrowed,
lexically supported by native elements. These nativized coinages are based on the
processes of translation (calques) or homonymy / polysemy (semantic loans). These two
word-building borrowing processes are explained further on.
Pragmatic Borrowing (PB): the assimilation of loan words or phrases is not merely a
lexico-syntactic phenomenon. It is otherwise characterized by the transition of cultural and
sociolinguistic traits, thus adding significant connotational meaning to the already-coined
forms. The study of this sort of borrowing helps us understand the linkage between
borrowing, sociolects, and cultural influence. The coinage of loanwords such as boy-scout,
baby shower, fraternity, army in Cuban Spanish is inevitably related to the pragmatic
features these words were embedded with.
This multi-level allotment has been conceived as a normative study of the loaning
transferences occurring in the different levels of the language. It does not imply that when
a borrowing takes place, one of these levels is isolatedly affected; otherwise we would be
denying the strict correlation existing among them, and the influence of dual-sign character
of the language. This classification is intended to ‘scrimp’ on the degree of abstraction
needed to understand the process of borrowing between two languages in contact. It is not,
however, flawless. One of its limitations is that it does not state clearly how the loaning
transference has taken place inasmuch some of these borrowings might have entered the
~ 44 ~
target language (L1) through one of these levels at a certain point (T), and then evolved to
L2 at T’. Therefore, one of the objectives in this section is to portray different typologies
and classifications of borrowings, prior to our corpus-driven analysis of Cuban Spanish
anglicisms.
4.2 THE CONCEPT OF ANGLICISM
In general, there is no consensus on the terminology of Anglicism, and it is clearly used as

an ‘umbrella label for any sign of interference’ (Gottlieb, 2005: 163). Early and formal
identifications of anglicisms have been provided: “a word or idiom that is recognizably
English in its form (spelling, pronunciation, morphology, or at least one of the three), but it
is accepted as an item in the vocabulary of the receptor language” (Görlach, 2003: 1).
Other scholars have also offered similar concepts, in which the identification of anglicism
with solely words or idiomatic phraseology is palpable (Stone: 1957; Freiría: 1978; López
Morales: 1987).
As pointed out in previous sections, the coinage of lexical English borrowings (or
anglicisms) as the visibly identifiable term is, without doubt, the misleading reason of such
a plethora of perspectives. Based on the previous categories of linguistic borrowing, it
would not be adequate to strictly refer to a case of phonological borrowing (e.g. –ing /ŋ / as
in drinking, fit-doing; -sh /ʃ/ as in fashion, cash ) as merely an anglicism; perhaps a more
precise phonological anglicism, or English-induced phoneme, would fit best.
Consequently, the need to resort to an all-inclusive definition is paramount in the
light of a study of anglicisms in a given variant of a language. Thus, Gottlieb identifies an
anglicism as “any individual or systemic language feature adapted or adopted from
English, or inspired or boosted by English models, used in intralingual communication in a
language other than English” (2005: 163).
The flexibility and wideness of this new perception of an anglicism is advantageous
to comprehend the phenomenon of anglicization of a language, and to clarify the overuse
of the widely agreed-upon term anglicism for the sake of rendering a more practical
lexicographical work. “The lexicographer is interested in Anglicisms that are formally
recognizable, current and representative in a recipient language, thus qualifying as
headwords in a dictionary” (Furiassi, Pulcini & Rodríguez, 2012: 5).
In sum, the adoption of Anglicism as a comprehensive term is on account of
pragmatism and a broader view. The undisputable superiority of lexical borrowings (or
~ 45 ~
anglicisms) in number, frequency and productivity does not denote the denial of other
types of borrowings. The repetition of phonological (/ʃ/ as in fashion, cash), and
morphological (adjective-forming suffix -ivo as in conservativo, investigativo) patterns
contribute to the assimilation and semantic enrichment of other language units, e.g.
phonemes and morphemes.
4.3 ANGLICISMS: PEST OR ZEST?
The long-lived nonacceptance of anglicisms as natural linguistic units is still nowadays a

source of dispute among scholars. As early back as nineteenth century, the first concise
Spanish dictionaries and glossaries would not compile as many headwords as the language
was really conveying in its actual utterances: in 1867, R. Cuervo only compiled seven
anglicisms in European Spanish (Lorenzo, 1971: 70) whereas Pichardo (1875) would attest
six entries of English-induced words in Cuban Spanish.
Linguists and lexicologists such as R. J. Alfaro, J. Mallo have explicitly stated their
objection to this ever-increasing phenomenon. In his article “La plaga de los anglicismos”,
Mallo introduces an apocalyptical conclusion of the anglicization of the Spanish language:
“a plague that severely threatens the authenticity of our language before the danger of a
deforming corruption, which would destroy the fundamental values of Hispanic culture”
(1954: 135).
On the other hand, more moderate scholars, such as E. Lorenzo, advocate the
linguistically enriching nature that characterizes the phenomenon of languages in contact,
particularly between Spanish and English; and urge to leave out traditionalist attitudes
towards anglicisms and code-switching:
“Es posible dejar paso libre a cualquier expresión extranjera que venga a añadir
un matiz nuevo a otra nuestra […] La actitud que se debe adoptar en la actualidad
frente a la irrupción de anglicismos no debe estar inspirada en el temor ciego e
inconsciente de las victimas pasivas de una inundación, sino en la confianza
inquebrantable de que los cimientos de nuestro edificio idiomático son firmes y de que
los esfuerzos y el poder creador de nuestros escritores constituyen sólidos muros de
contención que luego canalizarán la corriente invasora para fecundar el idioma.”
(1971: 71) {It is possible to give way to any foreign expression adding fresh nuances
to any of ours […] The attitude that should be adopted nowadays before the
emergence of anglicisms should not be based on the blinded and unconscious fear of
~ 46 ~
passive victims of a flooding, but on the unbreakable confidence that the foundations
of our idiomatic building are firm, and that the efforts and creative power of our
writers constitute solid contention walls, which are eventually guiding the invasive
current to ameliorate the language}
Throughout the twentieth century, stances towards the presence of anglicisms in

Spanish has moved from radical repudiation to a natural acceptance of the influence of
languages in contact, resulted from a more dynamic, globalized society. Medina (2004: 15-
16) illustrates both groups in detail: (1) those who keep a purist attitude towards
anglicisms, who basically recommend the omission of unnecessary anglicisms, and whose
battleship has been represented by a number of mottos: “deforming language”, “linguistic
invasion”, “humiliating situation of Spanish before English”, etc. Some of these radical
and purist keepers of the language are, among others, Mallo (1954), Madariaga (1966),
Alfaro (1970). (2) Those who convey a more moderate attitude towards anglicisms, or who
simply inform about the state of anglicisms in a given field or geographical area. A vast
majority of these researches is more inclined to think that anglicisms are not necessarily a
negative influence in Spanish, but an enriching means of word-stock and polysemy. Some
of these moderate linguists are: Lope Blanch (1977), Pratt (1980), Lorenzo (1971).
Besides these two historically divergent points of view, there exists a third one,
which studies anglicisms within a theoretical and methodological framework in
conjunction with the concept of languages in contact (Medina, 2004: 16). The process of
anglicization is closely observed in those areas where borrowings, calques, and
interferences (morphological, syntactical and semantic) take place between two languages
in contact. Thus, two concepts are identified: interference, which entails a “negative
diversion of the norm” (Weinreich, 1953), and transference, which explains how a
language adopts another language’s norms (Medina, 2004: 16). This new insight of the
phenomenon of linguistic anglicization refers to the elements transferred between two
languages in a more natural fashion.
4.4 LEXICAL BORROWING: SUBCATEGORIES
As pointed out in precedent sections, of the linguistic borrowings’ global categorization

initially charted, it is precisely Lexical Borrowing (LB) that has a more significant impact
on the process of linguistic borrowing. Not only is LB the most productive borrowing
~ 47 ~
process as to the number of units identified, but also it is the most effective means through
which morphemes, phonemes and semes are assimilated into a foreign language.
The aim of the present section is to provide a brief account of the state-of-the-art
classifications of lexical borrowing. The subcategories are all accompanied by actual
examples taken from Cuban Spanish in alignment with the general objectives of the
research.
4.4.1 Compendium of concepts and terminology
One of the most comprehensive subdivisions on anglicisms is drawn by Seco

(2001: 255), who provides a clear-cut, hands-on classification of lexical borrowing based
on the existing dualism of signifier and signified:
➢ Type 1: loanwords keeping the complete lexical structure of the target language
element (signified + signifier) as in stand, stop, drinking, chance, zipper, shorts.
These types of lexical borrowings are easy-to-spot and they are anglicisms par
excellence.
➢ Type 2: loanwords only keeping the signifier, as in manichear ‘to smuggle’ <
manage, bonche ‘jamboree’ < bunch, aplicar < apply (for). This is by far the most
challenging group to analyze due to its deceiving nature. The units belonging to this
group clearly undergo semantic shifts: in the first two examples (manichear,
bonche), both signifiers were kept (and phonologically and morphologically
adapted) and they have no equivalent whatsoever in the target language, but their
meanings differ with their English ‘paronyms’. Whereas the last example (aplicar)
has merely undergone an extension of its meanings by using an already existing
unit (phonologically and morphologically correlated) in the target language. The
case of aplicar is typically known as a false friend, and it is significantly
conditioned by in-contact language paronymy and alterations of target lexico-
semantic variants. Other examples of this type, which coincide as well with other
Spanish variants, are: doméstico, administración, celular.
~ 48 ~
➢ Type 3: loanwords retaining the signified, namely coger un cinco < take five,
llamar / escribir para atrás < call / write back, quemar (CDs) < burn, estar arriba
de la bola ‘to be aware’ < to be on the ball.
Without a doubt, Type 1 borrowings, based on a direct transference of signifier and

signified, are known as borrowings par excellence (Gómez, 1998: 32) whereas the other
cases are categorized as calques or substitutions. Due to the complexity of the polysemy
observed, there is a need for more specific definitions of the processes of lexical
borrowing, especially in Type 2 and Type 3.
Type 1 is coined as direct borrowing, which Ch. Pratt defines as any kind of unit
identified as English-induced loanword, either by conveying an unchanged morphological
structure (ranking, hippy, sidecar), or by being partially or totally adapted to the
orthographic mechanics of contemporary Spanish (boicot, boxear, travelín) (1980: 116).
Therefore, it is necessary to differentiate an adapted direct borrowing from a primary
direct borrowing: the latter does not undergo any graphemic or phonological shifting as
compared to the former case, whose signifier is exposed to such changes. The truth is that
these changes are subject to different degrees of assimilation of the ‘foreign’ word, which
clearly takes us back to the dichotomy of foreign word / loanword (cf. Gómez, 1998). The
degrees of assimilation are variable, and they depend on both the orthographic or phonemic
changes. For instance, the word sidecar can be coherently classified as a primary direct
borrowing due to its unchanged orthographic features whereas its phonological description
is modified: Sp. /sidekár/ En. /saidkar/. Thus, its degree of assimilation is adjusted
accordingly to the phonological pattern of the target language (Spanish), and so is its
newly-branded typology: adapted direct borrowing.
Within Spanish, there exists a clear differentiation on the types of direct borrowings,
especially between Latin-America and Spain’s variants. Words such as iceberg, wifi, from
both an orthographic and a phonological point of view, are definitely adapted direct
borrowings in Spain /iθeber/, /wifi/, and primary direct borrowings in Latin America
/aisber/, /waifai/.
In Types 2 and 3, it is pertinent to distinguish the typology used by Werner Betz:
‘global borrowing’, ‘semantic borrowing’, and ‘calque’ (cf. Gómez, 1998), which
comprehensively shows us the differences of these phenomena, but do not provide details
on particularities and subcategories. These subcategories are not intended to add more
~ 49 ~
painstaking distinction of equally-motivated processes; on the contrary, they aim to

provide some insight on how typology and conceptualization could help us understand
borrowing more deeply. Some of these subcategories are summarized hereafter in this
chapter.
Type 2, as already described, combines an array of borrowing processes, and there is
no consensus on the typology used to denote them. One of the least dispersed terms has
been provided by Pratt (1980: 160), in which he coins as ‘paronymic semantic anglicisms’
those words, already existing in the target language, which assimilate new sememes from
their corresponding paronyms in the source language (aplicar < apply), i.e. false friends.
The analysis and depiction of these paronymic doublets in contact languages serves to have
a better understanding of the semantic transference or extension occurring from L2 to L1.
It is referred hereon to as paronymic borrowing (also called semantic calque or borrowing).
These paronyms convey such a semantic contrast, leading to serious homonymic and
polysemic conflicts, or in some cases to hilarity and rejection (Rodríguez, 2005: 179).
Paronymic borrowing contrasts with pseudo-paronymic borrowing (or semantic
pseudo-anglicisms; see chapter 6) in the way morphologically and phonologically
paralleled equivalents are found on both languages. In the case of pseudo-paronymic
borrowing, there is no equivalence in the target language, but simply a signifier’s loan,
adapted to L2’s orthographic and phonological features (manichear < manage, bonche <
bunch). These pseudo-paronyms are most likely the most repelled borrowing expressions
due to the incompatibly invasive nature of their forms. They reproduce and adapt the
graphemic and phonemic traits of the source language, and have no meaning in common,
which explains the prefix pseudo in the definition. That is, apparently they are paronyms
but they are merely a reproduction of L2’s words, whose meanings differ completely with
their L1’s ‘equivalents’.
A theory might explain the process of pseudo-paronymic borrowing: they possibly
evolve (by homonymy or polysemy) from adapted or primary direct borrowing within the
target language until their originally imported senses are not in use (Figure 2).
~ 50 ~
Figure 2: Evolution of pseudo-paronymic loanwords
Even though the term of pseudo-paronymic borrowing is further explained in

chapter 6 in the form of pseudo-anglicism or pseudo loan, the notion of paronymy was kept
to have a better understanding of how the semantic shifting might occur within the
recipient language.
Finally, Type 3 equals to the oft-quoted calque (also known as lexical calque),
which, unlike the cases of borrowing explained above, there is no orthographic or
phonological imitation of the foreign unit. It rather consists in reproducing the morpho-
lexical structure of L2’s unit by using L1 native means. R. Gusmani describes those basic
conditions required by referring to how a calque consists in reproducing in the target
language, by means of synthesis and already-existing units in this language, an element
possessing the same structural articulation and the same semantic motivation of the foreign
pattern (Gómez Capuz, 1998: 61).
According to English and German studies, there exist two global categories4:
a) loan translation: it is a calque based on direct translation, reflecting thus the

morphological structure of a foreign language. It is the most visible type of
calquing, sometimes called ‘perfect’ or ‘literal’ as in cuartobate ‘glutton’ < fourth
bat, quemar ‘copy CDs’ < burn, arriba de la bola < on the ball, etc.
4
cf. Rodríguez (2005)
~ 51 ~
b) Loan rendition or rendering: it is the so-called ‘free’, ‘approximate’ calque, which

involves the partial translation of a unit so that it can combine with other elements
more ‘freely’: traganíquel ‘glutton’ < nickel slot machine, línea de foul < foul line,
etc.
The processes of calques and borrowings are equally motivated by semantic

transference from ‘foreign’ units to target ones. Although calques and semantic calques /
borrowings (previously coined as paronymic borrowing) are both based on the imitation
and reproduction of semantic traits, they do not create a new word in the target language.
Yet they are as well responsible for adding lexico-semantic variants (or senses) to existing
lexemes. As per the differentiation of semantic calque and semantic borrowing, Hope
(1971) claims that a semantic calque is characterized by a higher degree of ‘consciousness,
elaboration, and artificiality whereas a semantic borrowing, on the other hand, occurs
among paronyms or cognates, and it is a more natural and unconscious phenomenon, and
thus more frequent among bilingual speakers (cf. Gómez, 1998).
Lastly, some authors suggest the addition of a ‘phraseology’ level (cf. Humbley,
1974; Gómez, 1998), which could be unnecessary (or redundant) due to the coincidental
features of a phrase and a word in reflecting linguistic dualism (signified and signifier),
showing similar syntactic functions within an utterance, and being the result of
lexicalization processes. By simplifying concepts and categories, this theoretical chapter is
aimed to revise the most significant knowledge and principles, needed to draw an ad-hoc
diagram to help us comprehend the corpus-driven annotations more comprehensively.
4.4.2 Types of lexical borrowings: a comprehensive chart
Once the information and classifications are collated from a number of anglicists (Seco,
2001; Pratt, 1980, Rodríguez, 2005; Gómez, 1998; etc.), their relevant contributions are
used to draw up a coherent typology of lexical borrowing. The prior italicized terminology,
e.g. paronymic borrowing, pseudo-paronymic borrowing, adapted direct borrowing and
primary direct borrowing, was particularly useful to 1) understand the process of lexical
borrowing in an artificially legible way and 2) to abridge the theoretical frameworks
culled.
~ 52 ~
The summarizing chart (Figure 3) containing types of lexical borrowings has been
entirely produced by Pulcini, Furiassi and Rodríguez (2012) in an attempt to offer a state-
of-the-art and unifying overview of the most relevant concepts regarding lexical
borrowings and calques. Pragmatically, calques and borrowings are occasionally studied as
different processes, but they can be equally motivated by graphemic or semantic
transference. This feature is key to coin a global terminology encompassing other
subcategories, which share similarities in the way linguistic assimilation and transference
occur between two languages in contact.
Figure 3: Types of lexical borrowings
The first distinction is made between direct and indirect borrowings. Direct
borrowings from a source language (SL) to a recipient language (RL), or target language,
have the tendency of showing evident elements of the SL, i.e. English (Table 1). These
elements are not obviously detected or conveyed in the same manner (loanwords, false
loans, hybrid loans). Indirect borrowings (calques and semantic loans) are not as easy to
spot as direct ones: SL models are reproduced by translation in the RL (calques) or by
already-existing elements in RL, which acquire new meanings (semantic loan).
~ 53 ~
Global Distinction Subcategories Concept Examples

(Cu.)
A word or multi-word unit -bull-pen
borrowed from English, whose
Direct loanword -béisbol
semantic, orthographic,
Borrowing phonological, and morphological
integration differ to a lesser or
greater extent.
A word or multi-word unit made -frozen ‘soft

up of English lexical elements, serve ice-
false
whose meaning in English is cream cone’
entirely different.
-dancing ‘a
club for
dancing’
-fit-doing
‘informal
expression
used to express
agreement’
A multi-word unit which freely -cocktail or

combines an English element cóctel de frutas
hybrid
with a RL element.
-darle / meterle
al drinking
A unit or multi-word unit which -bateador

translates completely, partially, designado <
Indirect calque
or freely (no correlation) in the designated
Borrowing RL. hitter
-árbol del pan

< breadfruit
tree
An already-existing word in the -cana ‘prison’

RL (sometimes formally similar < can
semantic loan
to the English one), which takes
only the meaning of a SL word. -amarillo
‘coward’ <
yellow
Table 1: Summary of types of borrowings (with examples)
~ 54 ~
In the case of loanwords, and based on the degree of integration of the units in the
RL, Anglicisms are divided into two types: non-adapted and adapted. A non-adapted
loanword (or primary direct borrowing) is a word or multi-word unit “without or with
minor formal and semantic integration, so that it remains recognizably English in the RL”
(Furiassi et al, 2012: 6). By and large, phonological integration takes place due to evident
differences between the phonological systems of RL and SL (bull-pen, all right, average).
An adapted borrowing is a word or multi-word unit borrowed with orthographic,
phonological and/or morphological integration into the systemic structures of the RL.
Semantically, RL and SL’s meanings are related (béisbol, bacha ‘a get-together’ < batch,
cloche < clutch, chingala < shin-guard).
Non-adapted and adapted loanwords, having the same meaning, occasionally co-
exist in the RL. In Cu., this phenomenon is commonly observed in sports, particularly in
baseball, in which the number of anglicisms observed has been more highly frequent than
any other semantic field (baseball / béisbol, home-run / jonrón, fielder / fildeador, etc.).
The choice of any of these doublets’ elements is entirely conditioned by extra-linguistic
factors: political connotation, familiarity with the English language, diachronic features,
etc.
False or pseudo-loans are not exclusively examples of the arbitrary nature of the
linguistic sign. They are SL-induced units, whose meanings differ fully with their English
forms but they are clearly influenced by the English semantic structure. frozen (Cu.) does
not convey the meaning of an ice-cream in English, but there exists an undeniable
transference of semantic traits from the SL into the RL (Cuban Spanish). dancing is
probably either a shortened element from the multi-word unit: a dancing club, or a rarely-
seen corruption of English grammar, in which an –ing form denotes a place. At times, false
pseudo loans are perceived as extensions of meaning in the RL, resulting in the formation
of new senses, inexistent in English. Semantic pseudo-anglicisms are, in general, the
construct of naturally unfolded meanings in the recipient language, whose Englishness is
merely perceived through spelling and/or pronunciation.
As to calques, there are three global forms that call for additional clarification: loan
translation, loan rendition and loan creation. A loan translation is a calque par excellence;
it is a word or a multi-word unit which translates a SL unit into a RL one, i.e. from English
to Spanish (arco del pie < arch of the foot, bombero ‘a type of baseball player’ < fireman,
chivo < goatee). A loan rendition is a one-word unit or multi-word unit which translates
~ 55 ~
an English element only partially and provides a slightly equivalent item in the RL: árbol
del pan < breadfruit tree, línea de foul < foul line. Finally, a loan creation is a new word
or multi-word unit in the RL which freely renders the English pattern word in Spanish. It is,
in short, “defined as a free loan translation that bears no formal and structural resemblance
to the foreign model” (Gómez, 1997: 93): jardinero < fielder, lanzarse de barriga < to
slide onto base. These forms are chiefly motivated by the referents they signify. Though
equal referential grounds, the signifiers or lexical structures differ in both languages, which
is owing to intra-linguistic peculiarities.
A semantic loan mostly depends on the type of motivation induced by other
linguistic levels. All semantic loans or loan shifts have in common the semantic extension
(homonymy or polysemy) of already-existing units in the RL. This semantic shift is
accompanied by two possible morphological variations of the elements: (1) the adoption of
RL morphological structures, whose motivation is purely semantic (amarillo ‘coward’ <
yellow, apretazón ‘medical condition’ < tightness); (2) the morphological and phonological
accommodation of paronymic units, similar to their SL counterparts, whose coincidental
graphemes remind us of what was referred to as paronymic semantic anglicisms (cana
‘prison’ < can, aplicador < applicator). The latter elements undergo an induced process of
assimilation by ‘camouflaging’ into the RL through already-existing units. Thus, through a
necessary process of homonymy, these lexical units provide fresher semantic features to
the native words. This uncommon assimilation process varies widely in accordance to the
degree of morphological accommodation: from ‘highly-camouflaged’ (cana < can) to
clearly-detectable (aplicador < applicator).
The above-mentioned distinction is what Humbley (1974: 58-61) and Haugen
(1950: 219-220) refer to as homologues (1) and analogues (2). The former denotes those
units showing analogy of meaning, whose form, though a proper translation, is quite
different. They share a primary literal meaning, in which the SL unit transfers a new
meaning to its RL homologue. On the contrary, the latter refers to the units showing
analogy in form as well as in meaning (generally linked to etymologically related words or
“cognates”).
The study of semantic loans might arouse confusing terminology, especially that
referring to the difference between semantic loans and loan translations. Even though
semantic loans and loan translations stand out as occasional or full translations, loan
translations are based on non-existent elements in the RL whereas semantic loans,
~ 56 ~
particularly homologues, are morphologically motivated or induced by already-existing

units in the RL.
The above-mentioned terminology is at times an adjunct to intra-linguistic word-
forming processes (derivation, compounding, etc.). The syntactic and morphological norms
of English adjust to Spanish ones. One of the sources of this linguistic ‘corruption’ is
owing to a process of clipping (lexical shortening), which not only provides briefer
versions of the elements assimilated but also enriches Spanish with ‘corrupted’ English-
induced borrowings. Hereafter some examples of these grammatically-corrupted loanwords
in Cuban Spanish: dancing (a place for dancing) < dancing club / bar; center (baseball) <
center field, elástico < elastic band (see Table 2). These ungrammatical units, as
commented earlier, are further explained in chapter 6.
Clipped loanword in Cu. English Unit Grammar Disruption
-ing endings are not noun-

dancing ‘aplace for dancing club forming suffixes denoting
dancing’ place
center ‘baseball player’ center fielder place nouns are not used as
agents in English
elástico elastic band Adjectives denoting

nominal functions
Table 2: Clipped loanwords in linguistic borrowing
The compilation of concepts and classifications is of great importance to recap the

operating theoretical foundation resorted to. It has certainly served to understand the
process of linguistic anglicization more profoundly, and to depict the notions involved in
the process of English-induced loans. However, as remarked earlier, not all the processes
involved are of purely linguistic nature, which is why some sections will be devoted to the
pragmatic or sociolinguistic sources of borrowing.
~ 57 ~
4.4 A PRAGMATIC DISTINCTION OF BORROWINGS
Due to the indisputable role of pragmatics within the adaptation and assimilation of
loanwords in Cuban Spanish, this section is intended to provide further analysis and
typology on the nature of loanwords and their existing semantically-related forms in the
RL.
The analysis of pragmatic criterion is of great importance to determine the
communicative intention of speakers (López Morales, 2013: 128). Any word is potentially
responsible for conveying a variety of intentions, but only those distinguishable pragmatic
traits are taken into consideration to draw up the intentionality-sociolect linkage.
A number of current loanwords: cigar, parole, and aplicar < apply are
pragmatically marked in terms of the semantic traits conveyed. Cigar is clearly preferred
over its synonymous native forms (tabaco, puro) to denote a type of cigar sold illicitly in
the streets, especially to tourists. These coexisting three forms (cigar, tabaco, puro) share
the same referent but various pragmatic features. Aplicar (or the noun aplicación) replaces
its semantically-related native form solicitar with regard to immigration red tape Cubans
need to go through at the American Embassy for visa approval. Parole is an extraordinary
case: it is highly marked because no alternations are found in the RL to signify its sense.
Therefore, the inexistence of equivalent forms is probably one of the commonest reasons to
explain the assimilation of specialized words. Obviously, of all the known senses of parole
in English, only the one related to migrants’ authorization is activated.
Based on pragmatic variations and semantic changes, Winter-Froemel & Onysko
(Furiassi et al, 2012: 47) have proposed the labels of catachrestic and non-catachrestic
loans or innovations to further explain how pragmatics might introduce a necessity-driven
dichotomy. ‘Catachrestic’ metaphors “represent uses of a word to denote an object which
has no name in the language at the time of the innovation” as in parole, whereas non-
catachrestic metaphors co-exist with a semantic equivalent.
Catachrestic metaphors are clearly observed in specialized glossaries or texts due to
the necessity of naming fresher concepts in the RL. These metaphors are not fixed
structures, they evolve alongside with the language and their semantic traits are likely to
change, especially if synonymous forms are resorted to. For instance, baseball novelty
loans once were assimilated to denote rules and moves within the game (pitch, safe) but in
time, the number of semantically-related forms increased: pitch → pitchear, lanzar; safe →
~ 58 ~
quieto. Semantic loans or loan translations have played a fundamental role in the
catachrestic / non-catachrestic transition.
Interestingly, and as expected, there exist potential motives for lexical change
(prestige/fashion, taboo/emotional marks, disguise, flattery, insult, etc.), which indicate
“special pragmatic effects of an innovation, parallel to those of a non-catachrestic loan,
whereas the designation of a new concept (i.e. a catachrestic innovation) usually does not
convey such effect” (Furiassi, Pulcini & Rodríguez, 2012: 47). This is precisely what
explains the complexity of non-catachrestic innovations and their direct link with
analogous semantic phenomena (synonymy, homonymy, paronymy) and sociolinguistic
traits.
Other authors (Levinson, 2000) 5 refer to these two processes under the forms of
generalized ‘conversational implicatures’ in an attempt to determine the pragmatic effects
conveyed by the above-mentioned types of innovations.
According to Levinson (2000: 32-33), there are two basic types of generalized
‘conversational implicatures: inferences of informativeness (I-implicatures) and manner
(M-implicatures). The former concept relates to “what is simply described is
stereotypically exemplified” whilst the latter implies the principle of “marked message
indicates marked situation”.
In summary, catachrestic innovations evoke a stereotypical representation of the
new concept, i.e. an unmarked designation of a concept. This is referred to as the most
natural way of loanwords to enter a language, whose functionality is fully justified through
a linguistic denotation of a concept. On the contrary, non-catachrestic innovations are only
meant to describe a few semantic traits of the sense in question, leading to a marked choice
of semantic equivalences.
Cited by Winter-Froemel & Onysko (Furiassi et al, 2012)

5
~ 59 ~
Borrowings in Cuban Spanish: a normative and descriptive analysis
5. BORROWINGS IN CUBAN SPANISH: A NORMATIVE AND DESCRIPTIVE

ANALYSIS
This chapter is aimed to chart the process of English-induced borrowing in Cuban Spanish
(henceforth Cu.), and the influence of loanwords and calques on the linguistic levels, by
providing examples and describing the process of assimilation of these units into the
language. The existence of repeated Anglicization patterns may help us understand the
phenomenon of English-induced linguistic borrowing more thoroughly, and contribute to a
more detailed differentiating analysis with respect to Sp. (henceforth European Spanish).
Even though this description is intended to analyze linguistic levels individually,
the process of borrowing may necessarily involve more than one level. Traditionally,
anglicisms have been regarded as lexical units directly borrowed from a source language,
which somehow implies the supremacy of lexical borrowing over other types
(phonological, morpho-syntactic, semantic).
The productivity of specific types of loanwords leads to the establishment of
linguistic patterning. The standardization of morphemes, phonemes, graphemes, etc. could
denote a long-existing controversy on the assumption that lexical borrowing is the means
of assimilation par excellence, understating that other linguistic levels are merely
mainstreamed into a primary lexical process (Deroy, 1956; Weinreich, 1953).
This empirical study focuses on a descriptive, differentiating account of the
linguistic units extracted, and their recognizable impact on the word-forming process of
linguistic borrowing in the host language. The native-ness of some borrowed forms is
formulated by studying and relating the levels involved, with clear references to Sp.
~ 61 ~
5.1 PHONOLOGICAL LEVEL AND GRAPHEMIC VARIATIONS
There does not exist prior research on the phonological influence of English on Cuban
Spanish, let alone a study on the phonological borrowing process. Thus, this section is
intended to provide an empirical overview of those noticeable borrowings culled from Cu.
The assimilation of English phonemes is a general tendency, as opposed to Sp.
Such a phonological disruption has been linked nowadays with sociolinguistic traits.
Presumably, low-educated users tend to reproduce far more English phonemes than their
high-educated counterparts: /ʃ/ (cash, shopping). This diastratic distinction is explained in
more detail in section 5.4 in this chapter.
English fricative phoneme /ʃ/ is rendered in Cu. (especially in final position) and it
co-exists with another fricative sound /tʃ/, as in chapear < chop, chingala < shin-guard,
cloche < clutch. Occasionally, final and middle position fricatives are modified into /s/ as
in ras < rash, Hershey (toponym). Like Sp., the opposition /z/ vs. /s/ is neutralized, being
/z/ devoiced (blazer, squeeze play).
The final velar /ŋ/ is rarely found (shopping, swing), owing to an assimilation
process of final /n/ and an idiolect tendency of disrupting final consonants (ʃ/ʧópin/ŋ).
Alternations of these doublets (/ʃ/ vs. /ʧ/; /n/ vs. /ŋ/) are mostly dependent on
sociolinguistic categories: social class, age, education level, and unfamiliarity with English
language and sound.
The pronunciation nearness of Cu. vowel and diphthong sounds to English ones is
more evident than Sp., which does not necessarily imply the acquisition of new sounds, but
the adaptation of the existing ones. For instance, let us take the verbal base cut in catao <
cut-out (Cu.) and cúter < cutter (Sp.), a more palpable tendency of Cu. into phonemic
assimilation as opposed to a grapheme-oriented disruption is observed. This differentiation
is perceived in other similar cases: iceberg (/aisber/ in Cu., /iθebér/ in Sp.; wifi /waifai/ in
Cu., /wifi/ in Sp.). Nevertheless, in Sp. “greater variation is found with letters representing
vowels and vowel combinations” as in funky /fanki/, bacon /beikon/, etc. (Rodríguez, 2002:
136).
The wide range of phonemic and graphemic vowel variations leads to an array of
forms. Yet, some specific patterns are attested in Cu., which coincide with Sp. in that
English vowels are simplified or ‘funneled’ into few Spanish ones (Table 3).
~ 62 ~
Spanish vowels (Cu.) English vowels

/diphthongs (AmE.)
/a/ ampaya, bacha, /ʌ/ umpire, /æ/ batch, /ɒ/
babiney, fachar bobbinet, /e/ fetch
/e/ cátcher, breaker /æ/ cátcher, /ei/breaker
/o/ bluff, frozen, noquear /ʌ/ bluff, /ou/ frozen, /ɒ/

knock-out
Table 3: Vowel patterning in loanwords’ graphemes and phonemes
The alterations observed in vowel diphthongs denote two main types: 1) English
diphthongs’ vowels are fused into a single vowel phoneme in Cu. (/ei/ as in change turns
/e/ as in chenche); 2) English diphthongs’ vowels are changed into different components
(/ou/ as in coach turns /oa/ as in coachear/coachiar). In other cases, diphthongs remain
unchanged, as well as their corresponding graphemes: /au/ bound, /ei/ display.
Occasionally, certain English graphemes are compliantly spelt out in Cu. according to their
phonemes: bloomer → blúmer, coffeecake → cofikei/coficake/cofiquei.
Cu. consonant clusters with initial s- (sl-, sm-, sp-, st-) occasionally develop into
more adapted graphemic variations, and by and large, both forms are found in the system
(strapless/estrapless; stencil/esténcil). The insertion of a prothetic /e/ in both variants, Sp.
and Cu., tends to overcome the inexistence of this type of cluster in the Spanish language.
Forms of pronunciation and spelling variations are observed in /w/ and /gu/ sounds:
warandol/guarandol; warfarina/guarfarina, winche/ güinche. Nevertheless, unchanged
English lexical units containing /w/ sound are equally kept: watt, wild, welter. These latter
forms are a construct of English loanwords and idiolectal spelling, since they are oft-
quoted by specialized tabloids on electricity, baseball, and boxing respectively.
The omission of final consonants is a widely-known, and sometimes a source of
mockery feature of Cu., which is expectedly transferred to English-induced loanwords:
blue-plate /blúplei/, comeback /kómba/, spike /espái/, file /fai/. The first indication is that
this trait is present throughout the corpus (see section 11.1.2), but at times some
monosyllabic words add final vowel sounds to make the resulting loanword more
~ 63 ~
phonologically attainable, and highly resemblant to native words: pack → paco, can →
cana ‘prison’.
The choice of any of the Cu. phonological variant is sociolinguistically motivated.
Whereas in Sp. the explanation relies on the consideration of “the age, the channel, the
subject matter, and the education and socioeconomic status of the speaker and of the
addressee” (Rodríguez, 2002: 136), in Cu. there exist other factors which might add more
complexity to this phenomenon: longer contact with AmE. through migration, tourism-
related jobs, terminological nature of the unit, etc. The last element is greatly related with
sports, especially baseball and boxing. These sports, as indicated in earlier sections, are
fraught with anglicisms and calques. Most of these units came into Cu. in the late
nineteenth century and early twentieth century, in which most of the sports followers were
not necessarily in contact with English spelling. On the contrary, most of the elements
were adopted through oral discourse: ampaya < umpire, dogao < dugout, tubey < two-base
hit, tribey < three-base hit, jonrón < home-run.
In terms of graphemic integration, the most visible feature is the adaptation of
certain loanwords to Spanish rules (Table 4). This is a result of an existing incompatible
nature of a number of unusual letters / letter combinations, which might lead to standard
substitutions within Cu.: earlier loans are easy to distinguish because of their tendency to
keep some of the unusual graphemes, e.g. warandol, Wajay, keno.
~ 64 ~
Table 4: General graphemic integration of loanwords in Cuban Spanish
The spelling of anglicisms in present-day print periodicals is characterized by the

use of inverted commas and specifications in Spanish. The general tendency, especially
among Cuban national press, is to resort to these forms inasmuch as they are used within
terminological contexts, i.e. sports, banking, industry, etc.
5.2 MORPHOLOGICAL LEVEL
As expected, the majority of anglicisms in Cuban Spanish are nouns. Adjectives tend to be
scarcer whereas verbs are more prone to result from word-building processes, whereby a
‘native’ suffix is attached to a loan base (nominal or adjectival) as in ampayar < umpire,
pichear < pitch, bonchar < bunch, clarear < clear.
~ 65 ~
5.2.1 Nouns
Gender assignment is a rather pattern-less phenomenon as per inanimate nouns. Animate

nouns are sex-oriented, so there should not exist irregularities, e.g. una blofera, un
plomero. Inanimate nouns, on the other hand, coexist with their ‘native’ Spanish
counterpart by compliantly adopting the gender of the Spanish word with which they are
usually associated (el lounge, un bunch, la barbecue), or simply because a Spanish suffixed
word requires it (la reservación); but at times the rule does not apply (un dinner, el jacket,
as opposed to la comida, la chaqueta). Interestingly enough, new lexical units in the
system are arbitrarily assigned with a phonological-induced gender: el corduroy, el bridge,
el keno.
The transition of the loanword party is of a curious nature. In pre-1959 times, the
word adopted the masculine gender whereas it is currently used with a feminine gender.
This gender shift goes hand in hand with a semantic clashing occurring after 1959, in
which the latter was mostly used in lower class sociolect, depicting negative prestige.
Neocolonial loanword party clearly conveys a meaning of refined gathering (positive
prestige). Party, in sum, could be an accurate metaphor to describe the evolution of
anglicisms in Cuban Spanish, and the tip of the iceberg of a significant semantic shifting
occurring after 1959, pertaining to borrowing and calquing.
Like in Sp., the –ing form has been found to be “almost invariably associated with
the masculine paradigms” (Rodríguez, 2002: 139) as in el dancing (a dancing club), el
drinking (excessive way of drinking alcohol), el inning, el living (living-room set), el
rolling. There is a shift of pattern in the case of la shopping (in other Spanish variants like
in Puerto Rico, shopping is masculine), which is in accordance with the already-mentioned
associations with feminine concepts (‘la tienda’). A particular case is el punching bag,
whose principal noun bag is not responsible for gender assignment: its pre-modifying
present participle determines the masculine association, as the –ing paradigm rules.
Regarding number fluctuations and spelling modifications, the examples gathered
in the corpus show that the vast majority of anglicisms take regular plurality –s or –es, e.g.
managers, innings, laguers < lagers, ómnibuses, jonrones < homeruns, etc. Some loans
take zero inflexion due to the incompatible nature of some plural endings within Spanish:
los box, los big leaguer, los fielder, etc. The loan fielder is not fully integrated in Cu.
unlike its synonym fildeador, which takes a plurality inflectional suffix (fildeadores). This
might explain the existence, especially in anglicized texts such as sports (baseball, boxing),
~ 66 ~
of integrated/non-integrated duplets as in center field / jardinero central, home-run /

jonrón, catcher / receptor. Some obsolete forms, still present in the vernacular, but not in
print periodicals, show proper English inflexion, e.g. parties, groceries.
5.2.2 Adjectives
As indicated earlier, loan adjectives in Cu. are characterized by being scarce in the system.
The infrequent forms of suffixed loan adjectives, whose morphological structures clash
with standard Spanish ones, reveal a general trend of abhorrence or coexistence. The
setting of such ‘coexisting’ duplets imply the presence of sociolectal marks: provisorio
(provisional) < provisory, remarcable < remarkable, investigativo (investigador) <
investigative, visionista (visionario) < visionist. Direct adjectival loans, e.g. ok (oká), good,
punch-drunk, ready, fit-doing (pseudo-anglicism meaning ‘ok’), denote negative prestige.
These direct adjectives are most likely found in predicative form. Other attributive forms
are generally found in compound units (trabajo investigativo, boxeador light-weight,
balance provisorio) or apposition (música filin, helado frozen).
One significant feature of a group of adapted adjectives is their being stressed on
their antepenultimate syllable (boxístico, modélico, turístico), which might result from the
assimilation process involving the necessary attachment of native adjective-forming
suffixes. Lorenzo (1996: 89) refers to the usage of some of these anglicized adjectives:
“The curious aspect of these adjectives is not so much their being ‘esdrújulos’ 6 and cult as
their high dissemination, despite their cult origin and initial restricted usage, in a variety of
communicative spheres (…)”. The transition of some of these specialized adjectives and
their subsequent adaptation into the vernacular denote a palpable standardization of
restricted terminology.
The extended usage of derivational suffix –al has been referred to as a highly
productive form (Cárdenas, 1999; Náñez, 1973) whose usage has been perceived in the
media, the vernacular, and even political speeches, e.g. procedural, congresional,
televisual. The majority of these loanwords are direct borrowings, but some of them are
derivatives composed of a native base and a borrowed suffix, e.g. televisual. This might
shed some light on the process of morphological borrowing, which explains how certain
morphemes might gain traits of productivity within a target language, and combine with
native bases regardless of their combinability strength in the source language. As to the
Words stressed on their antepenultimate syllable

6
~ 67 ~
far-reaching usage of –al in Cu., the existence of adjectival duplets is perhaps one of the
most prominent features: educacional/educativo, opcional/optativo, operacional/operativo,
nutricional/nutritivo, televisual/televisivo (Cárdenas, 1999: 52).
5.2.3 Adverbs
No cases of adverbial –ly suffixation was found in Cu. However, there are other adverbial
phrases found: all right, yes, of course, cash ‘payment by cash’, de fly ‘coincidently’, fifty-
fifty, chenche por chenche ‘by exchange’, fitdoing.
5.2.4 Verbs
The most general word-building pattern of verbs seems to involve denominal bases and
verb-forming morphemes –ar and –ear, such as ampayar (ampaya < umpire), bonchar
(bonche < bunch), catchear (catcher), cranquear (cranque < crank). In all these cases, the
anglicized verb and its corresponding noun co-exist in the system. No English-structured
verb has been found, i.e. all of them are derived words. Occasionally, some verbs are
derived directly from their paronymic verbs, e.g. guachinear ‘to refuse to argue about
politics’ < to watch, machear ‘to wear something coinciding with something else in color,
size, etc.’ < to match, reportar < to report. The derivational morpheme –ear has two
possible pronunciation forms: /iar/ and /ear/. The former corresponds to a lower sociolect.
This suffix is by far the most productive in terms of verb formation processes (Cárdenas,
1999: 52).
Alongside the suffixation process these verbs undergo, at times they call for verb-
forming prefixation: enclochar < to clutch, embasar ‘to be safe at a baseball base’ < base.
Already-prefixed verbs are not frequent in the language: desfibrar ‘to cut sugar canes in
small strips’ < defiber. Deadjectival verbs are not common, only one example was found:
clarear ‘to remove bushes in an uncultivated area’ < clear.
Other verb-forming suffixes (-izar, -ificar), though already existing in the language,
have become more productive in Spanish (Cárdenas, 1999: 52) partly due to their English
counterparts (-ize, -ify), and the tendency of the latter to be assimilated through English
verbs, especially specialized ones (clorificar < chlorify, vulcanizar < vulcanize).
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5.3 WORD-BUILDING PROCESSES
5.3.1 Derivation
In addition to the derivational suffixes mentioned in previous sections, it is relevant to

point out some derivational word-building productive patterns existing in Cu. As per
agents nouns, Cuban Spanish animate anglicisms resort to few suffixes: (-ero, -era), -ista, -
ador, as in pitcher, catcher, fielder (fildeador), bateador ‘batter’, beisbolero ‘baseballer’,
bisnero ‘smuggler’, güinchero ‘whinch technician’, inicialista ‘lead-off’, motorista
‘motorist’, monticulista ‘pitcher’, visionista ‘visionist’, yatista ‘yacht sailperson’. The
suffixes –er and –man can be found in contemporary Cuban Spanish (pitcher, big leaguer,
clubman, barman, sportsman, cameraman), but they are merely attached to the borrowed
nouns. The level of synonymy is especially high due to the productivity of suffixed agent-
forming duplets (fielder/fildeador; beisbolero/beisbolista; motero/motorist;
visionario/visionista). Suffix –ero(a) appears to be highly productive in Cu. in terms of
agent-building processes, especially when an anglicized base is involved: pipero(a) ‘pipe
driver’ < piper, maltero(a) ‘malt salesperson’ < malt, patrullero ‘police on patrol’ < patrol,
plomero(a) < plomber, ponchador(a) ‘person working in a tires’ repair shop’ < punch.
Likewise, a number of inanimate nouns keep –er suffix unchanged (breaker,
freezer, láguer ‘beer’ < lager). Others show a clearer level of integration by resorting to –
ero(a) morpheme: chequera < checkbook, piquera ‘taxi rank’ < to pick up, lonchera ‘lunch
box’ < lunch, ponchadora < puncher.
Unusual derivatives are also found: championismo < champion, babyto < baby. The
former implies a negative meaning as to ‘the act of being too competitive’, whereas the
second one is an unproductive derivational process whereby a Spanish diminutive suffix is
attached to an anglicized base. This is found in a limited group of derivatives, especially
related to garments: shorcito < shorts, pulovito < pull-over, blumito < bloomer. They are
usually associated with children’s clothing.
5.3.2 Compounds and combining forms
Like in Sp. (Rodríguez, 2002: 142), most compounds have been borrowed directly
from English, “therefore their existence does not entail the previous use or later adoption
of their constituent lexemes”, as in beamball, blueplate, comeback, dugout, marshmallow,
bell boy. Some others are made up of fully integrated composites, especially in baseball
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(béisbol < baseball, chingala < shin-guard, jonrón < homerun, tribey < three-base hit,
tubey < two-base hit), clothing (pulóver < pullover, chorpán < short-pants) or food
(cofiquei < coffeecake, panqué < pancake).
A number of English loanwords combine with native elements, leading to the
formation of ‘hybrid borrowings’ (Furiassi et al., 2012: 7), i.e. multi-word units composed
of an English element and Spanish elements or syntax: utility de cuadro < utility infielder,
traganíquel ‘slot machine’ < traga + nickel, robo de base < base steal, pipi-room ‘toilet’,
oficial del floor < floor’s official, juego de living < living-room set, línea de foul < foul
line.
5.3.3 Calques
The process of calquing denotes a high degree of complexity as per word-building

mechanisms. It involves a ‘camouflaging’ transition of loanwords into the state of native-
ness. This process involves a plethora of variants (see chapter 4): ‘loan translation’ (estar
al bate ‘baseball position’ < to be at bat, arco del pie < arch of the foot, cortina de hierro
< iron curtain), ‘loan rendition’ (bocadulce < sweet tooth, árbol del pan < breadfruit tree),
‘loan creation’ (apagafuegos ‘type of baseball player’ < fireman, field ‘baseball position’ <
jardín). ‘Loan creations’ are particularly productive in baseball where semantically-related
paronyms are used. Apparently, post-1959 journals and periodicals are more liable to resort
to this type of calques, especially in the field of sports.
Cu., along with Sp., has a clear tendency to be more open to anglicized borrowings
than to calquing (Rodríguez, 2002: 143), which is indisputably related to the complexity of
the latter. Anglicisms, especially those unadapted ones (background, backup, beamball)
undergo little morphological shifting. Phonological and semantic alterations denote a
necessary process of adaptation. On the contrary, calques are more ‘elaborate’ units, in
particular loan translations, implying an intrinsic need to find native equivalences to the
lexical units acquired. The media, not surprisingly, plays a key role in this process of
adaptation; therefore, a pragmatic seme is also found.
Therefore, the question of replacing anglicized items by native units is linked to a
number of variables: the principle of least effort, the existing sociolinguistic traits of the
language when the lexical unit is acquired, the degree of difficulty in the translation
process, the acceptance and/or abhorring of one of the coexisting synonyms
(baseball/béisbol/pelota), etc. What seems more evident is that specialized terms are more
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prone to keep borrowings unadapted, entailing a historical dichotomy between language

(system) and speech: backup, dugout, gingham, jingle.
5.3.4 Semantics
The most distinctive feature of Cu. anglicisms is the lack of polysemy. Loanwords and
calques tend to be one-sense units, which is in accordance with the underlying purpose of
lexical borrowing: the acquisition of a non-existent unit in the native language.
Nevertheless, diachronically speaking, a few early-acquired borrowings have become
polysemous or homonymous due to a metaphorical transfer or extension of meaning:
fotingo < foot in and go, which initially meant ‘car’, it evolved to ‘old car’, and it is also
currently used to call the ‘buttocks’. In some cases, the transfer of meaning is more
obvious: all around, whose first sense refers to a gymnastics term used to denote a
gymnast who can do various types of exercises; a second meaning is used with a broader
sense of ‘being capable of doing different types of activities’, not necessarily related to
sports. In the case of güin < whin, the features of the ‘long spiny stem’ (sense 1) are
transferred into sense 2, ‘an extremely thin person’, proving that semantic re-assignment
could involve actions and physical traits. The transition undergone by party (see section
5.2.1 above) shows the complexity of the processes of semantic shifting and gender
alteration pertaining to borrowing and calquing.
English homonyms are rarely found in Cuban anglicized borrowings. Instead, these
forms are equally assimilated in the target language, and maintain their homonymous
nature. For instance: blooper (sense 1) ‘an embarrassing public blunder’ and blooper
(sense 2) ‘a fly ball hit barely beyond a baseball infield’; panel (sense 1) < panel truck and
panel (sense 2) ‘a group of people with special knowledge, skill, or experience who give
advice or make decisions’. Thus, loanwords tend to undergo homonym or polysemy
processes within the target language, which explains why lexical borrowing is
characterized by being scarcely polysemic.
Another feature of Cu. anglicisms is the extension/change of meaning due to the
political shifting the language has been exposed to. This may occur: mitin < meeting can
have a more literal sense of ‘brief gathering at work to read or tell some information’, and
a post-1959 ‘a recrimination speech in which someone else is being criticized by his/her
acts’. The latter one clearly conveys a more politically biased meaning, whose pragmatic
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feature is completed by the collocation de repudio, as in mitin de repudio ‘street

demonstrations’.
Semantically speaking, the referent could play an important role. In Cu., it is
frequent to find a number of synonymous duplets (native and borrowed elements), which
do not coincide fully in their denotation process: enguatada/suéter < sweater,
salchicha/hot dog. For example, suéter refers to a knitted or crocheted sweater whilst
enguatada could be a thin, long-sleeved cotton top. Both have in common that they are
worn in winter, that they are long-sleeved, and presumably that seems much semantic
information to relate them synonymously.
Without doubt, it is baseball-related metaphors, and their adaptation to standard
Spanish, that has represented a step forward in terms of the linguistic evolution of
anglicisms in Cuban Spanish. These metaphorical phrases (jugar en los files ‘to be at the
very back of a place’ < to play in the fields; batear un jonrón ‘to hit the dot’ < to bat a
home-run) are linked to a growing popularization, and their transferred traits are not
necessarily related with the original sense: thus, in the case of cuarto bate, whose meaning
is ‘someone who eats plenty of food’ and whose origin is the baseball phrase ‘fourth
batter’ (or ‘cleanup batter’), there exists a semantic equivalence between the batter who is
responsible for ‘cleaning’ the bases, and the person who ‘cleans’ the dishes.
The analysis of the assimilation degree of borrowings in a native environment is
easily perceived through a combination of factors. Cárdenas (1999: 53) has summarized
some of these ‘indexes’ in Cuban Spanish: 1) the use of anglicized words in word-building
processes (pitcher/pitcheo/pitchear); 2) the vernacular condition of some specific units,
which undergo a shift from a specialized to more general usage (manichear ‘to manage’
was used for ‘managing businesses’ and now it is used with the meaning ‘to manipulate
someone’); 3) the specialization of the meaning of some of the borrowed words (bisne <
business, which is currently used to denote an illegal business); 4) the extension of
meaning through metaphorical variants of the loanword (poncharse < to punch, which is
used metaphorically with the meaning ‘not to succeed in doing something’); 5) the
existence of polysemy, as it has been explained and exemplified throughout all this section.
5.4 SOCIOLINGUISTIC REMARKS
Loanwords in Cuban Spanish have been clearly exposed to a palpable sociolinguistic

context shifting. This may have had a significant influence on the words attested in
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dictionaries, but more importantly, on the attitude towards the use of anglicisms as far as
social class and sociolect are concerned. In other words, sociolects are dependent on their
own stylistic or diaphasic variations. Styles do not operate independently, but they are
found to be associated with a specific social stratum, within the limits of a sociolect (cf.
López Morales, 2013).
When tracking back the diachronic motivations of lexical and semantic borrowings,
there seems to be pragmatics-driven factors: 1) language contact, which involves
‘intimate borrowing’ (Bloomfield, 1994: 461) resulting from geographic and cultural
proximity, or military, political and cultural dominance; 2) social need, which refers to
science-oriented neologisms and the acceptance of specialized terms; 3)
institutionalization, which implies words being ‘established in a language and
incorporated in the permanent inventory of the lexicon’ (Stojičić, 2004). What seems
obvious is that social need seems to vary inasmuch as extralinguistic traits, and such a
variation triggers new forms of word formation, extensions of meanings, abhorrence of
existing lexical units, and sociolect choice.
One of the most evident signs of the impact of extralinguistic features on the
borrowing process is the revision of written language, especially journalistic materials, and
entries’ first-known use in dictionaries. The latter could be sometimes misleading since “a
word is often current for years in the spoken language before it appears in published texts”
(Stubbs, 2001: 174). Nevertheless, the study of print journals constitutes a satisfactory
means of sociolinguistic analysis of loanwords.
The existence of a system of “orderly heterogeneity” within a speech community’s
language (Weinreich, Labov, and Herzog, 1968: 100) implies the non-random nature of
sociolinguistic variations, constrained by multiple social factors. The ultimate challenge is
to find quantitative and qualitative mechanisms for culling synchronic data sets, which
“tell us much about how language change is embedded in social structures, i.e. the social
mechanisms, motivations, and constraints on it” (Bayley, 2007: 118). The empirical
analysis of written texts, especially journalistic materials, has been of great importance to
identify the contextual features of attested words, and to describe the sociolect these units
belong to.
There are two major findings regarding the sociolinguistic motivations of anglicized
lexical borrowing in Cuban Spanish:
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o Neocolonial (1902-1959) upper sociolect: there exists a direct link between upper
socioeconomic stratum and English-induced units as far as positive prestige is
concerned. The complete acceptance of these units into such a sociolect implies
favorable conditions as per the anglicization of lexis (cf. Sánchez Fajardo, 2016b).
The number of anglicisms found during this period exceeds the ones extracted from
the other two periods (Colonial and Post-1959) combined: party, cake, living
‘living-room set’, frigidaire ‘fridge’, cloche ‘clutch’, fielder ‘baseball infield
position’, etc. What seems consistent is that the majority of the loanwords
assimilated, and accepted, by a high-class sociolect results in fully-integrated,
standard lexicon. Therefore, subsequent historical and political events won’t have
any significant impact on the ‘foreignness’ connotation these units were once
compelled with.
o Post-1959 sociolect: changes of earlier Cuban social classes, and a disruption of

Cuban-American foreign policy marked the establishment of new connotative traits
as far as prestige is concerned. Some authors have made reference to the use of
English-induced loanwords and they have found that these forms “have nowadays a
high index of frequency within a high sociolect” (Fasla, 2007-2008: 86). It is
unquestionable that in certain areas (sports, technology, economics, etc.), the
adaptation of newly-coined units has continued. However, the compilation of Cu.
anglicisms, calques, adapted phrases (see section 11.1.2) has proved the existence
of a significant group of borrowings linked to negative prestige, whose users are
more likely related to low sociolect: all right, ok, fifty-fifty, fit-doing, cigar, money,
brother, etc. Clearly, these units have not undergone such an integration process as
their predecessors once did. There is a noticeable connection between sociolect
dominance and borrowing integration and adaptation. Unfortunately, not much has
been studied on the degree of acceptance of lexical borrowing in post-1959 Cu.
Cuban-American migrants’ dialect, and in particular Spanglish, has exerted a great
influence on the assimilation of a number of loanwords: estraples < strapless,
cuora < quarter, parole, flip-flops, etc. Not surprisingly, these coinages co-exist
with native ones: sin tirantes (estraples), peseta (cuora), chancleta (flip-flops).
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The existing dichotomy between anglicisms and native forms, especially those
conveying a synonymous meaning, denotes the complexity of the sociolinguistic process of
register and social stratification. Register, understood as “the necessary mediating concept
that enables us to establish the continuity between a text and its sociosemiotic
environment” (Halliday, 2002: 58), relates to the sociolinguistic factors (age, gender,
education, socioeconomic stratum, etc.) and the corresponding sociolect.
In the case of Cu., most of the specialized anglicisms have a learned nature, i.e. they
belong to a higher sociolect. Maybe the exception is sports, in particular baseball, whose
terminology has varied from the ‘foreigness’ status to a more native one, integrating into
the vernacular as anglicized forms, calques or even metaphorical phrases: files < fields,
jardines, estar en los files ‘to be at the very back of a place’.
The learned or specialized words are mostly found in written language, and they
coexist with their equivalent speech forms. An example is display/pantalla: the former is
specialized whereas the latter does occur as a metonymic form in the speech. But
occasionally, the difference of usage of two synonyms does not rely on the type of
language but its purpose in the source language, as in film/filme and película. The former
undergoes a ‘redistribution of functions’ (Cárdenas, 1999: 53), i.e. its usage is mostly
restricted to specialized spheres whereas the second one denotes ‘a film’ as we know it in
the vernacular. This so-called redistribution might result from the co-text typology which
the form was generally found in when the borrowing process takes place. It might explain
why certain loanwords are more inclined to specialized fields than others.
Nevertheless, in some occasions “the formality is independent of technicality”
(Rodríguez, 2002: 146). In the print press, it is frequent to find ‘camión cisterna’ instead of
the anglicized pipa < pipe to refer to a large truck of varying capacity used especially for
storing water, beer, or refreshments; or ‘parada de taxi’ (taxi rank) instead of piquera <
pick-up.
In general terms, the alternation of some of these duplets clearly relies on the choice of
the speaker (or writer) and type of speech (or text) produced. Sociolinguistic traits
(register, education level, technicality, etc.) are fundamental in the semantic construction
of new coinages. They depict these fresher lexical units more thoroughly, and establish
complex mechanisms of word choice, polysemy, synonymy, metonymy, etc.
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5.5 BASE-BALL, BASEBALL, BÉISBOL, PELOTA
The study of baseball-related words has fascinated linguists, and speakers in general, due
to the attested symbolism of cubanía7 they convey, and to the premise that “the lexicon
belonging to this sport is by far in everyone’s mouth, and it is a distinguishing element of
their identity” (Castro Odio, 2012). Baseball, or la pelota, as it is known in Cuba, has
transcended historical periods, and has served as reference material and analysis for
experts in lexicography, terminology and sociolinguistics. Besides, this sport has been
strongly linked to a long-standing process of transculturation, started in in the nineteenth
century, and which resulted in the assimilation of North-American lifestyles and pastimes.
In sum, baseball is probably the semantic area that best reveals the evolution of anglicized
lexicon in Cuban Spanish since most of the units have been borrowed or calqued from
English (cf. Camacho, 1998-1999).
“Baseball acted as a catalyst during the sociolinguistic transition” (Sánchez Fajardo,
2016a: 19), which implied that hundreds of phrases were adapted from the media and
specialized commentaries into the vernacular. Thus, the assimilation of a number of
borrowed phrases and words started in the different levels (phonological, morpho-
syntactic, semantic). If at the end of the nineteenth century, some nationwide papers
published glossaries, accompanying their sport chronicles, for those who were less familiar
with the English language (Pérez, 2008: 78), in the print press of the twentieth century
these lexical units underwent phonetic and graphemic alterations.
The graphemic variants are obviously related to the phonetic changes produced by
Cuban speakers. Thus, these variations are still palpable: chingala < shin-guard, filis <
fields, esquedo < schedule, jonrón < home-run, etc. Together with direct borrowings from
English, calques (both literal and free) have added an important group of entries, which is
why there exists a significant level of synonymy within baseball. Free calques (field/jardín,
hit/línea) exceed in number the literal ones (pitcher/lanzador, cátcher/quécher/receptor),
entailing somehow the high metaphorical content of the resulting units, as opposed to the
units formed through literal translation.
The coexistence of these synonyms in the language is one of the most relevant
features of baseball-related words. Linguistic abhorrence was replaced by the semantic
redefinition of loanwords: base-ball, as it was initially borrowed, was substituted by
Cuban-ness
7
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béisbol (an adapted form), which derived into pelota. Béisbol and pelota survive in
contemporary Cuban Spanish, being the former preferred over by the media and
specialized texts. Interestingly, an ever-increasing number of baseball-related terms have
been hispanicized, which is by itself a pragmatic tendency of present-day Cuban print
press: fields → jardínes, pitcher → lanzador, catcher → receptor. An analogous process
of ‘language depuration’8 has been described by López Morales (2013: 142) in reference to
the news agency CNN en Español, whereby terms are carefully chosen and neologisms are
hispanized: ethnic profile → ‘singularización racial’, soft money → ‘contribuciones
indirectas’.
No doubt, the integration of metaphorical baseball-related units into the vernacular
is what has meant a step forward towards the linguistic adaptation of anglicized units in
Cuban Spanish. These words and phrases have in common their belonging to a medium-
low sociolect, and some of their semic traits do not necessarily relate entirely to their
original sense: in the case of cuarto bate, whose meaning is ‘someone who eats a lot’, and
whose origin relies on the phrase ‘fourth batter’ (or cleanup batter), a semantic equivalence
is established between the batter who ‘cleans’, or empties, the bases and the person who
‘cleans’ the dishes.
Another interesting feature of these metaphorical lexical units is that most of the
phrases are composed by ‘indirect borrowing’ (Furiassi, 2012: 7), i.e. some of their
elements are native, and Spanish syntax might be respected: jugar en los files < fields,
llevar el average < average, ser out por regla < out. Metaphorical transfer of meaning is
highly perceived in examples of free translation: lanzarse de barriga < to slide onto the
base.
In short, studying the influence of the anglicization and transculturation processes
necessarily involves the analysis of baseball-related entries in Cuban Spanish. Their
fundamental contribution has been to expose the evolution of English-induced borrowings
within a specific language, and how most of these elements have been semantically
redefined. Thus, synonymy, polysemy and homonymy are fostered greatly, entailing a
deep-rooted native-ness process. The metaphorical usage of indirect borrowings or free
translations clearly conveys the significance of the adaptation process.
Original in Spanish: depuración idiomástica.

8
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Pseudo-Anglicisms in Cuban Spanish
6. PSEUDO-ANGLICISMS IN CUBAN SPANISH
6.1 PSEUDO-ANGLICISMS: TO BE OR NOT TO BE?
The study of the influence of English on other languages has been chiefly focused on
clearly-recognized English loanwords, which is why a number of concepts and typologies
are Anglicism-centered. Corpuses and glossaries indicate that the number of anglicisms
and calques visibly exceed that of ‘false’ anglicisms (cf. section 11.1.2). However, the
latter units are probably the living proof of how linguistic intrusiveness denotes a complex
process of semantic change and morphological adaptation, in which the rules of word
formation and syntax are nativized. This is, without doubt, the zenith of linguistic
borrowing as far as complexity and uniqueness are concerned. “Pseudo anglicisms and
hybrid anglicisms are indicators of lexical productivity in the recipient language” (Onysko,
2007: 52).
Traditionally, the word pseudo in ‘pseudo-anglicism’ has entailed negative
connotations, and its drifting apart from concepts such as loans or anglicisms. The coinage
of ‘English-induced neologism’ is probably of greater acceptance, but due to pragmatic
reasons (most scholars have adopted the term ‘pseudo-anglicism’), the latter term will be
used hereafter.
The analysis of forms and types of pseudo-anglicism brings about the need to
reconsider the concept of anglicism. Anglicisms, as they have conventionally referred to,
are English-induced forms in the target language, whose phonological, morpho-syntactic,
or semantic changes are visibly identified. Thus, not only does the term anglicism
encompass borrowed (adapted or not) units directly from English, but it also involves any
expression, in spite of not coinciding in use, containing any element that can be recognized
~ 79 ~
through its form, at different linguistic levels (lexical, morphological or phonological), or

that takes on a different meaning, keeping the same form (Rodríguez, 2003: 124).
A comprehensive concept has been likewise offered by Cristiano Furiassi, whose
main contributions are equally addressed to widen the concept of anglicism in present
lexicographical studies: “a word or an idiom that is recognizably English in its form
(spelling, pronunciation, morphology, or at least one of three) but is accepted as an item in
the vocabulary of the receptor language even though it does not exist or is used with a
conspicuously different meaning in English” (2010: 34).
The above-mentioned criteria have converged in the recognition of native English-
induced forms as pseudo-anglicisms as long as their English influence is remarkably
perceived by native speakers but not necessarily by English speakers. The attention-
grabbing aspect of this phenomenon is the detachment caused by the existing pseudo-
anglicisms in the recipient language, and the expected incapability of English speakers to
detect the meaning of the existing words, which could be a helpful and delimiting way of
looking at the phenomenon from the point of view of the ‘monoglot’ Anglophone reader or
listener (cf. Furiassi & Gottlieb, 2015). What seems irrefutable is that these forms are
assimilated and manipulated in any recipient language, and through mechanisms of
morpho-syntactic adaptation and semantic extension, fresher units are resorted to (footing
‘jogging’ in Spanish, Handy ‘mobile phone’ in German, caddy ‘type of trousers’ in Polish,
etc.)
The phenomenon of pseudo-anglicism is worldwide, and its so-called pervasive
influence might result from a plethora of reasons: the Anglicization of the media, the use of
specific jargon, the permeability of a language, i.e. the likeliness of a language to coin
these neologisms, the pragmatic connotation conveyed, etc. Cuban Spanish has not been an
exception: average ‘number of former sexual intercourses’, bonche < bunch ‘street
parties’, corring ‘the act of running in baseball’, dancing ‘a night club where people go
dancing’ < dancing club, etc. Pragmatic features, as shown in chapter 4, have had an
impact on the number and typology of the pseudo-anglicisms assimilated, and more
importantly, the sociolect these neologisms belong to. Based on the functionality of these
forms, it is important to point out that pseudo-anglicisms are bound to be used more
differently and perceived than their cognate or equivalent terms in any other speech
community, as these entries operate in an unlike cultural and linguistic environment and
tend to fulfill different needs (cf. Furiassi & Gottlieb, 2015).
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The primary challenge is to approach a clear-cut distinction between pseudo-

anglicism and other similar processes. From a normative perspective, pseudo-anglicisms
might undergo different linguistic changes (graphemic, phonological, morpho-syntactic or
semantic). These changes coincide partly with the ones described in other linguistic
anglicization processes: loanword, hybrid, calque, semantic loan (cf. Furiassi, Pulcini &
Rodríguez, 2012), but a differentiating trait stands out: ‘false’ or ‘pseudo’ loans are
inexistent in the source language. Thus, adapted direct loanwords (blúmer ‘underwear’ <
bloomer, esquedo < schedule) are not pseudo-anglicisms because they do exist in English,
yet their resulting forms have been morphologically and graphemically modified.
Therefore, the lack of English-ness does not necessarily involve a disruption between two
paronyms; the loss of some the features is associated with adaptation processes (chiefly
graphemic and phonological).
Occasionally, English and the recipient language inventory evolve diachronically and
loanwords might derive into pseudo-anglicisms because their corresponding English
paronyms become unused. This is an infrequent phenomenon, and it is linked to the
pragmatic features of these forms: gascar < gas car, creche ‘nursery and pre-school center’
< crèche (in AmE, the meaning of nursery center and pre-school center is not attested).
6.2 ORIGIN OF PSEUDO-ANGLICISMS
Once the distinguishing features of ‘false’ anglicisms are clarified, there exists a need to
comprehend how these lexical units come into light. There is not a single process involved;
on the contrary, a few word-building mechanisms might intervene: 1) foreign element is
borrowed and nativized, or translated, in the recipient language (foreignness traits are not
easy to detect by RL speakers) as in bisne ‘illegal business’; 2) foreign element is
borrowed and not adapted (foreignness traits are easily spotted by RL speakers) as in
dancing ‘discotheque’; 3) native element is attached to foreign morphological or
phonological features as in corring ‘run’; 4) foreign elements are combined in the recipient
language unnaturally as in fit-doing ‘ok’; 5) nativized anglicisms undergoing extension of
meaning and leading to homonyms, whose newly-grown sense detaches completely from
its original English paronym as in fotingo ‘buttocks’ (originally from the slogan ‘foot it and
go’, then it was used for old cars).
The latter might be arguably considered a ‘false’ anglicism because this semantic
process takes place within the recipient language, i.e. Cuban Spanish, and not as a result of
~ 81 ~
language contact. Therefore, taking into consideration that intra-linguistic sense-shifting

processes (homonymy, polysemy, metonymy, etc.) does not involve any code-switching or
borrowing mechanisms might change our current perspective towards pseudo-
anglicization. Let us take the example of bisne: initially, the word bisne < business was
borrowed to denote any “activity of making, buying, or selling goods or providing services
in exchange for money” (Merriam Webster’s Dictionary online); once the loanword was
coined, it evolved into ‘illegal business’ due to pragmatic and semantic features.
Obviously, processes 1) and 5), as described above, are involved in the coinage. Since our
earlier, and probably wider, definition of pseudo-anglicisms implied any borrowing whose
meaning in the recipient language (RL) does not coincide with its corresponding paronym
in the source language, the term pseudo-anglicism is used to denote these intra-linguistic
forms as well.
Furiassi & Gottlieb (2015) refer to a variety of factors involved in the adoption of
‘false’ anglicisms: language economy, in which brevity is key to understand the coinage of
shortened forms such as dancing ‘dancing club or discotheque’, center ‘center-field’; or
the “taste for the exotic, the charm of a foreign language, and the glamorous quirk of being
creative and playing with language are the core motivations for the birth of false
Anglicisms” (Furiassi, 2010: 62-63).
In the case of mechanism 4) described earlier in this section, it is relevant to point out
that it is another recognizable source of anglicisms of great importance and complexity due
to the ‘autonomous compounding’ (Rodríguez, 2013: 128) these foreign elements go
through. Rodríguez outlines a series of ‘false’ anglicisms in Spanish of this kind:
recordman/recordwoman (replacing recordholder in English), boxman (instead of boxer),
etc.
6.3 TYPOLOGY OF PSEUDO-ANGLICISMS
In the previous section, an introductory account of the sources of ‘false’ anglicisms was
provided, which might help us understand the theory on which the following typology is
based.
An interesting classification of pseudo-anglicisms was introduced by Görlach (2003:
62), in which four groups have been identified according to the level affected: 1) spelling:
when native words are spelt as if they were English; 2) pronunciation: when native words
are pronounced as if they were English; 3) morphology: when derivatives or compounds,
~ 82 ~
not recorded in English, might conform with English patterns; 4) meaning: when English
words are used in unnatural contexts. This hands-on grouping suggests the extent to which
false anglicisms are trackable.
In the study of these lexical units, Rodríguez (2013: 125-146) summarizes the five
major types of pseudo-anglicisms in Spanish, and details further word-building subgroups.
The classification of these borrowed forms might shed some light on how the adaptation
process and semantic motivation are linked. Understanding the wide ratio of occurrence of
this process is probably one of the most challenging targets of current studies on linguistic
borrowing.
According to Rodríguez, there are five comprehensive groups, which coincide with
prior classifications of anglicisms in terms of the linguistic levels involved:
a) Lexical pseudo-anglicisms: recordman/–woman ‘recordholder’, footing ‘jogging’;

corring ‘run’.
b) Morphological pseudo-anglicisms: biuti < beautiful (people), lunchera < lunch box,
shopping ‘store’ < shop.
c) Semantic pseudo-anglicisms: slip ‘male underwear’, mítin ‘street protests’ <
meeting.
d) Phonological pseudo-anglicisms: manigüiti ‘theft’ < money, jaibolear < high ball,
níquel ‘coin’ < nickel.
e) Syntactic pseudo-anglicisms: sugar brown < brown sugar9 (adjective + noun order
is modified).
Onysko (2003: 53) argues that “the division of pseudo loans into lexical,
morphological, and semantic pseudo loans blurs the difference between semantic and
morphological adaptation of anglicisms (in the recipient language) and the creation of
pseudo anglicisms as lexical units irrespective of an English model”. He differentiates
those German pseudo loans appearing as regular borrowing because they derived from
English models as in Profi, Pulli (back formation from professional and pullover), and
those like Handy or Dressman do not relate directly to English models. Based on this
distinction, Onysko highlights the functional capabilities of German as far as word
formation is concerned.
9
Example in European Spanish, retrieved from Rodríguez (2013).
~ 83 ~
Other types of classifications describe these units as constructs derived from specific
linguistic processes. It is not infrequent to find some forms resulting from the natural mix
of two or more processes of this kind. Some of these classifying arrangements respond to
the need of detailing the etymology of words and the nature of the mechanisms involved 10:
1. Autonomous compounding: these forms were referred above as a productive source

of pseudo loans, especially in Spanish. Autonomous compounding results in the
combination of two autonomous lexical units in English, which combine in the
recipient language. In Cuban Spanish, this mechanism is infrequent, and few cases
are attested: fit-doing ‘ok’ < fit + doing, gascar < gas + car. These compounds are
most likely motivated by anglicized patterning (as in –man or –woman) or just
‘gibberish’ associations (as in fit-doing). Other examples: star bout < (boxing)
bout, chorpan/shorpan ‘bermuda’ < short pants.
2. Autonomous derivation: these derivatives are probably the most visible forms of
pseudo loans in Spanish, especially in Spain, in which an already-existing
anglicism undergoes an English derivational process resulting in a non-English
derivative: championismo < champion + ism(o), footing, drinking. The present-day
tendency to borrow the process, not the bases involved, has been widely resorted to
in the media, especially in European Spanish: kitchening, balconing, edredoning,
sofing, puenting11 are current pseudo derivatives characterized by attaching a native
base to the –ing form. The resulting units convey contemporaneity, humor or
discomfort.
The attachment of diminutive derivational suffixes to anglicized bases in Cuban
Spanish is not frequent, but these nominal forms constitute a living proof of the
productivity of loanwords within a target language. These forms are usually
associated with suffix –ito(a) as in shorcito < shorts, pulovito < pullover, babyto <
baby, blumito < bloomers. These forms are clearly English-induced since their
resulting derivatives are a blend of a foreign base and a native suffix. These
derivatives are clearly not pseudo-anglicisms since they do convey the same sense,
but with alterations in the referent: pulovito, blumito and shorcito are most likely
10
Cf. Furiassi (2010): False anglicisms in Italian. Monza, Polimetrica.
11
Examples found in European Spanish only.
~ 84 ~
denoting children’s garments whereas their English paronyms are used for both
adults and children.
3. Compounding ellipsis (or breakage): this process is characterized by the ellipsis of

one component (or more) of the borrowed compounds. The remaining units are
kept in the recipient language and they undergo a redefinition of their syntactic
functions, as opposed to their original forms in English: center (field) ‘baseball
position’, shopping (center), living (room set), volley (ball), floppy (disc).
Curiously, -ing forms might convey different semantic and syntactic functions
depending on the Spanish variants and contextual motivations: shopping in Cuban-
American Spanglish is a proper anglicism with the meaning ‘to visit places where
goods are sold in order to look at and buy things’ (Merriam Webster’s Dictionary)
whereas in Cuban Spanish is a pseudo loan meaning ‘a store in which products can
be bought with dollars’. Similarly, living in Cuban-American Spanish could mean
‘the cost/style of living’ whereas in Cuba it does denote ‘a set of living room
(furniture)’. Both shopping and living are described as polysemous loans because of
the word-building processes undergone and the variant involved. Other examples of
compounding ellipsis: rolling < rolling hit, cutout /katao/ < cutout box.
4. Morphological Mutations: these changes are associated with morphological

shifting, i.e. “the replacement of the original ending by a more expressive,
resounding, and productive one like –ing suffix” (Rodríguez, 2013: 133). The
examples attested in the oft-quoted article by Rodríguez González are not abundant,
but they show how these lexical units are formed: dancing < dance, leasing < lease,
face-lifting < face-lift, drinking < drink, etc. In Cuban Spanish, some of these
examples are equally found but they might convey a different sense. In the case of
dancing, this word primarily denotes ‘a place for dancing’ or ‘discotheque’, but not
necessarily ‘the act of dancing’. Therefore, this form in Cu. does not derive from
the verb dance, but it results from compounding ellipsis (dancing club), similarly to
the same process undergone by shopping (< shopping center). However, drinking is
probably an exceptional case in Cuban Spanish because its sense of ‘the act of
drinking alcohol’ coincides fully with its akin form in English, so it shouldn’t be
referred to as a pseudo loan.
~ 85 ~
A distinguishable illustration of morphological mutation is also found in baseball

terminology, which is in synchrony with Spanish speakers’ preconception towards
suffixes –er and –ing. The former (as well as its allomorph -or) is commonly
perceived as agent-related (big líguer ‘someone possessing high qualifications
and/or skills’ < big league) whilst the latter could be used for different types of
references: places (dancing), action (drinking), and appearance (looking), which is
detailed further on. One of the baseball-related examples is rolling, which is ‘a type
of hit on the field, not a bouncing one’. This mutated coinage derives from roller,
which also exists in Cu. through the adapted direct borrowing role. Both forms,
role and rolling, coexist in Cuban Spanish. Regarding the word looking (low
register), the etymology of this form is uncertain, and generally used in native
phrases: tener un looking ‘to look good’. It could either mutate morphologically
from the verb look or derive through omission or ellipsis from the compound good-
looking. One of the interesting features of these mutations is that they are obviously
accompanied by morphological modifications as well as syntactic changes: the
forms drinking and looking are not seen isolated in a given utterance; they call for
additional native forms to convey a specific semantic structure (darle/meterle al
drinking, tener un looking).
A typical graphemic deviation (or mutation) induced by English is present in those
words spelt with c (cake/kei, pancake/pankei, cuáquer/kuaquer). These doublets
coexist in Cu. and their differentiation depends on the register they are used in. The
case of recentín ‘a type of cow that has just given birth’ is an isolated one. Its
English influence is highly evident (recent) but not the origin of its attached suffix.
It could be a patterning construct of adjective recent and suffix –ing (recenting).
Not only would this derivative prove the polysemous nature of suffix –ing in
Spanish but it also adds a deep-rooted sense of Englishness to its grapheme and
sound.
5. Clipping: at times, loaned words undergo alterations or shortening of their original

forms, which might lead to nativized clippings, inexistent in English. This process
is particularly motivated by phonological adaptation or language economy: aerobic
< aerobics, happy end (< happy ending), bodyboard (< bodyboarding), mountain-
bike (< mountain-biking), skateboard (< skateboarding), snowboard (<
~ 86 ~
snowboarding), surf (< surfing), windsurf (< windsurfing)12. Interestingly, clipping

and morphological mutation are both morphological alterations of loan words; their
difference relies on the ellipsis (clipping) of suffixes or grapheme clusters, or the
addition (mutation) of suffixes to the bases borrowed.
Clipping and compounding ellipsis are equally motivated, but the latter purely
describes the omission of compound bases, not their constituent suffixes or clusters.
Occasionally, both processes might take place in a single loaned word: windsurfing
is clipped into windsurf, and then its last base is omitted as in wind. This might
exemplify the complementary nature of these word-building mechanisms, and set
formation patterns in terms of etymology and morphology.
Apocopes are the most frequent type of shortenings found (happy end, windsurf,
etc.), but initial part of words can be likewise clipped (apheresis) as in queque ‘a
crunchy pasty’ < pancake (also a reduplication). An unusual case of mutation is
also linked with the process of adaptation: middle-position clusters of consonants
or vowels are dropped, resulting in a ‘necessary’ adapted shortening: cotel ‘a fruity
punch’ < cocktail (English cluster -ck- is omitted).
In Cuban Spanish, a number of clipped pseudo loans are also observed, especially
those shortenings in final position (apocopes): pun ‘a pointed hairdo’ < punk, par
(cable) ‘the cable having two paired wires’ < paired (cable).
At times, some anglicisms might be thought as clipped constructs due to their rather
imperceptible English forms: siol < short stop, tubey < two-base hit, tribey < three-
base hit. These resulting units are the product of morphological fusion of
composites, most likely due to phonological reasons.
6. Reduplications: historically, Cuban Spanish has been flooded with reduplications,

which are characterized by the repetition of the same graphemic form for the sake
of emphasis, or humorous connotations (see chapter 3). These loaned pseudo
compounds are built within the recipient language, and some of the forms have
outlived their original loans: tifi-tifi ‘theft’ < thief, soqui-soqui ‘fornication’ < to
suck, napi-napi ‘sleep’ < to nap.
Examples in European Spanish, retrieved from Rodríguez (2013: 135).

12
~ 87 ~
7. Semantic changes: this is probably one of the most productive word-building

processes as far as pseudo anglicisms are concerned. It refers to the semantic
shifting undergone by English words within the recipient language through
homonymy, metonymy, polysemy, etc., leading to English-induced coinages whose
semantic structure is clearly detached from their corresponding English paronyms.
The diachronic acquisition of new senses is a frequent process, which results from
the natural tendency to make use of the accessible vocabulary stock. The newly-
coined lexico-semantic variant (LSV) is easily distinguished because its loaned
form was earlier acquired by the recipient language, and then a new sememe is
conceived. The unprecedented LSV becomes thus a pseudo loan, whose form
coincides with its English paronym but its sense clearly differs. This study reveals
that a few mechanisms might intervene in the process of formation of the new LSV:
a. Metonymy: this phenomenon is highly productive with regard to lexical

borrowing. As to pseudo-anglicisms, the commonest process refers to the
borrowing of trademarks’ names and their corresponding coinages of the
products they stand for: fa ‘detergent’ < Fab, péter ‘a milk chocolate bar’ <
Peter Paul, frigidaire ‘fridge’ < Frigidaire, chevy ‘an old car’ <
Chevy/Cheverolet.
Metonymic processes are also present in words denoting places in which a
service is provided, or a specific product is sold. This is particularly
frequent in Cuban Spanish, and these forms are usually adapted to Spanish
morpho-syntactic features: piquera ‘a taxi rank’ < pick-up (passengers are
picked up there), maltera ‘a malt shop’ < malt, donera ‘a donut shop’ <
donut (in Cuban-American Spanish), ponchera ‘a car garage specialized in
flat tires’ < punch. In Sp., Rodríguez (2013: 136) distinguishes the use of
burger ‘hamburger’ and burger ‘hamburger shop’. There exists a gender
shift in both forms: the former is feminine (probably due to its Spanish
synonym hamburguesa) and the latter is masculine, which might indicate its
connection with burger chains such as Burger King, MacDonald’s, etc.
Occasionally, metonymic forms are used to denote the purpose of the action
or the activity it is related to (ajustadores ‘bras’ < adjusting brassieres;
~ 88 ~
combinada ‘machinery used for cutting and processing sugar canes’ <
combine harvester; tenis ‘sport shoes’ < tennis shoes).
b. Metaphorical: the metaphorical extension of meaning in loanwords is

motivated by: physical traits of referents, humorous connotation of the
vernacular, or merely denotation. Metaphors are responsible for the transfer
of English words’ semes into loaned lexical units, most of which have lost
visible relationship with their original paronyms: fílin ‘a ballad-related
music style’ < feeling, mítin ‘a street protest’ < meeting, bonche ‘an
informal gathering in which jokes are told and tricks are played’ < bunch,
bate ‘a large penis’ < bat.
Baseball-related words or phraseology are highly influenced by
metaphorical transfer of meaning, especially in the formation of vernacular
expressions (Sánchez Fajardo, 2016a: 20-22): hacer swing ‘to pay attention
to someone or something’ < to swing, poncharse ‘to get frustrated’ < to
punch-out, tener average ‘to be promiscuous’ < average.
At times, loans undergo semantic changes through more than one process
involved: chevy (or cheverolé) was firstly assimilated as a car trademark;
then through metonymy, the word is used to signify old American cars
(especially those built before 1959); and through a metaphorical transfer of
original Chevy cars, the word is likewise used to call people having large
ears as in ser un chevy (Chevies were known for their wide side doors).
c. Synecdoche: these forms are named after smaller segments of a much bigger
concept: pipa < pipe is a truck having a special container attached, or pipe,
which is a “long hollow tube for carrying water, gas, etc.” (Merriam
Webster’s Dictionary). Thus, the truck is named after the container
attached. The word baffle is another example: it denotes in Cuban Spanish
the loudspeakers used to make sound louder, and this lexeme comes from
“the screen used to control the flow of the outcoming sound” (Merriam
Webster’s Dictionary).
~ 89 ~
d. Eponymic: these are common nouns whose origin relies on proper English
names: meri popin ‘globe-trotter’ < Mary Poppins, roquefeler ‘very rich
person’ < Rockefeller. Interestingly, the formation of these nouns is not as
productive in contemporary Cuban Spanish as the formation of names based
on English common nouns: Meivi < maybe, Usanavy < USA Navy, Danyer
< danger (see section 8.8).
In the case of the European Spanish (Sp.), Rodríguez (2013: 139) illustrates
this process through an array of examples and their corresponding
etymologies: rebeca ‘a types of buttoned jumper’ < Rebeca (a film by A.
Hitchcock, in which the lead actress wears a similar piece of garment),
cárter ‘crank-case’ (an engine cover invented by J. Harrison Carter), etc.
Interestingly, carter is also used in Cuban-American Spanish with the
meaning of ‘peanut’. Its etymology dates as early back as the Carter-Reagan
presidential campaign, in which Carter was known for harvesting peanuts
(Sánchez-Boudy, 1999: 155).
In Cuban-American Spanish, owing to its exposure to American-related
names and culture, eponyms of this kind are recurrently found: ser el Dr.
Chol ‘to be someone’s support’ < Dr. Scholl (trademark), ser una orfan Ani
‘to complain a lot’ < Orphan Annie (a TV series’ character), jiménez ‘FBI
agents’ < G-men (Cubans would pronounce it as /himen/ and spell it as
jimen).
e. Toponymic: these English-induced units are characterized by being resulting

constructs from English place names: bayú ‘brothel’ < Bayou (a swampy
area in the Southeastern part of the US, which is thought to be linked to the
city of Havana through steady trading routes); yuma ‘a US citizen’ or yuma
‘the US’ < Yuma (a city in Arizona, in which Western films were often
based in). There are a number of anglicized buildings’ names, especially in
Havana, whose nativized grapheme or pronunciation is clearly visible at
times: tencén < Ten Cent, sia < Sear, sanyón < Saint John. Hershey
(pronounced /hersi/) ‘a small town relatively near Havana’ was founded by
Hershey (a chocolate maker), and its name has remained ever since.
~ 90 ~
A case of sport-related toponymy is derbi or derby, which exists in both

variants of Spanish, Cu. and Sp., and its etymology is the English city of
Derby, where outstanding horse-riding competitions have taken place. In
Cu. it is used to denote a competition in which lead hitters compete as to the
number of home-runs hit, whereas in Sp. it is commonly found as a
particular match between two same-city football teams (Barça-Espanyol,
Real Madrid-Atlético).
f. Generic trademark: not surprisingly, these oft-quoted proprietary eponyms,

are the product of a blend of a long-standing transculturation process from
1902 to 1959, and a post-1959 migration to the US. Therefore, the coinage
of genericized trademark has never stopped: fab, chevy, péter, frigidaire
(see Metonymy section above), singer ‘sewing machine’ < Singer, yale
‘door locks’ < Yale, irombeer ‘orange fizzy drink’ < Ironbeer, centropen
‘ink pen’ < Centropen, cuáquer ‘oatmeal cereal’ < Quaker, bendix ‘A gear
based on a spiral drive mechanism of an inertia-type starter’ < Bendix, licra
‘leotard’ < Lycra.
g. Hypernymic: these forms result from the transition of hyponymic forms to

more hypernymy standards: láguer ‘beer’ < lager (a type of beer that is
light in color and is aged at cool temperatures); frízer ‘fridge’ < freezer (a
type of refrigerator used for freezing certain types of food). Note that these
forms (láguer, frízer) do exist in English as hyponyms whereas in Cuban
Spanish they are clearly identified as hyperonyms.
8. Functional changes: occasionally, pseudo loans result from a shifting in terms of

syntactic functionality. This is easily illustrated through baseball-related forms:
center-field, right-field, infield, left-field (positions of players within the infield), are
also used in Cuban Spanish to denote the players (agent) instead of their ‘logical’
English constructs: center-fielder, right-fielder, infielder, left-fielder. The ‘agent’
trait or member group (as in baby-boomer) is traditionally provided through –er
suffix. However, “in spite of its omnipresence in English morphology, the ordinary
reader does not possess this awareness, which explains not only its omission (…) but
~ 91 ~
also the occasional use of certain anglicisms having this ending and lacking such a
meaning” (Rodríguez González, 2013: 143).
The nominalization of certain adjectives is also another example of functional
changes: a strapless or estráples ‘a top without straps’ is originally taken from the
adjectival form, i.e. strapless blouse/top; frozen ‘ice cream served through rationing
machines’, and whose origin is probably explained through the ingredients used:
frozen milkshake; doble < double play implies a compound ellipsis and a
modification of grammatical function, which is why grammatical pseudo loans are at
times accompanied by other types of morphological changes.
9. Hybrid anglicisms: in this category, we should distinguish two types of pseudo loans:
a) English-induced compounds, in which one of the elements is borrowed from
English (and sometimes adapted), and the other is a native one; b) English-induced
phrases, consisting of one (sometimes more) English unit and native structures and
syntax. The former is easily spotted in Cuban Spanish due to its relevant humorous
nuances: pipi-room ‘toilet’, manigüiti ‘theft’ < money. The latter denotes a complex
process of calquing, in which one of the elements is borrowed and kept whereas the
rest of the phrase components are syntactically and morphologically native: juego
de living ‘living-room set’, al bate < at bat, meter jonrón ‘to hit a homerun’ <
homerun, línea de foul < foul line. These phrases are particularly productive in Cu.
and they are arguably considered pseudo loans because the process is primarily based
on a semi-calquing process, whereby one of the lexical units is not translated. The
unchanged English unit is not modified semantically, but syntactically some
modifications might be observed: living < living-room denotes both the room and the
furniture.
6.4 SOCIOLINGUISTIC SOURCES OF PSEUDO-ANGLICISMS
The above-mentioned classification of pseudo-anglicisms reveals an array of processes

involved in the formation of these units. These processes show underlying sociolinguistic
motivations, related to native speakers, not necessarily the referent. One of these
motivations is related to the association of English words, or English word and native ones,
owing to an English morphological and phonological resemblance: manigüiti ‘theft’, fit-
~ 92 ~
doing ‘ok’, gratindei ‘free’, puchindrún ‘absent-minded’. These are not frequent coinages
and they belong to a low sociolect.
Another essential determinant is necessarily linked to the unfamiliarity with English
syntax, morphology, or semantics. The resulting constructs show grapheme or
phonological deviations: pig < pigskin, pun /pun/ ‘hairdo’ < punk, quiropedista
‘chiropodist’, recentín ‘a cow that has just given birth’; or semantic one: rentacar ‘hire
car’ < rent-a-car, show ‘funny’, wild ‘not having concentration’ < wild pitcher. Semantic
alterations usually occur within the recipient language, particularly through the transfer of
metonymic or metaphoric traits. The extension of meaning does not necessarily imply
certain knowledge of English, but a familiarity with the English word in particular, and its
corresponding meaning. This explains why low sociolect is strangely fraught with direct
anglicisms, not as much as calques.
In Cuban Spanish, a significant number of pseudo-anglicisms, if not most of them, are
related to sociolinguistic variations. Earlier Neocolonial coinages, once being assimilated
into the language, have extended their meanings in post-1959 times13: fotingo < foot it and
go (from the hyponym car to old car), party (from ‘a refined cocktail’ to ‘an informal
gathering’), bonche < bunch (from the quantifier ‘a group of’ to ‘an informal group of
people mocking and having fun’). These oft-quoted transitions denote a progressive
shifting of semantic traits. Those lexical units adding extra connotational meaning to their
original sense are most likely to be found in Cu. This connotation change might be linked
to hilarity, low sociolect, unfamiliarity with native forms, etc. These changes occurring
within the recipient language, though considered clear-cut cases of pseudo-anglicisms, are
the product of long-existing ‘natural’ processes of polysemy or homonymy, which
generally results from the assimilation of a one-sense lexico-semantic variant, not the
complete lexeme. To illustrate how this extension of meaning occurs, two instances are
charted hereafter (Figures 5 and 6).
Cf. Sánchez Fajardo (2016b): “Anglicisms and Calques in Upper Social Class in Pre-Revolutionary Cuba
13
(1930-1959): A Sociolinguistic Analysis”.
~ 93 ~
Figure 5: ‘Hourglass-shaped’ semantic evolution of loanwords
In the case of meeting (Figure 5), three global senses are attested by Merriam Webster’s
Dictionary. Sense 1 (an act or process of coming together), or lexico-semantic variant 1
(LSV-1) is entirely assimilated in the language, and thus adapted (miting, mitin):
Gran Miting: Siendo las ocho y media de la noche, toda la concurrencia se dirigió al
parque local y frente a la casa rectoral se realizó el miting, que fue amenizado por la
banda de Torrens. (Diario de la Marina. 20 February, 1947, p.6)
Tu padre también tenía un viaje proyectado a la Isla Grande, al puerto de Fajardo, me

parece, donde los nacionalistas iban a celebrar un mitin. Él no era muy amigo de asistir a
mítines, pero corrían rumores de que iban a matar al jefe de todos ellos. [CREA]
As noted, only one LSV is borrowed, which reflects a one-sense assimilation. LSV-1
is thus the primary product of borrowing in this first stage. In Cuban Spanish, two
senses are found in the case of mitin: 1) (direct borrowing) an act or process of coming
together, as shown earlier; 2) (pseudo-anglicism) a recrimination speech in which some
else is being criticized by his/her acts, as in:
~ 94 ~
El pasado 4 de noviembre en horas de la tarde la policía política aglutinó frente a su casa

unas 500 personas para darle un mitin de repudio y además pintar la fachada para eliminar
los carteles. (“Foto-reportaje sobre mitin de repudio a Ivis Rodríguez González en Cruz
Verde No.11 entre Corral Falso y Máximo Gómez, Municipio de Guanabacoa, La
Habana”, pinceladasdesdecuba.com, 11/14/2011)
This post-1959 loan is occasionally linked to a palpable political connotation, but it is

likewise found in the vernacular with the meaning of ‘to tell someone off’ as in darle un
mitin a alguien.
This diagram shows how semantic evolution of loanwords, especially pseudo-
anglicisms, may occur in any given recipient language. This ‘hourglass-shaped’ process
describes the assimilation of a LSV from a polysemous English word. The resulting loan
necessarily undergoes an extension of meaning, leading to polysemous units within the
recipient language.
This diagram contrasts with ‘pyramid-shaped’ processes, characterized by departing
from a one-sense English lexeme, and resulting in a number of LSVs in the recipient
language. This is not frequent, and it is mostly found in lexical units borrowed from
technical or specialized lexis (Figure 6).
~ 95 ~
Figure 6: ‘Pyramid-shaped’ Semantic evolution of loanwords
The adapted borrowing güin not only has undergone a metaphorical transference of
meaning, but has also been attached to derivational suffixes in Spanish to nativize the loan:
güinal (a place full of güines), güinero (someone who collects güines). Onomastically
speaking, it has even been adopted to name a middle-size town not far from Havana:
Güines.
In sum, the processes of pseudo loans, especially those based on a metaphorical or
metonymic transference of features within the recipient language, are mostly the product of
complex mechanisms of LSV assimilation first, and then extension of meaning. This
conceptualization results from a necessary influence of pragmatic or sociolinguistic
factors, which determine both how the word-building process takes place and the fresher
denotation and connotation aspects of meaning of the nativized coinages.
~ 96 ~
Cuban-American Spanish
7. CUBAN-AMERICAN SPANISH
The constant exposure of Cuban Spanish to English is understandably more tangible in

Cuban-American communities, especially in the South of Florida. Code-switching implies
the non-stop diachronic adaptation of English linguistic patterning into Spanish, and the
assurance of Spanglish as a resulting construct of sociolinguistic and cultural elements,
which is why it has been defined in a variety of ways: “as a pidgin, or creole language; an
interlanguage; or an Anglicized Spanish language” (Neuliep, 2015: 105).
The study of sociolinguistic variations in Cuban-American Spanish is of great
importance to understand both the etymology of Cuban Spanish (Cu.) anglicisms and the
degree of contact these two variants have been exposed to. One of the most distinguishable
features of Cuban Spanish is its paralleled connection with American English and Cuban-
American Spanish, thus entailing a two-channel assimilation process. This singularity
denotes an underlying problem with discerning word origins and semantic traits.
Therefore, a brief analysis of Cuban-American Spanish is of paramount importance in any
study of Cu. anglicized forms.
7.1 CUBAN-AMERICANS: A BRIEF HISTORICAL AND SOCIO-CULTURAL ACCOUNT
As recapped in chapter 3, Cuban migration to the United States is not a current

phenomenon. It started in the nineteenth century, in which the earliest Cuban-American
communities were Florida-based, especially in Tampa and Key West. These cities still
possess nowadays an array of nineteenth-century migrants’ memorabilia.
In the 1870s, about 12.000 Cubans settled down in the US: 4,500 in New York,
3,000 in New Orleans, 2,000 in Key West (Cayo Hueso), and 2.000 in the rest of the
country (Poyo, 1991: 24). The rapidly-growing cigar industry in the South of the US
fostered the migration influxes to Floridan enclaves, in which a total of 20,000 Cubans
were recorded in the 1890s. “Cigar Production transformed the local economy of a score of
~ 97 ~
communities across Florida. More than 170 factories were operating in Key West by the
late 1880s, employing approximately 7,500 workers. Key West grew from a population of
less than 700 residents in 1840 to more than 18,000 by 1890 as the value of its cigar
manufactures soared from $20 million in 1882 to $100 million in 1892. Additional
factories were established in Ocala, Jacksonville, Pensacola, St. Augustine, and other
cities. The combined value of the 150 factories in Tampa surpassed $17 million; the labor
force, consisting of more than 100,000 workers, received an average weekly wage of
$200,000, or 75 percent of the city’s total payroll” (Pérez, 2008: 31).
A significant impact of the solid Cuban community was that migration forged Cuban
identity, and brought to light cultural traits and social standards. “La permanencia de los
enclaves étnicos, cohesionados alrededor de la producción del tabaco, posibilitó la
preservación de tradiciones y una conciencia de identidad nacional que existió hasta 1930”
(Arboleya, 2013: 19). {The existence of ethnic enclaves, unified by cigar production,
enabled the conservancy of traditions and a national identity awareness, which existed until
1930}
Throughout the Neocolonial period (1902-1959), the United States continued being
the favorite destination of most Cuban migrants, especially for the Cuban bourgeoisie.
Most upper social class families would send their children over to study in prestigious
American universities. The number of Cuban migrants totaled 83,594 by 1930. Due to the
harsh economic situation in the 1950s, the number of Cuban settlers soared: it is estimated
that about 100,000 Cubans left for the US between 1950 and 1958. This situation might
have influenced the American government to demand travel visas to Cuban citizens,
breaking thus the free movement policy agreed upon by both governments in 1945
(Arbeloya, 2013: 21).
Nevertheless, in 1961, after the diplomatic break between both countries, migration
turned into a political, economic and cultural element of greater significance. A number of
migration ‘waves’ have been witnessed since then: the first exodus occurred between 1959
and 1962 (los volveremos14), the second one between 1965 and 1972 (los renaceremos15),
the third one in 1980 (los marielitos16), and the fourth one in 1994 (los balseros17). The
This appellative makes reference to their wishes to return to Cuba.

14
15
This appellative denotes those who fled Cuba in an attempt to stay for a longer period of time. They never
forgot Cuba, and they were prone to start from scratch. (Varela, 1992: 13)
16
They were known for leaving the country through the Mariel boatlift. Mariel is an important harbor in the
north of Havana region.
17
They were famously known for migrating on home-made rafts.
~ 98 ~
Cuban Refugee Program and the Cuban Adjustment Act, issued in 1961 and 1966
respectively, have allowed the access to medical service, pensions, university degree
validation, and in general, the adaptation of Cuban migrants to the new reality (Arboleya,
2013: 37). Those fleeing the country in the first two ‘waves’ were the so-called exilio
histórico (historical exile), which is occasionally distinguished from the migrants in the
latest ‘waves’ described: nuevos emigrados (new emigrés).
According to PEW Hispanic Center (2012), by 2010 there were a total of 1, 884 000
people of Cuban origin living in the US, 59% of which are migrants (52% of them arrived
after 1990, and the rest were born in that country). This number is crucial to understand the
sentiment of belonging the ‘new emigrés’ were characterized by. It became ingrained in
them to keep in touch with the relatives on the island, which is highly perceptible in the
number of yearly trips, family remittance, etc.
The generational complexity of the emigrés in the long-established Cuban
community is one of the historical features to take into consideration. These social
differences have remarkably influenced the linguistic variations in the Cuban-American
variant of Spanish.
Historically, the term Cuban-Americans has conveyed a long-existing ambiguity. As
expected, it should make reference to the US-born citizens, or Cubans who have
naturalized as US citizens; however, it is widely used nowadays to call any Cuban migrant
living in the US, which makes statistics less precise and less fine-grained. What is
reasonably obvious is that Cuban-American-ness has resulted from the integration and
adaptation of Cuban identity and cultural traits to the American society and standards, i.e.
the national and ethnic components tend to reaffirm due to the inexistence of a well-
defined nucleus, whose tendency is to assimilate all these features (Arboleya, 2013: 77).
Therefore, Cuban-Americans undergo a process of ‘bi-cultural identity’ (García, 1996: 27),
which depicts the nearness of two identities and their linguistic codes.
Up to the twentieth century, Cuban identity or nationality was clearly expressed in
the national territory. This tendency changed after the triumph of the Cuban Revolution,
whereby the feeling of Cuban-ness transcended beyond the island’s borders, especially to
South Florida. Cuban-Americans were responsible for transmitting their culture and
identity at a social scale outside Cuba.
The condition of being Cuban-American confirms Cuban cultural roots inasmuch as
these find a distinctive space within the American society. This adaptation process is
~ 99 ~
accompanied by a fresher way of expressing their identity or nationality, resulting from the
‘existential need’ of emigrés and their descendants (Arboleya, 2013: 81). Consequently, a
category of Cuban culture is born: it is likely to melt and assimilate American values and
social traits (customs, English language, aspirations, etc.). This new category is certainly
affecting the concept of Cuban nationality and identity, by taking on elements of
acculturation in a foreign country. “To maintain a sense of cubanidad meant to preserve
those customs, values and traditions that they associated with being Cuban, and the
emigrés created numerous cultural associations to promote and reinforce these values in
exile” (García, 1996: 83).
The city of Miami (Miami-Dade County) turned out to be the preferred settlement
where cultural boundaries have been historically toned up. “Census figures showed that
299,217 Cubans lived in Dade County in 1979, but by 1980 the number had almost
doubled to 581,030, and more than 52 percent of 803,226 Cubans in the United States lived
in Miami—Ft. Lauderdale area alone; the only city with a larger population was Havana”
(García, 1996: 84). Cuban-Americans living in Miami have ensured their cultural and
linguistic survival by differentiating instead of assimilating. Both antagonistic processes
were thus complementary, by and large. The differentiating process necessarily led to the
assertion of Cuban identity and the keeping with traditions and customs. On the other hand,
assimilating newer cultural patterns guarantees the assimilation of American cultural,
social and linguistic codes into the well-established Cuban-American community. This
complex dichotomy is linguistically pertinent to distinguish the process of borrowing from
other paralleled situations, and to comprehend the so-called cultural (or pragmatic)
borrowing even better.
The transference of these traits was even more locally palpable in certain
neighborhoods in Miami, which exemplifies the idea of geographically congregated
communities. ‘Little Havana’, especially in the areas of Flager Street and Southwest 8 th
Street, is where this differentiating process is most visible. The neighborhood of Hialeah is
known for its working class inhabitants, and it has been typically called ‘Little Marianao’,
named after a Western area in Havana of equal social characteristics. “Little Havana,
however, remained the symbolic center of the exile community in south Florida and in the
United States” (García, 1996: 86).
Culturally speaking, the Miami-based community has ensured a solid Hispanic
(chiefly Cuban) tradition. This expected process was a consequence of 1) a powerful
~ 100 ~
Spanish-speaking mass media (Telemundo, Univisión, América TeVe, CNN en Español); 2)

the ever-increasing public events, in which Spanish is fundamental (plays, concerts, movie
festivals, conferences, etc.); 3) the celebration of an array of religious, civic or festive
activities (López Morales, 2008: 123).
One distinctive feature of the differentiating mechanism undergone by the Cuban-
Americans, especially in south Florida, was the mélange of native cultural and social traits
and Cuban imported icons. In Miami, it is not uncommon to find fast-food restaurants and
Cuban food establishments at the same frequency; houses devoting shrines to Afro-Cuban
santería, next to Christmas decorations; an array of Cuban products, some of which were
already extinct on the island: malta Hatuey, café Estrella, galletas Wajay. Spanish is
unprecedentedly far more common than English, which made it easier for those non-
English speakers not to feel isolated from the community. English was no longer
necessary, but certain words or expressions were, especially to communicate with their
English-speaking American-born descendants and some non-Hispanic members of the
community. This urge to assimilate some words is precisely what has brought about the
high degree of permeability of the language. These loanwords, as a means of survival, have
transcended through generations, and have framed the basics of Cuban-American Spanish.
The rise of Spanish in south Florida was a clear indication that bilingualism was
taking shape. Thus, the Dade County Public School System began experimenting with
bilingual institution as early back as 1963. The program was precisely meant to encourage
the retention of Spanish skills as well as the learning of Spanish by native English-
speakers. Bilingualism was for the first time institutionalized.
Widening the concept of Cuban-ness involves the indispensable study of both social
groups (or communities). They reflect an unprecedented intralinguistic code-switching,
whereby an assurance of cultural and linguistic contact is perceived. Both communities
have been exposed to American English at different extents, and their timings and
momentums seem to have played a fundamental role in the features acquired as to
productivity and frequency. Nevertheless, the exposure of Cuban-American Spanish to
American English has expectedly resulted in a higher number of loans and calques. Cuban
Spanish anglicisms, though not as frequent as its Northern counterpart, denote a high
degree complexity due to the dual exposure to both American English and Cuban-
American Spanish. Thus, it is noticeable that a number of borrowed cultural and linguistic
~ 101 ~
traits might have entered Cuban Spanish through its Northern analogous variant: afideibi <
affidavit, cuora ‘twenty-five cent coin’ < quarter, pin, strapless.
7.2 THE CONCEPT OF SPANGLISH
The contact phenomena witnessed in Spanish-speaking enclaves such as south Florida, or

the Mexican border, has originated a profound transculturation process, and the spread of
Spanish dialects, oft-quoted Spanglish. A number of scholars have studied this linguistic
singularity from a sociolinguistic perspective (Tío, 1954, 1992; Betanzos, 2001; Stavans,
2004; Castro, 1996; López Morales, 2002; Varela, 1992).
A significant feature of Spanglish is the number of opponents it has incited. One of
the earliest scholars to warn us of its dangers was Salvador Tío (1954: 60), who is widely
known for coining the term Spanglish in a Puerto Rican newspaper column. He insisted on
his disbelief in Latin and bilingualism because Latin was a dead language, and
bilingualism implied the death of two languages. As to Puerto Rican variant of Spanish
again, Nash (1970:223-4) recognizes the substantial number of speakers of Spanglish, and
describes it as a one-level borrowing, since it retains the phonological, morphological, and
syntactic structure of Puerto Rican Spanish, but its vocabulary is mostly English-derived
(Lipski, 2004: 2). Other critics, such as the journalist González-Echeverría (1997), relates
the emergence of such a fused construct with the socio-cultural backgrounds of speakers:
“Spanglish, the composite language of Spanish and English that has crossed
over from the street to Hispanic talk shows and advertising campaigns, poses a
grave danger to Hispanic culture and to the advancement of Hispanics in
mainstream America. Those who condone and even promote it as a harmless
commingling do not realize that this is hardly a relationship based on equality.
Spanglish is an invasion of Spanish by English. The sad reality is that
Spanglish is primarily the language of poor Hispanics, many barely literate in
either language. They incorporate English words and constructions into their
daily speech because they lack the vocabulary and education in Spanish to
adapt to the changing culture around them. Educated Hispanics who do
likewise have a different motivation: Some are embarrassed by their
background and feel empowered by using English words and directly translated
English idioms. Doing so, they think, is to claim membership in the
mainstream. Politically, however, Spanglish is a capitulation; it indicates
marginalization, not enfranchisement.”
~ 102 ~
The attitude towards Spanglish is in conjunction with earlier stances on linguistic

borrowing. Interlanguage and code-switching are necessarily involved when two cultures,
identities, and obviously, languages come into contact. Denying the emergence of
Spanglish as a means of communication is denying the natural evolution of a language, due
to its valuable communicative significance in a given social group. As stated by Rothman
& Rell (2005: 516), “what some have labeled a ‘gutter language’, others coin a ‘dynamic
fusion’ of crashing cultures noticeably merging at the interface of language.”
Spanglish exists where Americans and Spanish speakers live together. The word is
found in dictionaries with solely linguistic senses: “Spanish characterized by numerous
borrowings from English” (American Heritage Dictionary online), “A type of Spanish
contaminated by English words and forms of expression, spoken in Latin America.”
(Oxford English Dictionary online), “Spanish marked by numerous borrowings from
English” (Merriam Webster’s Dictionary online). These lexicographical works denote the
fact that this variant is the product of linguistic ‘contamination’ and borrowing, but do not
make reference to the sociolinguistic nature of the process. On the whole, Spanglish could
be defined as the way “the Spanish speaker has taken those English words whose meaning
is understood and, simply, has Hispanized them; the same is done with verbal forms and
with such hybrids, some approximation to communication in the other language will be
achieved”18 (cf. Betanzos, 2001).
What has been repeatedly referred to is the number of variants across the US. This
occurrence entails the emergence of small speech communities, which have in common the
need of eliminating any obstacle to communication, and of re-inventing the linguistic
adaptation of Spanish-speakers and US-born migrants in the new bilingual scenario. “We
must acknowledge that New York Spanglish has little to do with its Los Angeles
counterpart. Therefore we are not speaking of a single language but rather of a group of
dialects as varied as the speech communities it represents”19 (Castro, 1996).
Therefore, these regional varieties are easy to spot due to the background of
speakers, the city they live in, age, etc. Thus, a number of varieties can be found:
Nuyorrican (Puerto Rican Spanish in New York), Dominicanish (Dominican Spanish in
Florida), Cubonics (Cuban Spanish in south Florida), and so forth. ‘Cubonics’, as any other
form of Spanglish, is particularly commonplace in the homes of Cuban families in which
Translated by John M. Lipski (2004)

18
19
Idem.
~ 103 ~
the children are US-born or are educated in America. There exist distinct peculiarities
among speakers of English, Spanish, or Spanglish. They all represent a continuum of
language acquisition. A US-bred Cuban is obviously more likely to bilingualism, and their
Spanish denotes the highest degree of English intrusiveness of all. Older generations of
Cubans, especially non-English speakers, chiefly resort to adapted loanwords, or calques,
to facilitate their social and parental communication: deiquer < Day Care, biliar < billing,
soda, la orden < the (restaurant) order, etc.
These latest sociolinguistic variations have been correlated in a diagram (Figure 7) to
explain how Spanglish is dependent on speakers’ individuality, and their linguistic
alternations are linked with communicative functionality of social and generational groups.
The following diagram (Díaz-Campos, 2015: 536) depicts the range of speakers: “from the
recently arrived immigrant with incipient knowledge of English (S e), through the near-
native speaker of English or Spanish (SE, ES), to a third-generation heritage speaker of
Spanish who retains minimal Spanish-language abilities (Es).”
20
Figure 7: Diagram showing the continuum between speakers and contact speech forms
One of the most relevant features described in the diagram above shows the relation
between the processes of code switching, and that of borrowing, tag-switching and
emblematic switching. The former is proportional to the degree of bilingualism attested,
whereas the latter ones are mostly perceived at the word level. A number of sociolinguists
(Poplack, 1981; McClure, 1981; Zentella, 1997) coincide that code-switching is chiefly
Source: Handbook of Hispanic Sociolinguistics (Díaz-Campos, 2015)

20
~ 104 ~
associated with US contexts in which English and Spanish have been exposed greatly, and
that monolingual norms are generally relaxed in such contexts.
This multifaceted process is especially significant in Cuban family members. These
cohorts are characterized by being multigenerational, and by conveying various levels of
English. The degree of bilingualism, the processes of code-switching, tag-switching, and
borrowing are mostly dependent on their exposure to the language, their age, their
educational level, their home place, etc.
7.3 LEXICAL BORROWING
The oft-quoted loanwords are easy to study qualitatively and quantitatively, and they
represent the visible process of lexical transference or borrowing that takes place between
two languages in contact.
In his corpus-driven article “Los Cubanos de Miami”, López Morales (2003: 174-
175) identifies the lexical borrowings, and groups them according to their semantic or
lexical variations. Some of the loanwords (non-adapted) found are: background,
downtown, file, marketing, OK, part-time, teenager, etc. There exists another group of
borrowings, earlier coined as adapted loanwords, which are characterized by possessing an
English morpheme and a Spanish derivational suffix attached: parquear, chequear, lisar,
lonchar derived from the verbs to park, to check, to lease, and to lunch respectively.
Likewise, the number of hybrid borrowings culled was scarce: manager general, dinero
standing and compañía de retail. Without doubt, a relevant finding of this study is how
these loanwords are distributed according to the origin of poll-takers. The number of
Cuban-American loanwords was 680, and the distribution of usage (in percentages): those
who are 18 years old or over (20.8%), between 17 and 7 (21.3%), and 6 or under (32%).
As per the process of calquing, López Morales (2003: 176) ascertains a group of
literal translations: compulsorio < compulsory, locación < location, retiro < retirement,
consumerismo < consumerism, honores < honors, plomero < plumber, buldoza <
bulldozer, estudio < studio [apartment], carro < car, a tiempo completo < full time, a
tiempo parcial < part time, populación < population, controversial, etc. Interestingly,
some of the calques annotated are not merely Miami-based, they already existed in the
Cuban variant of Spanish: retiro, buldózer or buldoza, plomero, carro, a tiempo completo,
a tiempo parcial, etc.
~ 105 ~
A considerable number of calques, the so-called ‘semantic loans’, have also been
studied and attested. As noted in chapter 4, these lexical units already existed in Cuban
Spanish but another sense is added to their semantic structure. These calques, highly
intrusive and linguistically clashing, result from coincidental morphemes and phonemes in
both languages.
In the Table 5 below, a brief description of these semantically calqued units is
provided. The elements annotated (aplicación, asistente, confidente, embarazado,
envolver, introducer, oír, posición) exist in the recipient language (Cuban-American
Spanish) and they coexist with other senses of the words: confidente (1) ‘a confident’, and
confidente (2) ‘having confidence’. These lexical units are clearly differentiated not only
through their syntax functions (1 → noun; 2 → adjective) but also through their
etymological nature: the former is clearly a native noun whereas the second one is the
product of meaning extension. These semantic loans have also a common feature: they
coexist with native lexemes: aplicación/solicitud, asistente/ayudante, asistir/ayudar,
confidente/confiado, embarazado/avergonzado, envolver/implicar, introducir/presentar,
oír/saber, posición/puesto. The choice of these forms depends on a plethora of pragmatic
features: age, geographical location, educational level, exposure to English language, etc.
~ 106 ~
21
Table 5: Semantic Loans in Cuban-American Spanish
Calquing equally affects phrases. These loans have been affected morpho-
syntactically by Anglicized paronyms or patterns: hacer el sexo < to make sex, llamar para
atrás < to call back, no mucho < not much, Oh, sí < Oh, yes. Of the forms annotated, a few
have been recognized in contemporary Cuban Spanish: llamar para atrás, no mucho,
which is why the study of Cuban-American Spanish is of great importance to understand
the etymology and usage of present-day Cu. anglicisms.
When dealing with phraseology and Cuban-American Spanish, the concept of
Cubonics should be necessarily studied. It has been traditionally related to the Cuban
people’s influence and verve in the area of Miami-Dade, and the way English speakers,
non-English speakers have come across an interlinguistic means to guarantee
communication and language grasp. ‘Cubonics’ is applied to phonological, morphological,
or syntactic variations occurring in both contact languages: from pronunciation adaptations
(/eslai/ < slice) to loan creations (el pollo del viejito < KFC) or semantic loans due to a
morphological fusion of phrase components (papayón22 < Papa John’s Pizza, la casina <
21
The ‘semantic loans’ have been retrieved retrieved from “Los cubanos de Miami” (López Morales, 2003)
This word is also a vulgar lemma, used to denote women’s reproductive organs. Thus, hilarity is once
22
again behind the process of word adaptation.
~ 107 ~
lacquer thinner). The lexical units papayón and la casina exist in Cuban Spanish with the
meaning of ‘female genitalia’ and ‘small house’ respectively. Their fusion is motivated by
the adaptation of phonemes and morphemes into already existing elements to ease their
pronunciation and usage. Hilarity is clearly seen in the examples given.
Nevertheless, the singularity of ‘Cubonics’ relies on the calquing of Cuban
phraseology and their usage in both Cuban-American Spanish and Cuban-American
English. They can be hybrids, or loan renditions (for las flies ‘just in case’ < por las
moscas), or loan translations (I don’t care a whistle ‘I don’t give a hoot’ < No me importa
un pito). Loan translations are obviously more frequent among English speakers. These
calqued utterances are the construct of a long-existing process of cultural assimilation, and
these forms of borrowing are by far the most visible linguistic ‘totems’.
Table 6: ‘Cubonics’ phrases in Cuban-American English
7.3.1 Nouns: gender and number inflections
Assigning gender to new loanwords in Cuban Spanish has been referred to in chapter
3. In the case of Cuban-American Spanish, this grammatical assignment could be
summarized according to the following observations (Varela, 1992: 73-75):
a) If loanwords are animate nouns, gender is assigned according to the state of

being masculine or feminine. Inflectional suffixes –a or –o are attached to the
~ 108 ~
bases, or merely articles la or el are resorted to when inflection is not

admitted:
el bos or la bosa < the boss
el interpretor or la interpretora < the interpreter
el bróder < the brother
la waifa < the wife
el mánacher or la mánacher < the manager
el principal or la principal < the principal
b) If loanwords are inanimate, gender assignment is not as precise as the

previous category. It mostly depends on the ending graphemes of nouns: if it
is –a, feminine gender is assigned, and if it is –o, masculine:
la chingola23 < the shin guard
la Sagüesera < Southwest area
el flató < flat top (special hair design)
el mapo < the mop
Generally, when borrowings end in consonants or vowels –e or –u, they are

assigned with masculine gender:
el daime < the dime
el tomcrú < the thumbscrew
At times, the assignment might be the result of a grammatical borrowing of

gender from Spanish into English. The transference of masculine or feminine
category implies that gender is not always grapheme- or phoneme-motivated,
but semantically calqued. This feature might have repercussions on the article
used, and/or Spanish inflectional suffixes:
la baquería < the bakery (in Spanish, la panadería)

la estorma < the storm (in Spanish, la tormenta)
el turnamento < the tournament (in Spanish, el torneo)
el rufo < the roof (in Spanish, el techo)
It is chingala in Cuban Spanish (see section 11.1.2)

23
~ 109 ~
c) Loanwords ending in –er are generally assigned with feminine assignment,

due to a consideration of schwa sound as a lower central vowel, closer to –a
(Sánchez, 1982: 34):
la corna < the corner
la cuora < the quarter
la jira < the heater
la rula < the ruler
However, other examples do not comply with this generalization:
el blúmer < the bloomers (in Spanish, las bragas)

el clíner < the cleaner (in Spanish, el tintorero)
el dráyer < the dryer (in Spanish, el secador)
el chágüer < the shower (in Spanish, el aguacero or la fiesta)
Interestingly, some particular cases of borrowing, those retaining the signifier but
borrowing a new sense in Spanish, i.e. semantic loans, are found highly consistent, since
the Spanish forms keep their native gender category: la carpeta (originally meaning ‘file’
in Spanish) < the carpet, la lectura (originally meaning ‘reading’ in Spanish) < the lecture,
los parientes (originally meaning ‘relatives’ in Spanish) < the parents, etc. (Varela, 1992:
76) These types of loans, though not so frequent as signifier-oriented ones, is a recognized
source of homonymy and polysemy in Cuban-American Spanish.
As per plurality assignment, this category mostly depends on the ending phonemes or
graphemes of loanwords. In the main, those nouns ending in consonants can take –es
(baipás < bypass → baipases, suéter < sweater → suéteres) or -s (blúmer < bloomer →
blúmers, club → clubs). Occasionally, ending consonant sounds, inexistent in Spanish, are
not kept, leading to the exposure of vowel sounds in final position. This sound assimilation
brings about the use of –s suffix to form plural forms: tique < ticket → tiques, flató < flat
top → flatós. The addition of vowel sounds is also resorted to facilitate the pronunciation
of borrowed units: lonche < lunch → lonches, filme < film → filmes. This grapheme
attachment eases plurality greatly but its origin relies on the difficulty in pronouncing such
ending consonant sounds by Spanish speakers.
~ 110 ~
7.3.2 Adjectives
Like loaned adjectives in Cuban Spanish, Cuban-American Spanish ones are also
rarely borrowed. Beatriz Varela (1992: 83-85) lists a total of 55 in her corpus, in which she
identifies the type of borrowing (loanword, calque, or semantic loan) and their
etymologies: alegado < alleged, atachado < attached, beneficial, conservativo <
conservative, disabilitado < disabled, disatisfecho < dissatisfied, frizado < to freeze24,
isolado < isolated, obsesado < obsessed, peruviano < Peruvian, remarkable < remarkable,
soportivo < supportive, taipeado < typed, terrífico < terrific, etc.
A few examples on adjective-order variations are worth mentioning, especially in
which these forms are used unnaturally before nominal clauses or nouns in Cuban Spanish:
mi favorita canción < my favorite song, la Suprema Corte < the Supreme Court. The
second example denotes an amalgamation of loan types: Corte < court (instead of
Tribunal), which coincides with a semantic loan in Spanish; syntactic borrowing as to the
word-order alteration conveyed; and a pragmatic borrowing in terms of the socio-cultural
sense transferred.
Nevertheless, it is precisely ordinal numbers (adjectival function) which are found to
be highly abundant. According to Spanish grammar, cardinals (as opposed to ordinals) can
only be allotted after nouns: aula 14, not 14 aula; calle 8, not 8 calle. In Cuban-American
Spanish, there exists a clear tendency of using cardinals before nouns, which is obviously a
syntactic replica of this sort of English patterning. López Morales (2003: 185-186) has
remarked that 77.1% of the cases found on his corpus follow this irregular pattern (‘Eso
está en la 42 avenida y la 4 calle’; ‘Es en la 97 avenida y la 64 calle’) whereas 10.8% of the
cases drop the nominal nucleus to avoid the linguistic incongruence (‘Cuando llegues a la
79 y la 18, tienes que doblar a la izquierda’). Curiously, the renowned Calle 8 in Miami
respects Spanish grammar cardinal pattern, possibly because the earliest ‘emigrés’ were
not as deeply influenced by English as their descendants.
7.3.3 Verbs
One of the most outstanding features of verbal peculiarities of Cuban-American

Spanish is the formation of denominal verbs. These fresher verb forms are commonly
In this case, frizado is not entirely derived from an adjective, but else the verb to freeze. One reason to
24
explain this is the existence of the word frozen in Cuban Spanish and Cuban-American Spanish, meaning a
type of ice-cream. To avoid sense ambiguity, the former is somehow preferred.
~ 111 ~
found in infinitives by attaching –ar, or –ear25, to their bases: aspectar < aspect, banquear
< bank, candidatear < candidate, colisionar < collision, estilear < style, fuletearse < full
stop, turistear < tourist, londrear < laundry. However, a vast majority of these verbs are
found to be borrowed directly from English verbs (cf. Varela 1992: 105-108): asquear < to
ask (also a semantic loan), blinkear < to blink, craquear < to crack, discusear < to discuss,
flonquear < to flunk, layar < to lie, ploguear < to plug, sendar < to sign, taimear < to time,
trimear < to trim, yogar < to jog.
The graphemic variations these verb forms undergo occasionally lead to the
processes of semantic loaning and polysemy. Thus, the newly-coined words are already-
existing in Spanish with a different meaning: alocar < allocate (also, ‘to become mad’),
culear < to cool (also, ‘to move the buttocks when dancing’), insular < to insulate (also,
‘related to an island’), lisear /lisiar/< to lease (also, ‘to cause someone to get hurt’),
vacunar < to vacuum (also, ‘to get vaccinated’). At times, Spanish and English paronyms
are similar in spelling, which might bring about the addition or shifting of certain
graphemes: respectar (as opposed to Spanish respetar) < to respect, legitimizar (legitimar)
< to legitimize.
Determining which form (–ar or –ear) is to be used seems rather imprecise. As
expected, most Spanish-induced borrowings tend to adopt the –ear ending, which is why
some verbs ending in –ar are changed into –ear forms in certain sociolects (apedrar →
apedrear ‘to stone’, besucar → besuquear ‘to kiss’, campar → campear ‘to camp’). This –
ear inflectional preference results in the existence of verb duplets having both endings:
lonchar/lonchear ‘to have lunch’, machar/machear ‘to match’, vacunar/vacunear ‘to
vacuum’.
7.3.4 Adverbs
Cuban-American adverbs ending in –mente are the resulting construct of adjectival

borrowing. Therefore, these forms are indirectly loaned: conservativamente <
conservatively, controversialmente < controversially instead of conservadoramente and
controvertidamente respectively.
It is the use of the form para atrás, however, which abounds in Cuban-American
Spanish adverbial forms, especially after verbs whose English equivalent has the particle
back: llamar para atrás < to call back, pagar para atrás < to pay back, llevar para atrás <
This ending is generally pronounced /iar/ in both Cuban Spanish and Cuban-American Spanish.
25
~ 112 ~
to take back. This calque has become particularly spread out in other variants of Spanish,
not only in the United States but also in other nearby countries such as Mexico or Cuba.
The assimilation of this adverb is the clearest illustration of the influence of Cuban-
American Spanish on standard Cuban Spanish.
7.4 SYNTACTIC BORROWING
This type of borrowing is not as visible as loanwords for bilingual speakers of

English and Spanish. The fact that they are exposed to English, Spanish, and certain
interliguistic patterns makes it hard to distinguish their normative codes. What seems
attention-grabbing is that code-switching tends to occur repeatedly at particular points in
conversations, and conversely, it is unnatural at other ‘specific junctures in discourse’
(Sankoff & Poplack, 1981). These authors introduce the concepts of Free Morpheme
Constraint and Equivalence Constraint. The former excludes the combination of
morphemes and states that “a switch may indeed take place at any point within a particular
discourse at which it is possible to make a surface constituent cut and still maintain a free
morpheme” (Rothman & Rell, 2005: 523-524). Two examples might convey the
ungrammatical nature of their constituents: Estamos talk-ando and Al llegar, me di cuenta
que ellos estaban leave-iendo.
The ‘Equivalence Constraint’ explains how codes will vary at certain points where
the surface structures of the languages map onto each other, whereby sentences conveying
the meaning of ‘I gave him/to him the present’ are unacceptable: I gave le un regalo; Le I
gave un regalo; Him/to him di un regalo; Di him/to him un regalo (cf. Rothman & Rell,
2005). These constraints might shed some light on how syntactic borrowings in code-
switching languages are also characterized by morpho-syntactic constraints. The
unacceptance, or ungrammaticality, of some of these transferences guarantees the orderly
borrowing of linguistic features.
An interesting finding in Miami-based Spanish is that the forms of verb ‘to be’ in
Spanish ser and estar are not as puzzling as in other regions of the US, in which the form
estar is syntactically taking over. López Morales (2003: 181) has confirmed ‘the structural
strength’ of standard Spanish ser and estar in Miami variant through the analysis of a
corpus, in which only four cases were attested:
~ 113 ~
“Tú eres [estás] muy orgullosa de esta ciudad”

“Ella es [está] orgullosa de ser hispana”
“Yo soy [estoy] bien orgulloso de mi cultura”
“Yo estaba [era] mayor que ellos”
These cases were produced by bilingual migrants who arrived in the US at the age of
6 or under, which might reveal the level of syntactic penetration these individuals are
exposed to. However, certain copulative utterances: estar con hambre, estar con sed, estar
con dolor are preferred in Cuban-American Spanish due to the nearness to English forms:
to be hungry, to be thirsty, to be hurt. The aforementioned ‘nearness’ is strictly related to
pragmatic features of the speaker: geographical region, age, degree of bilingualism (see
Figure 7 above), etc.
An anomalous syntactic construct in Cuban-American Spanish is the use of gerunds
with nominal function; instead, Spanish tends to use an infinitive form: “Jugando tennis
[jugar al tenis] es un deporte fuerte” or “Me sentí con mucha tristeza de trabajando
[trabajar] con ese tipo de populación” (López Morales, 2003: 182). The adoption of
English syntactic functionality is reasonably determined by coincidental lexical units, such
as gerunds (trabajando, jugando), whereby only grammatical meanings are transferred.
Therefore, we could also assume that these loaned units also undergo a semantic variation
of their grammatical description.
Prepositional phrases are surely the most highly relevant features of syntactic
borrowing due to their variety of forms in both languages, and their peculiar linkage to
verb forms. An array of examples can be found: “Yo suelo/acostumbro a [preposition is
not needed] ir al mall los sábados” < to be used/accustomed to, “Ella siempre está en [a]
dieta” < to be on a diet, “No conozco [preposition a should be used] tu madre” < to know
someone.
Varela (1992: 121-124) summarizes these preposition-related syntactic variations
into three main groups. The English paronym is indicated, as well as the adequate
expression in standard Spanish, which is specified in parenthesis:
a) Replacement of prepositions:
-pensar de < think of (pensar en)
~ 114 ~
-soñar de < dream of (soñar con)

-enamorarse con < fall in love with (enamorarse de)
-consistir de < consist of (consistir en)
-trabajar por cinco años < work for five years (trabajar durante cinco años)
b) Omission of prepositions:
-traficar Ø cocaína < traffick Ø cocaine (traficar con cocaína)
-disfrutar Ø las vacaciones < enjoy Ø holidays (disfrutar de las vacaciones)
c) Addition of prepositions:
-buscar por las llaves < look for the keys (buscar Ø las llaves)
-esperar por la guagua < wait for the bus (esperar Ø la guagua)
These verb-centered borrowings are all characterized by calquing their equivalent

expressions in English. The expressions, though clashing to any Spanish speakers, denote a
clear assimilation process of new syntactic functions of prepositions and their
corresponding verb forms.
Another noticeable linguistic phenomenon presumably resulting from code-switching
and languages in contact is the unnecessary addition of pronominal subjects to Spanish
utterances in which these forms are not syntactically required: ‘El trabajo que nosotros
hacemos es básico’, Yo no sé por qué fue’, ‘Nosotros pensábamos que no iba a pasar
nada’. López Morales (2003: 189) states that this process has been vaguely studied, and
the cases attested in his Miami Cuban Spanish corpus might derive from ‘syntactic
convergence’ with English or ‘extensions’ of Cuban-origin processes.
When referring to syntactic borrowing, it is absolutely necessary to refer to the
concept of ‘code-switching’, and its underlying alternating occurrences of two linguistic
codes in contact. A number of scholars have studied the singularities of these occurrences,
and how syntactically symmetrical they can be (Sankoff & Poplack, 1980; Poplack, 1981;
Woolford, 1983). The existence of a fresher intralinguistic code, or third grammar, is
entirely justified because communication lacks "pauses, hesitations, repetitions,
corrections, or any other interruption or disruption in the rhythm of speech" (Sankoff &
Poplack, 1980: 11).
~ 115 ~
According to the typology established by Poplack (cf. 1983), and the corpus-driven
examples provided by López Morales (2003), Miami-based syntactic switching, or
alternations, can be grouped as follows:
i) Label-type change: Oh, my God! These ‘labels’, syntactically disconnected from

the sentence, can be moved discretely within the utterance. Changing syntactic
positions does not alter any grammatical rules.
ii) Sentence change: ‘Yo no pongo la radio para no oír a ese hombre. I don’t like
that.’ This type of change obviously requires a higher degree of bilingualism to
produce both types of syntactically coherent sentences.
iii) Intra-sentence change: ‘Si, pero at the same time, es bueno, cariñoso; that’s very
nice ¿tú sabes?’ Speakers of utterances of this kind are fully exposed to both
linguistic codes, especially because those alternations occur in specific sections
within the utterance. The idea of finding the syntactic distribution of these code-
switching ‘points’ (Poplack, 1983) confirms the grammaticality and syntactic
symmetry of the resulting interlinguistic code.
This typology is chiefly related to the level of bilingualism speakers are thought to
possess. Therefore, it is possible to find a mix of these three types, and presumably the
degree of exposure to English is predicted through the syntactic switching conveyed in the
utterances. Cuban-Americans, especially those Se (see Figure 7), merely resort to label-
type changes, whereas SE speakers can express in any of them.
Another type of code-switching is easily spotted in the Cuban-American variant of
Spanish: discourse markers. These forms, like label-type units, could be placed in different
parts of the utterance, depending on the communicative function: well, right?, you know?,
actually, by the way (López Morales, 2003: 196).
Nevertheless, interjections are highly visible in any type of Cuban-American
speakers, regardless of the level of English (Varela, 1992: 127-128). Imported Cuban
interjections, such as ¡Ay! (pain, suffering), ¡Ah! (surprise), coexist with assimilated
English ones like ¡Auch! < Ouch!, ¡Guao! < Wow! respectively. Likewise, greetings and
farewell phrases, i.e. oye, hola, adiós, hasta luego, adiosito have been mostly replaced by
the existing anglicized counterparts: ¡Ey!, ¡Hi!, or ¡Bye!.
~ 116 ~
7.5 WHY IS CODE-SWITCHING RESORTED TO?
The study of the code-switching process and the existence of Poplack’s regular
switching points (1983) have led to a variety of researches, aimed at not only providing a
normative and descriptive analysis of the interlinguistic code, but also ascertaining its
causes.
One of the most remarkable research papers consulted was written by Appel &
Muysken (2005), whose attempt to decipher the origins of code-switching relies on the
functional framework of Jakobson (1960). According to their survey, the following
functions can be found in the switching process:
a) Referential: switching can be of use to the referential function because “it involves
lack of knowledge of one language or lack of facility in that language on a certain
subject” (Appel & Muysken, 2005: 118). In other words, bilingual speakers
switch languages because they feel more comfortable when referring to certain
concepts in a specific language, or presumably because the referent does not exist
in one of the languages. One example is the word güarajita < water heater in
Cuban American Spanish, which has a Cuban Spanish counterpart: calentador de
agua. These two referents are similar but not exactly the same referent: güarajita
denotes a state-of-the-art home appliance used to heat up the tap or shower water
whenever it is necessary, whereas calentador de agua only refers to the shower
(or a bucket) and its use is more limited. Hence Miami-based speakers of Spanish
clearly differentiate these two referents by resorting to unlike signifiers.
b) Directive: switching serves this type of function in that it involves the hearer
directly. Speakers may opt to include or exclude hearers of the conversation by
switching to a specific language he is conscious of. Appel & Muysken (2005:
119) refer to the instance in which immigrant parents speak their native language
to each other to stop their children from understanding what is being said.
c) Expressive: this function has also been described by Poplack (1980), and it
denotes a mixed identity through the use of both contact languages. A discourse
full of code-switching instances becomes a mode of speech itself.
~ 117 ~
d) Phatic: switching might lead to a change in tone of the conversation, i.e. phatic
function. A clear-cut example is when stand-up comedians tell their jokes in a
standard variety of the language, but the punch line is said in a vernacular type of
speech (Appel & Muysken, 2005: 119).
e) Metalinguistic: switching is resorted to comment directly or indirectly in the

languages involved. This is widely seen on Miami-based television, in which
journalists or hosts switch languages constantly to come across clearer to their
guests or interviewees.
f) Poetic: switching is intended to make use of bilingual puns, jokes, or any

metaphorical tropes to grab viewers or hearers’ attention. The combination of both
languages’ stylistic devices is understandable in publicity: frisky frolic perros
(Negueruela, 2010: 96), in which dog-shaped toys are sold. The English names
are kept for phonological reasons (alliteration), translation would be too lettering,
and bilingual children are aware of both linguistic codes.
It is obvious that only proficient speakers of the language are capable of using a
wider range of these functions within the utterance. And more than one type of switching
could be found. What seems really reasonable is that those who switch most are precisely
those speakers who switch in the middle of an utterance (Appel & Muysken: 2005, 120).
Likewise, Silva-Corvalán26 (2001: 315-317) groups the types of code-switching, in
terms of their syntactic and pragmatic functionality. According to her classification, there
are three comprehensive types: 1) intention to quote an utterance literally (also stated by
Díaz-Campos, 2015: 539), as in “La pobre mujer se decía: ‘What’s wrong with me?’, y yo
solo pude contestarle…”; 2) willingness to encode emotions, and stress them in the speech,
such as “Wow. Todo está buenísimo. I’m so happy!”; 3) the use of rhetorical or expressive
function in the utterance, as in “Why, I questioned myself, did I have to daily portray
myself as a neogringo cuando mi realidad tenía más sangre y pasión?” 27
What seems recognizable is that “code-switching is always a conscious choice on the
part of the speaker” (Díaz-Campos, 2015. 539), and their origin relies on pragmatic
functions. These aforementioned classifications show that communicative intentionality of
intralinguistic languages is soundly different from that of standard ones. The existence of
Cited by López Morales (2003: 197-199)

26
The examples are entirely provided by Silva-Corvalán (2001)

27
~ 118 ~
two languages, or codes, in contact denotes a higher complexity of the phenomenon, which
involves both ethnographic and discourse analyses.
~ 119 ~
Differential Cuban Spanish glossary of anglicisms and calques: methodology and analysis
8. DIFFERENTIAL CUBAN SPANISH GLOSSARY OF ANGLICISMS AND

CALQUES: METHODOLOGY AND ANALYSIS
8.1 OBJECTIVES
Once the theoretical framework has been completed and studied, it is paramount to outline
the objectives of the practical stage our research is embedded with. The most wide-ranging
objective is precisely the elaboration of a differential Cuban Spanish (Cu.) glossary of
anglicisms and calques, which can offer lexico-semantic information of the anglicized
lemma.
This corpus-driven glossary enables the analysis of the process of anglicized lexical
borrowing more comprehensively: most frequent types of lexical borrowing,
sociolinguistic connotations, spelling or semantic changes, metaphorical transference of
meaning, commonest semantic fields observed, differentiating lexico-semantic features as
opposed to European Spanish (Sp.) regarding anglicization and calquing, etc.
This section is likewise aimed to describe the methodological bases for the
elaboration of the glossary. Detailing the steps taken becomes utterly convenient to
comprehend the source of the information gathered, and more importantly, to establish a
multiple-stage process of data collection and analysis for further research on Cuban
Spanish, chiefly in the fields of word formation or lexical borrowing.
The above-mentioned objectives reflect a historical need to study the influence of
English on Cuban Spanish. Not only is this research bound to itemize the anglicized lexical
units extracted from authentic materials, but also it is intended to portray how culturally
and linguistically penetrated Cuban Spanish could have been.
~ 121 ~
8.2 METHODOLOGY
The design of a research methodology for the analysis of Cuban-Spanish anglicisms and
calques stems from the palpable scarcity of analogous studies on this variant. Though
highly favorable to the novelty of this research, the lack of prior analysis of this kind
denotes the need to establish unprecedented methodological stages to collect the data and
to study the units identified in detail. Whether the study reflects an onomasiological or
semasiological perspective, whether words/terms could be standardized or simply their
contextualized usages, each of these studies should “adjust their methodology to their
circumstances” (Cabré, 1999: 137). In other words, based on the lack of oral discourse
data, and facing the impossibility of collecting or contrasting more information in situ, the
research has been adjusted to the availability of materials and methodological strategies,
e.g. dictionaries, corpora, inference, revision of authentic contexts, etc.
In general, the present research of Cuban-Spanish anglicized lexical borrowings
consists of two global stages: 1) data collection and 2) analysis of the information
(lemmas) extracted. These two complementary phases indicate the importance of relying
on a corpus-driven glossary before carrying out further quantitative and qualitative analysis
of the data.
The former phase is characterized by the compilation of lexical units and their
corresponding contextualization (if available). This revision process was based on three
main sources: a) Cuban Spanish (or Spanish) glossaries and dictionaries (see table 7
below); b) authentic written materials, e.g. blogs, books, magazines (see table 8 below); c)
linguistic contributions from the Spain-based Cuban community.
The former source is essential in terms of data collection, and the revision of
Spanish dictionaries and/or glossaries of both variants guarantee the differential nature of
the study, by ‘filtering’ the lemmas initially gathered and contrasting them with their
Spanish counterparts. The latter has a more limited contribution provided we take into
consideration that Cubans account for a small and scattered community in Spain, and their
dialectal norm is expectedly influenced by European Spanish. Nevertheless, some
sociolinguistic information was able to be contrasted successfully.
These three types of sources were fully resorted to. Their findings have served to
locate anglicized lexical units and to annotate them in conjunction with their context,
etymology, synonym(s), phonetic transcription (if necessary), semantic field, general
observations, etc. One distinguishing feature of the annotated lemmas, as appointed above,
~ 122 ~
is that only those differential lexical units were taken into consideration, i.e. merely Cuban
Spanish anglicisms and calques. The elaboration of a differential glossary of Cuban
Spanish anglicized lexical units stems from the need to study dialectal anglicization more
closely. This type of glossary could be of great importance to provide more specifications
on the origins and nature of spelling, phonetic or semantic shifting, and also to establish
comparisons with other linguistic variants (cf. Arnal, 2009; Montero, 1995).
Cu. and Sp. Glossaries and Dictionaries Consulted

“Anglicismos en la norma léxica cubana” (Gisela Cárdenas, 1999)
El habla popular cubana de hoy (Rogelio Santiesteban, 1985)
Corpus del español del siglo XXI (CORPES XXI, RAE)
Corpus de Referencia del Español Actual (CREA)
Cubaneando: diccionario cubano-español. Miami (Ivo Basterrechea, 2012)
Diccionario del español de Cuba (Gunther Haensch & Reinhold Werner, 2003)
Diccionario provincial casi razonado de vozes y frases cubanas (Esteban Pichardo,
1875)
Diccionario Mayor de Cubanismos (José Sánchez-Boudy, 1999)
Diccionario de la Real Academia de la Lengua Española (RAE)
Fichero General de la Real Academia Española (RAE)
“Glosario popular cubano” (Pedro Guerrero Ruiz et al, 2003)
Léxico del habla culta de La Habana (Ana María González Mafud, 2010)
Nuevo Catauro de Cubanismos (Fernando Ortiz, 1974)
Un guacalito de cubanismos (Juan Marinello Vidaurreta, 1996)
28
Table 7: Glossaries and Dictionaries Consulted
Blogs, Online Articles, and Forums

www.adelante.cu www.eltaburete.wordpress.com
www.adligmary.blogspot.com www.eskinalilith.wordpress.com
The complete citation of these materials can be found in the bibliography section.
28
~ 123 ~
www.ahora.cu www.fanalcubano.blogspot.com
www.ahs.cu www.fragua.org
www.ain.cu www.galeriaselencanto.com
www.alexdecuba.wordpress.es www.genealogiadelnictalope.blogspot.com
www.alocubano.com www.glotoncubano.com
www.asaeca.org www.guajiroarrepentio.blogspot.com
www.bachecubano.com www.guije.com
www.baseballdecuba.com www.habaguanex.ohc.cu
www.beisbol.com www.habanamemorias.blogspot.com
www.beisbolcubano.cu www.habanaporlalivre.com
www.beisbolencuba.com www.halocubano.blogspot.com
www.bodegacubana.wordpress.com www.havanatimes.org
www.boxeoveleno.blogspot.com www.havanatur.cu
www.buenastareas.com www.hectordarioreyes.wordpress.com
www.calmapueblo.wordpress.com www.hicuba.com
www.camarazaragoza.com www.infobae.com
www.cambiosencuba.blogspot.com www.jit.cu
www.caosycosasdecuba.blogspot.com www.lachiringa.wordpress.com
www.carlosbua.com www.laesquinadeelsa.wordpress.com
www.cartasdesdecuba.com www.laperladelahabana.com
www.casasderentaencuba.com www.lapupilainsomne.wordpress.com
www.catrachosports.com www.memoriascubano.blogspot.com
www.cafefuerte.com www.micocinaderevista.blogspot.com.es
www.cayocococubahotel.com www.miesquinacaliente.wordpress.com
www.cibercuba.com www.miscelaneasdecuba.net
www.conexioncubana.net www.mis-recetas.org
www.cubacine.cult.cu www.modelismocubano.com
www.cubacontemporanea.com www.mycubantraumas.blogspot.com
www.cubadebate.cu www.negracubanateníaqueser.com
www.cubaencuentro.com www.observatoriocríticocubano.org
www.cubaenmiami.com www.oncubamagazine.com
www.cubahora.cu www.opciones.cu
~ 124 ~
www.cubafamilia.blogspot.com www.opinfo.es
www.cubainformacion.tv www.palabranueva.net
www.cubamatinal.es www.palabrasyfrasescubanas.blogspot.com
www.cubanadeaviacion.com www.paquitoeldecuba.com
www.cubanet.org www.penultimosdias.com
www.cubanosporelmundo.com www.periodistadigital.com
www.cubanuestraeu9.wordpress.com www.pinceladasdesdecuba.com
www.cubaperiodistas.cu www.primaveradigital.org
www.cubared.com www.recetasdecocinacubana.com
www.cubarepublicana.org www.reconcilicióncubana.wordpress.com
www.cubasi.cu www.redcubanacc.blogspot.com
www.cubasolar.cu www.revolico.com
www.cuba-solidaridad.blogspot.com www.sentidog.com
www.cubava.cu www.sitiosdecuba.blogspot.com
www.cubaverdad.net www.soycuba.cu
www.cubaweb.cu www.taniaquintero.blogspot.com
www.cubisima.com www.tiempo21.cu
www.cubredirectme.com www.tintainfelizmierdaflorida.blogspot.com
www.desdelahabana.net www.traslareceta.wordpress.com
www.desdemipalcodefanatico.wordpress.com www.tripadvisor.com
www.discoc.blogspot.com www.turismodecuba.info
www.dtcuba.com www.turismoencuba.com
www.efdeportes.com www.yohandry.com
www.elacuarista.com www.zoevaldes.net
www.elcolimador.cu www.zonadestrike.wordpress.com
www.elrinconcubano.es www.zunzun.cu
Magazines and Newspapers
Diario de la Marina (available online on www.escambray.cu
the Digital Library of the Caribbean,
dloc.com)
Revista Ciencia Técnicas Agropecuarias www.giron.cu
(2013)
~ 125 ~
Revista Cubana de Estomatología (2004) www.granma.cu

Revista Cubana de Ciencias Informáticas www.guerrillero.cu
(2014)
Revista Cubana de Farmacia (2000) www.invasor.cu
Revista Cubana Invest Bioméd (1997) www.juventudrebelde.cu
Revista Didáctica y Educación (2012) www.lademajagua.co.cu
www.14ymedio.com www.laiguana.tv
www.acn.cu www.lajiribilla.cu
www.almamater.cu www.radiococo.icrtv.cu
www.bohemia.cu www.martinoticias.com
www.cadenagramonte.cu www.radiohc.cu
www.caimanbarbudo.cu www.radioguantanamo.icrt.cu
www.cnctv.icrt.cu www.radiorebelde.cu
www.cubaliteraria.cu www.trabajadores.cu
www.diariodecuba.com www.tribuna.co.cu
www.diariolibre.com www.tvcubana.icrt.cu
www.elmundo.es www.tvsantiago.icrt.cu
www.elpais.es
Books
Antes de mí: el Sahara (Héctor Quintero, 1990)
Así en La Habana como en el cielo (J.J. Armas Marcelo, 1998)
Cómo llegó la noche. Revolución y condena de un idealista cubano (Huber Matos, 2002)
Contra toda esperanza (Armando Valladares, 1985)
Cosas de la vieja Cuba (Lillian Llanes et al, 2008)
Cuba agrícola: mito y tradición, 1878-1920 (Leida Hernández Prieto, 2012)
Cuba: período especial (Ángel Sabaté, 2011)
Cultura Afrocubana, Castellanos (Jorge Castellanos & Isabel Castellanos, 1994)
De modo que esto es la muerte (Ronaldo Menéndez, 2002)
Diario no velado de La Habana (Xavier Vila-Coia, 2008)
Diez nuevas miradas de historia de Cuba (Jose A. Piqueras Arenas, 1998)
El bello habano. Biografía íntima del tabaco (Reinaldo González, 1998)
El capitán de los dormidos (Mayra Montero, 2002)
~ 126 ~
El exilio republicano español en Cuba (Jorge Domingo Cuadriello, 2009)

El ring (Virgilio Piñera, 1990)
En mi jardín pastan los héroes (Heberto Padilla, 1981)
Espacio de poder. Ciencia y agricultura en Cuba: el círculo de hacendados, 1878-1917
(Leida Fernández Prieto, 2008)
Estampas Cubanas (Emilio Cosío, 2004)
Experiencias de avanzada en la mejora escolar desde la evaluación educativa (Paul
Torres Fernández et al., 2012)
Gallego (Miguel Barnet, 1981)
Genes en tela de juicio (Alina Quevedo, 1996)
La alimentación: el dominio invisible de las mujeres canarias en Cuba (Juan Carlos
Rosario Molina, 2007)
La eternidad por fin comienza un lunes (Eliseo Diego, 1992)
La Habana para un infante difunto (Guillermo Cabrera Infante, 1986)
La Lupe: Reina poseída (Isabel matos, 2012)
La piel y la máscara (Jesús Díaz, 1996)
La radio en Cuba (Oscar Luis López, 1998)
La Revolución: pilares del socialismo en Cuba (Ramón Pérez Cabrera, 2013)
Lo negro y lo mulato en la poesía cubana (I. Pereda Valdés, 1970)
Los años de Orígenes (Lorenzo García Vega, 1978)
Los criminales de Cuba (José Trujillo y Monagas, 2006)
Mi vida sexual (Paquito D’Rivera, 2000)
Manual de Procedimientos de Enfermería (BVS-Cuba, 2003)
Morfología funcional deportiva (Roberto, Hernández Corvo, 1989)
Naufragios (Antonio Álvarez Gil, 2002)
Qué pasa en Cuba que Fidel no se afeita (Mario Agudelo, 2005)
Recuerdos de la próxima olimpiada (Pablo de la Torriente Brau)
Te sigo esperando (Una crónica cubana de los noventa) (Héctor Quintero, 1996)
Yo vendí mi bicicleta (Enrique Nuñez Rodríguez, 1989)
Dictionary Examples, Corpora, and Encyclopedias
Diccionario mayor de cubanismos (José Sánchez-Boudy, 1999)
Corpus de Referencia del Español Actual (CREA)
~ 127 ~
Muestras del habla culta de La Habana (Ana María González Mafud, 2010)
www.ecured.cu (Enciclopedia Cubana online)
Table 8: Authentic Cuban Spanish written sources used as context-feeders
What seems utterly noticeable is that compiling purely Cuban Spanish anglicisms
and calques provides the most accurate depiction of the process of linguistic anglicization
on this variant of Spanish. The lemmas, or entries, compiled help visualize the nature of an
array of concepts (frequency, productivity, typology of anglicisms) more thoroughly.
Occasionally, some anglicisms existing both in Cu. and Sp. are kept because one of
the senses described is strictly Cuban. Therefore, in those cases, all senses were retained
due to the semantic relevance of the lemmas collected, leading to a more complete study of
the processes of homonymy or polysemy in Cuban anglicisms.
On the whole, the resulting depiction of the lemmas can be summarized as follows:
anglicism (1)
m, f, gram. (2) A concept of the lemma being described. (3)
The word is supported by the use of a context (if available) in which
collocates, syntactic information, grammar patterning are gathered. (4)
SYN: synonym(s) (5)
ETYM: The etymology of the lemma (6)
The primary phase in the annotation process is the location of the lemma (1). The
entry may be accompanied by a phonetic transcription and any possible minor spelling
variations (var.). Phonetic and graphemic descriptions result in a more thorough portray of
dialectal stand-ins. Provided that graphemic variations are significant, a separate entry is
also attested (warandol/guarandol, winche/güinche). This observation is specified through
a symbol (→), and it does illustrate the extent of spelling variation a lemma could be
characterized by. Toponyms (Hershey, Wajay) and proper names (Andy, Frank, Lucy) have
not been compiled in the present research, but a future study of these nouns will be needed
to prove the deep-rooted-ness of the anglicization process in these word-formation cases.
In section (2), morpho-syntactic and semantic specifications are provided. Not only
is the entry complemented by gender, number and word class markers, but also by further
~ 128 ~
detailing on the semantic field the lemma belongs to, and sociolect indicators, e.g. formal,
vulgar, colloquial. These markers are not dependent on the entry being described, but the
lexico-semantic variant (or sense) specified. Idioms in which the anglicized unit is used are
necessarily annotated, and thus described individually. Owing to a fine-grained depiction
of the morpho-semantic construct of lemmas, isolated senses can be extracted and studied
more easily.
The entry is logically provided with a definition (3), which may well be completed
by the illustration of collocates, commonly found with the word. Collocates and definitions
are useful to check any possible semantic variations in contrast with the English paronyms
or Sp. equivalents.
All these features are somehow supported by the addition of a context (4). These
contexts are taken from a range of written materials (see table 8), and they are convenient
to verify the above-mentioned specifications. An unquestionable usage of contexts is the
realization of lexico-semantic variants in an authentic discourse, and the identification of
collocates or sociolinguistic markers. A relevant feature of the contexts used in the
glossary is that they are all written by Cuban authors, and a higher priority has been given
to Cuba-based sources, avoiding thus the usage of US-based texts and their most likely
Cuban-American word stock. This explains why few US-based sources of Spanish have
been resorted to due to their nearness to the Cuban-American variant of Spanish.
The attachment of synonyms (5) in both Cu. and Sp. facilitates the identification of
the lemma, and thus, its lexico-semantic variant. The etymology of the lexical unit (6) is
of vital importance to comprehend the origin of the lemma in question. Etymological
observations are fundamental to both establish paronyms and word formation patterning,
and define a loanword based on its typology and variations.
The resulting glossary (see examples below) makes available a wide range of
features, entailing a visible portray of anglicized lemmas. Their differential nature (as
opposed to Sp.) conforms with the underlying need to revise this type of lexical units in
Cuban Spanish. The entries compiled constitute a comprehensive map of the anglicization
process in Cu., and it sets the grounds for further comparative and normative studies.
~ 129 ~
jaba
n, f 1 A strapped bag used for carrying things.

Un cubano que ande por la calle desprovisto de una jabita es como un
soldado sin fusil en medio del campo de batalla. Ella, la jaba, ha de ir con
nosotros con mayor obligatoriedad que nuestra propia sombra,
acompañándonos de noche y de día, a la salida del sol y en el ocaso de la
tarde. (“Con la jaba a cuestas”, cubanet.org)
n, f 2 ( de nailon) A carrier bag, made of nylon, used for going

shopping.
Pero esas jabas de nailon no eran comunes, precisamente porque para los
cubanos comprar en estas tiendas estaba prohibido. (“La jaba, el pomo y el
pozuelo”, 14ymedio.com, 15/02/2015)
SYN: bolsa de plástico (Sp.)
ETYM: handbag
Obs.: Its diminutive form is chiefly used: jabita
inning [ínin]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, one of the usually nine parts of a game.
Muy polémicas resultaron en el partido la sustitución de Lorenzo Quintana

por Orbe Luis Peña en el noveno inning, así como la estrategia de Víctor
Mesa de lanzarle a Roel Santos con la primera desocupada y hombre en
segunda en el noveno inning. (“Abrazo rojo y verde en final de la pelota
cubana”, trabajadores.cu, 12/04/2014)
v. ph. 2 (complicarse el ) Referring to a situation that gets twisted.
ETYM: inning
These annotations, as agreed upon earlier, provide general information about the
lemmas, and they are fundamental to proceed to the following stage: analysis of the
information extracted.
~ 130 ~
8.3 ANALYSIS OF THE DATA
A corpus-driven data analysis of this kind is of great importance to elaborate a complete

study of English-induced linguistic borrowing in Cuban Spanish. A prior normative and
descriptive analysis of this variant of Spanish (see chapter 5) has both shed some light on
the linguistic anglicization processes, and provided clear-cut illustrations of the resulting
word forms in the language. This section is therefore intended to complement the previous
study by conducting a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the information gathered.
The number of lemmas compiled (anglicisms and calques) totaled 921. This
number includes the entries being differentiated due to possibly major spelling changes,
which may well result in semantic shifting: baseball/béisbol, cácher/catcher,
bunch/bonche, pie/pay, files/fields. In the former duplet (baseball/béisbol), baseball is an
obsolete word and it only remains in technical texts whereas the second entry is commonly
found, together with its colloquial form pelota. In the case of files/fields, the distinction
made of both entries relies on both spelling and idiomatic meaning: estar en los files ‘to be
at the very back of a place’ < fields; fields is merely used to denote a baseball position.
On the whole, the differential glossary compiles 1053 lexico-semantic variants (or
senses), which are specified numerically in the entries. Few of these variants are shared
with the European variant of Spanish, but they have not been removed to show how such
senses might be distributed in a given entry.
A total of 74 idioms have been specified in the entries, and the majority of them are
chiefly metaphorical extensions of the lemma in question: haber movimiento en el bullpen
‘referring to a changing situation’ < bullpen, comerse un cake /kéi/ ‘to feel let down by
something or another person’ < cake, quitar el catao ‘to stop thinking or worrying about
something’ < cut-out (box). The idioms specified in the glossary (see section 11.1.2) are
fully motivated, and most of them are colloquialisms. Curiously, a number of expressions
correspond to baseball-related idioms, entailing thus a significant degree of linguistic
assimilation of baseball terms into colloquial Cu. The following table summarizes some of
these idioms and their corresponding literal and metaphorical meanings:
~ 131 ~
Idiom (and its etymology) Literal Sense Metaphorical Sense
apagafuego (or bombero) (adj.) A relief pitcher in a baseball game. Someone who is capable of
< fireman tackling problems in a more
diligent manner.
bate emergente (noun) < pinch A batter replacing another one at a A person that takes the place
hitter critical time of the game. of someone else.
batear por la otra banda (v. To hit the ball to the opposite side of To be homosexual.
intrans.) < to bat the ballpark.
batear por una banda (v. To hit the ball to any of the sides of To be bisexual
intrans.) < to bat the ballpark.
batear un jonrón (v. intrans.) < To hit a ball out of the ballpark and To do a task successfully.
to hit a home-run score.
botar la bola (v. intrans.) < to hit To hit a home-run. To do an unexpected or
a ball out unusual activity.
calentar el banco (v. intrans.) < To wait (a player) for their turn to get To idle for a long time.
to warm the bench in the game.
cargabate (or cargabates) < bat- Someone who is charge of carrying Someone ho compliments or
carrier the bats to the batters on the home- agrees with someone else,
plate. generally due to personal
interests or obsequiousness.
coger fuera de base (v. intrans.) To tag out a runner for not being on To surprise someone when
< out of base base. he/she is doing an unlawful
thing.
colgar los spikes (v. intrans.) < (As to spikes) Shoes worn at baseball To give up on a task,
spikes games. previously started.
complicarse el inning (v. (As to the inning) To have all the (As to a situation) To
intrans.) < inning bases loaded or full. complicate or get twisted.
correr para tercera base (v. To run to third base. To resort to hilarity or
intrans.) < to run to third base mockery to avoid a situation.
cuarto bate (noun) < fourth The fourth player at bat, capable of Someone who eats too
batter hitting a home-run and score various much.
runs.
dar base por bolas (v. intrans.) < To allow a batter to go to first base To allow someone to do
base on balls due to four balls following each something without further
other. consequences.
dar bateo (v. intrans.) < to bat To hit a ball into the field. To cause trouble or hassle.
esconder la bola (v. intrans.) < to (As to an infielder) To hide the ball to Not to show the real
hide the ball trick a runner on base. intentions.
esquina caliente (noun) < hot Third base in the field. A place in which people
corner gather to debate on
controversial issues.
estar en los files (v. intrans.) < to To play as a fielder. To be at the very back of a
be in the fields place.
fildear (v. intrans.) < to play as a To play any of the positions in the To watch someone closely in
fielder fields. an attempt to catch him/her
by surprise.
hacer swing (v. intrans.) < to To swing with the bat in an attempt to To pay atttention to
swing hit the ball. something or someone.
irse en blanco (v. intrans.) < to (As to the batter) Not to hit any ball. Not to accomplish a task.
go hitless
~ 132 ~
jugar en los files (v. intrans.) < to To play any of the positions of the To rank of the last positions
play in the fields fields. in an activity, especially as
per studies or work.
lanzarse de barriga (v. intrans.) (As to a runner) To slide onto base to To act desperately to reach
< to slide (onto base) be safe or score. an objective.
llegar de fly (v. intrans.) < fly- (As to a ball) To fly over the field To arrive unexpectedly, or
ball and be caught by a player on its way without prior notice.
down.
llevar el average (v. intrans.) < To score the number of hits, divided To watch someone’s
batting average by the number of batting times. movement or conduct,
possibly for a reprimand.
meter una curva (or línea) (v. To hit a curve pitch, or simply to hit a To provide a conclusive
intrans.) < to hit a curve ball (or line drive. argument to avoid a difficult
line drive) situation or an unpleasant
situation.
no ver la bola (v. intrans.) < not To fail at hitting the ball. Not to accomplish an
to see the ball objective for being
absentminded or distracted.
partir el bate (v. intrans.) < To break the bat when batters use a To do an unusual or
break the bat lot of strength. surprising activity.
poncharse (v. intrans.) < punch- (As to a batter) To fail at hitting the Not to be successfully
out (or strike-out) ball after three strikes. accomplished, e.g. a trip or a
project.
poner (someone) out (v. trans.) < To tag a runner out. To make someone fail at
to put out his/her plans.
quieto en base (adj.) < safe Characterized by reaching a base Characterized by behaving
safely, i.e. without being tagged out. adequately after being told
off.
ser out por regla (v. intrans.) < (As to a batter or a player on base) To To warn someone who is on
to be out be pulled out of the game by the the edge of losing something
umpire. important (relationship, job,
etc.)
tener un buen bate (v. intrans.) < (As to the bat) Wooden, long To have a penis of above-
bat instrument used to hit the ball in a average proportions.
baseball game.
tirar a la bola mala (v. intrans.) To hit the ball outside the home- To follow a suggestion or
< to hit the bad ball plate. advice which turns out to be
wrong or inadequate.
toque de bola (noun) < bunt A light hit to make the ball roll only Surprising performance
for a short distance. which is intended to trick .
29
Table 9: Baseball-related idiomatic expressions
8.4 MORPHO-SYNTACTIC ANALYSIS
A comprehensive analysis of the glossary-based information shows that nouns and noun
phrases account for 77.7% of the total number of lexico-semantic variants compiled (see
Figure 8 below). The other word types in descending order of importance are: verbs and
Retrieved and translated from the article “Usos figurados del léxico del béisbol en el español cubano”
29
(Sánchez Fajardo, 2016a)
~ 133 ~
verb phrases (14.8%), adjectives and adjectival phrases (5.8%), adverbs and adverbial
phrases (1.2%), and interjections (nearly 0.5%). The superiority trend of nouns, in contrast
with other word forms, has been repeatedly observed in analogous studies (Rodríguez,
2002; Cárdenas, 1999). This responds to the fundamental need of denoting inexistent
referents in the mother tongue, rather than actions. Thus, lexical loans, chiefly the ones
resulting from noun-forming processes, compensate the lack or absence of the word stock.
Figure 8: Word typology of the lexico-semantic variants compiled in the glossary
In terms of English-induced verb-forming processes, the number of transitive verbs,

intransitive verbs and verb phrases represent 22.6%, 28%, and 49.4%, respectively, of all
the verb forms extracted. These percentages imply that verb phrases account for nearly half
of the total figure. Verb phrases, i.e. verbal idiomatic expressions, are lexical units
resulting from a semantic extension of literal senses (botar la pelota < to hit out the ball ‘to
do a task successfully’30), or possibly from a calque from English phraseology (venderse
como pan caliente < to sell like hot cake ‘to sell (something) really well’). It may well be
the combination of an English word with a native phrase, resulting in a common word-
botar la pelota has a literal meaning of ‘hitting out the ball’ in a baseball game. (For further information
30
and contexts, see section 5.5)
~ 134 ~
building process of anglicized lexical units: vivir en week-end ‘to idle’; medir el antifrízer
‘to be homosexual’ < anti-freezer.
As commented in chapter 5, plurality in nouns is pattern-less. In the glossary, those
anglicisms following standard plurality rules account for the majority of the units: baffles,
barbecues, hits, bates < bat, bayúes < bayou, güines, jonrones < home-runs. Obviously,
lexical and semantic calques, being morphologically native, do comply with Spanish
plurality rules: extensiones < extension (cords), corredores < runners, entradas < innings.
A few direct borrowings, keeping anglicized spelling and/or pronunciation, are not
necessarily grammatically marked: los/las big leaguer, los carter, los left field, los
dancing, los ómnibus, etc.
As per gender assignment, the majority of the nouns annotated are inanimate, which
explains why the majority of them are considered pattern-less. Animate nouns, on the other
hand, are grammatically marked, chiefly in those nouns related to occupations: lonchero(-
a) ‘diner server’< lunch, winchero(-a) < winch, panquelero(-a) ‘pancake street vendor’<
pancake, pipero(-a) ‘tanker truck driver’ < pipe. The feminine gender is likewise found to
denote instruments: lonchera ‘lunch box’, panquelera ‘pancake maker’, ponchadora <
puncher; or places: ponchera < punch ‘place where tires are repaired’, maltera < malt
‘cafeteria in which malt drink is sold’. Certain nouns do not change, regardless of the
gender: pantrista ‘pantry worker’, motorist ‘street car driver’. The latter is also found in
Sp. with the meaning of ‘motorcycle rider’.
The pattern-less nature of inanimate nouns might stem, as remarked earlier in
unit 5, from three possible sources: 1) adoption of the gender of the Spanish word the loans
are associated with, e.g. la barbacoa → la barbecue, el tabloncillo → el floor ‘basketball
court’, el parque → el parque ‘ballpark’; 2) arbitrary phonologically-induced assignment
of gender, which might result from the endings, e.g. el fotingo < foot in and go ‘old car’, el
güito < white ‘skin whitish rashes’, la paca < pack ‘pack of paper’; 3) rules and regularities
of Spanish, which are necessarily applied to newly-coined calques, e.g. la reservación <
reservation, la plomería < plumbing. Both endings in Spanish (-ción, -ería) call for
feminine suffixation, which is thus maintained and standardized.
Though obsolete compounds, flower girl and ring boy denote gender through the
rightmost units, i.e. girl and boy. An interesting remnant of these direct and cultural
borrowings is damito, which is currently used to call the ring boy in a wedding. It is clearly
a semantic distortion or oddity of the word dama ‘maid’, whose gender is anomalously
~ 135 ~
shifted by using a masculine diminutive –ito. Cameraman, yet a noticeably English

masculine noun, is currently used for both men and women, a sexist vestige of English
word-building.
Similarly to a general typology of linguistic borrowings, Cu. anglicized
compounds may stem from an array of processes. The commonest one is precisely the
assimilation of originally English compounds without any visible graphemic adaptation:
baby-doll, background, bellboy, boxspring, coffeecake, handball, etc. Some forms might
remain as compounds, but their bases are so adapted that they are seemingly one-word
elements: béisbol < baseball, dogao < dugout, carpor < car-port, siol < shortstop, tribey <
three-base hit, etc. Occasionally, compounding bases are translated, but their composite
form is kept: aeromoza < air-hostess, sírvase-usted < self-service, cargabates < bat-
carrier, besaculo < buttkisser. English composites are ess frequently calqued, entailing
thus grammatically correct noun phrases: árbol del pan < breadfruit tree, baño de sol <
sunbathe, cuello de tortuga < turtleneck, patrón de prueba < pattern test.
The adaptation of loanwords, both phonetically and graphemically, is also
noticeable. A number of direct borrowings, especially nouns, undergo spelling shifting,
which makes the assimilation procedure of anglicized units more adjustable: ampaya <
umpire, babiney < bobbinet, sondy < sundae, siol < short-stop, tubey < two-base hit. The
last two examples (siol, tubey) portray how spelling and pronunciation are interrelated in
terms of lexical borrowing, and how the adaptation process is dependent on the degree of
difficulty of the newly-coined loan, or its frequency in the native language. At times,
spelling changes lead to ungrammaticality in English: bride maid < bridesmaid,
championismo < champion + -ism, or Spanish: robador de base < base stealer. The word
robador does not exist in Spanish, and it is restricted to a baseball play.
One of the distinguishable features of word-building derivational processes is
that anglicized units are recognized to comply with specific suffixation patterns. In keeping
with prior results, nouns are found to possess the widest range of suffixed units. The
commonest noun-forming suffixes are consequently in adapted loanwords: -ero(a), -ista, -
o, -ería, ito(a). The first two are mostly related to occupations: bisnero < business,
pantrista < pantry, lonchero < lunch, pipero ‘tanker truck’ < pipe, quiropedista <
chiropodist, plomero < plumber, etc. Suffix –ero(a), being graphemically analogous to
English suffix –er, is also used to describe action-doers, places or objetcs: jonronero <
homerun, squiador < skier, fildeador < fielder, casetera < cassette player, pulguero < flea
~ 136 ~
market. Suffix –ero(a) is also adjective-forming, and it is regularly found in relatively

negative or humorous adjectives: palmolivero ‘referring to someone who drinks alcohol on
daily basis’ < Palmolive, beisbolero < baseball, blofero ‘characterized by showing off, or
being too pretentious’ < bluff.
A productive noun-forming suffix, especially in abstract ones, is –o. The
resulting nouns make reference to the general action stemming from a verbal base and a
noun-forming suffix: bateo < to bat, cacheo < to catch, picheo < to pitch, chequeo < to
check in, gardeo < to guard, facho ‘to steal’ < to fetch, escauteo ‘the act of gathering
information before a game to make the right decision’ < to scout. At times, these words are
believed to co-exist with lesser colloquial ones: cacheo / receptoría, picheo / lanzamiento,
gardeo / defensa, facho / robo.
Other relatively infrequent noun-forming suffixes have also been extracted in the
glossary: -ería as in cremería, -ito as in shorcito, -ismo as in embolismo. The noun
cremería < ice-cream parlor is a construct conveying the attachment of an anglicized base
(crem- < cream) to a native place-forming suffix, complying with other analogous forms in
Spanish such as heladería, crepería, etc. Diminutive-forming suffix –ito, as commented
earlier, is rather frequent, and it is mostly found in clothing-related units: shorcito < shorts,
pulovito < pull-over, blumito < bloomers. Noun-forming suffix –ismo is restricted to a high
sociolect, and it is rarely found: embolismo < embolism, championismo.
The existence of ‘pseudo-suffixes’, though not common, is also tangible:
gratindei ‘free’ < gratis + -dei, películey ‘film’ < película + -ey, ameriquein < Americano
+ -ein. These suffixes are phonemically English, but their intention is merely to anglicize
the native bases they are attached to. They are solely found in low sociolect.
The coexistence of paronymic duplets, belonging to different borrowing types
but conveying a similar lexical meaning is also noticed: high-ball/jaibolear;
fraternity/fraternidad; jersey/yersi. Due to the graphemic and phonemic adaptation of
loanwords, both forms remain in the language, and eventually the adapted form logically
prevails: jaibolear, fraternidad, yersi (Haensch & Wegner, 2000; Rodríguez, 201631).
These duplets are highly productive in Cuban Spanish, especially in baseball jargon: home-
run/jonrón, dug-out/dogao, fielder/fildeador, etc.
Some lemmas and lexico-semantic variants have been extracted from the forthcoming Gran diccionario de
31
anglicismos by Félix Rodríguez.
~ 137 ~
Curiously, spelling variation may well result in homonyms or homographs. That is

to say, two different loanwords, whose origins and meanings differ, are grouped under the
same entry or lemma due to coincidental graphemes and/or phonemes in the target
language, i.e. Cuban Spanish. Therefore, fai is described as having two meanings: ‘a break’
< five, and ‘a folder’ < file. Another example is pie, in which two variants are outlined: ‘a
baked dessert having a filling’ < pie, and ‘a unit of measurement’ < foot. The former
variant is pronounced /pái/ whereas the latter one is /pié/, which explains their
homography.
As per the typology of lexical borrowing (see Figure 3), the analysis of the lexico-
semantic variants compiled shows that 21.7% of these units are indirect lexical borrowings,
i.e. calques (loan translation, loan rendition, loan creation) and semantic loans. The study
confirms that semantic loans account for nearly half of the indirect loans found (see Figure
9).
Figure 9: Distribution of indirect lexical borrowings in the glossary.
Semantic loans have been continuously characterized by adjusting into the language
under native morphological structures. This is precisely what makes semantic loans (or
calques) the perfect ‘camouflage’ in terms of language contact and linguistic assimilation:
~ 138 ~
amarillo ‘coward’ < yellow, asumir ‘to suppose’ < to assume, cellular < cell (phone),
cebra < zebra crossing, chivo < goatee, diamante ‘baseball ballpark’ < diamond,
iluminaciones < (hair) highlights, pasaje < passageway, rayo < (bicycle) ray, remover ‘to
move from a prior position’ < to remove. These native lexical units undergo a process of
semantic extension, in which Spanish senses are complemented by the addition of
anglicized meanings. These calques, or translations, are occasionally accompanied by
morphological variations (clipping, shortening), which are intended to ‘hispanicize’ the
loans even more thoroughly: passageway → pasaje, zebra crossing → cebra.
Unlike semantic loans, loan translations are entirely inexistent in the target
language, i.e. Cuban Spanish, and the resulting unit is the product of a literal translation of
the English counterpart: aeromoza < air hostess, arco del pie < arch of the foot, bateador
emergente < emergent batter, bola de tenedor < forkball, calle ancha < broad way, cortina
de hierro32 < iron curtain, cuello-tortuga < turtleneck, Grandes Ligas < Major Leagues,
hospital de día < day hospital, mesa sueca ‘buffet’ < Swedish table, novela jabonera <
soap opera, perro caliente < hot dog, queso crema < cream cheese, rabo de nube33 < tail
cloud, robar base < to steal a base (in baseball), rompequijá < jawbreaker, tienda por
departamentos < department store. A number of these lemmas are compound units, which
might explain the literal calquing of their English paronyms, and the major changes
language might go through to compensate the absence of such signifiers in the system.
Loan renditions and loan creations are noticeably less frequent, but their
transformations imply a higher degree of creativity and native-ness. The former, as
commented in chapter 5, results from a partial translation of its elements: bocadulce <
sweet tooth, cheque de retención < retention check valve, círculo de espera < deck circle,
cremería < ice-cream parlor, patear la lata ‘to die’ < to kick the bucket, polo acuático <
water polo, presión arterial < blood pressure. Loan creations show no strict or literal
resemblance to their English paronyms: inicialista < lead-off, jardinero central < center-
fielder, jardinero izquiero/derecho < left/right fielder, serpentinero < pitcher, sírvase-usted
< self-service restaurants. These units confirm the complexity of the calquing process
within the target language, honed by a significant semantic motivation. The use of
jardinero in baseball is probably motivated by the green grass in the fields, which coexists
with the adapted form fildeador. The case of pitcher is of a more complex nature:
In Sp., the equivalent would be telón de acero, which is a loan rendition, rather than a loan translation.
32
33
This is an uncommon mis-translated calque, whose Spanish version would be, in a more literal and strict
sense: nube con rabo.
~ 139 ~
serpentinero is derived from serpentina ‘streamer’, which depicts pitchers’ throwing.

These infrequent, but highly complex constructs, are also intended to facilitate the
assimilation of English concepts by resorting to calqued native forms.
Direct borrowings, on the contrary, are easier to spot. A comprehensive analysis of
the lexico-semantic variants compiled in the glossary shows that the majority of these
English-induced units correspond to direct lexical borrowings (78.3%). A more detailed
revision of the data reveals that 80.1% of the variants extracted are loanwords, both
adapted and non-adapted forms (see Figure 10).
Figure 10: Distribution of direct lexical borrowings in the glossary
As commented in chapter 4, loanwords are anglicisms par excellence, especially

those forms lacking any major variations in their original form (non-adapted): all right,
aqualung, baby-doll, balk, big leaguer, blueplate, breaker ‘a device for opening a circuit’,
cameraman, catcher, closet, clinch, display, extrainning, fly ‘a hit high into the air’, high
life, hot cake, laptop, lollipop, mouse, off side, outfield, pent-house, play-off, power, ready,
rocket, safe, short stop, spot ‘a TV or radio commercial’, tie break, vinyl. All these forms
are primarily unchanged in terms of spelling and pronunciation. However, a few of non-
adapted loanwords may show variations as to pronunciation: average /aberáxe/, back-up
~ 140 ~
/bakúp/, baffle /báfle/, double play /dóble pléi/, garaje ‘a shop where vehicles are repaired’
/garáxe/, rash /rás/.
The present quantitative analysis of adapted loanwords merely relies on spelling
variations. In other words, adapted loanwords are considered anglicized lexical units
whose spelling has been modified: ampaya < umpire, bacha < batch, bisnero ‘someone
who does illegal business’ < business, bugalú < boogaloo, chalina < shawl, escauteo <
scout ‘the act of gathering information before a game to make the right decision’, finta <
feint, güito < white, jaba < handbag, noquelbol < knuckleball, paco < pack, payama <
pajamas, plomero < plumber, ponche ‘a flat tire’ < punch-out, raspe < rasp, relé < relay,
siol ‘the player who defends the area between the second and third base’ < short stop,
soque < socket, trole < trolley, yaqui ‘one of the pieces used to play in a children’s game<
jack, zíper < zipper. As noticed, some of these borrowings could have undergone minor
pronunciation variations. The scale of spelling changes varies from easily perceptible
(payama, raspe, zíper) to highly ‘camouflaged’ ones (chalina, jaba, siol).
False loans, or pseudo-anglicisms, are significantly diverse. Their nature and word-
building mechanisms have been thoroughly explained in chapter 6. In sum, these
anglicized forms, recognizably English in their form, are used with a different meaning in
English: antifrízer < antifreeze, bate ‘penis’ < bat, bayú ‘brothel’ < bayou, blof ‘an
arrogant person’ < bluff, center ‘the player defending the center field’ < center field, collin
‘a machete’ < Collin, corring ‘the act of running from base to base’ < correr + -ing,
eslogan ‘perfect’ < slogan, floor ‘basketball court’ < basketball’s court floor, gungadín
‘mulatto’ < Gunga Din, high ‘upper economic stratum’ < high class, kinder <
kindergarten, licra ‘a pair of leggings’ < lycra, overjol ‘a complicated surgery’ < overhaul,
panel < panel truck, rolling < roller or roll-out, zambrán ‘a wide belt’ < Sam Browne.
The variety of forms extracted stems from an array of word-building processes
identified. A number of units are shortened structures of existing English paronyms
(center, floor, high, panel), whereas others resort to anglicizing suffixes, or pseudo-
suffixes, attached to a Spanish base (corring, gratindei ‘free’). But it is perhaps the
extension of meaning that truly characterizes this type of direct lexical borrowing. The
semantic addition of senses might be owing to eponymy (gungadín, betibú ‘a provocative
woman’ < Betty Boop34), metonymy (collin, zambrán), synecdoche (baffle ‘outspeaker’),
Animated cartoon character, created by Max Fleischer, and regarded as one of the first and most famous
34
sex symbols of the animated screen.
~ 141 ~
toponymy (yuma ‘the United States’ < Yuma), etc. The semantic shifting through
metonymy or synecdoche entails a wide range of cases: tomarse la coca cola ‘to forget
beloved people, especially relatives and friends’ < Coca Cola (trademark), bul ‘a
refreshing drink which is made of beer or sparkling water, lemon, and sugar’ < bowl
(container is used to denote what is contained), blower ‘the act of blow-drying the hair’
(instrument denoting the action). The last example portrays not only semantic shifting but
also ungrammaticality in English: -er is not a word-building suffix for action nouns.
One recurrent pattern in the glossary is the presence of pseudo-anglicization in
polysemic lexico-semantic variants. These lemmas are usually characterized by outlining a
loanword (adapted or non-adapted), and then a false loan, a semantic extension of a more
literal one. In the example below, clinch has been described as conveying two lexico-
semantic variants. The second sense is clearly extended from the stricter meaning
describing how boxers hold each other very closely during the round.
clinch
n, m, sport 1 In boxing, a position in which both boxers are holding each
other very closely.
El Norte es fiero y rudo, boxeador.
Ese mismo Broadway,
que en actitud de vena se desangra
para chillar junto a los rings
en que tú saltas como un moderno mono elástico,
sin el resorte de las sogas,
ni los almohadones del clinch;
ese mismo Broadway
que unta de asombro su boca de melón
ante tus puños explosivos
y tus actuales zapatos de charol (…)
(“Pequeña oda a un negro boxeador cubano”, Nicolás Guillén)
n, m 2 The act of kissing or holding each other in a continuous manner.

(DEC)
SYN: apretazón (Cu.), (darse) el lote (Sp.)
ETYM: clinch
A similar frequent patterning is also visible in indirect lexical borrowings. Thus, the
stricter sense is a calque, chiefly a loan translation or loan rendition, whose meaning is
noticeably shifted into a metaphorical sense (see the example below). This type of lexico-
~ 142 ~
semantic variant has been classed as metaphorical calque, and it denotes a recurring
process of semantic variation. Both senses have been extracted and detailed in the glossary
because they are considerably relevant to study semantic shifting or polysemy/homonymy
in lexical borrowing.
coger fuera de base

v. trans., sport 1 In baseball, to catch out a baseball runner for not
being on base.
Teniendo en cuenta todo lo que hemos hablado, si creo que este equipo
de dirección ha dejado mucho que desear y sino busquen cuantos
corredores nos han cogido movido fuera de base, cuántos han sido
mandado para home sin el más mínimo de posibilidades de anotar,
cuántos han sido mandados al robo suicida en situaciones que ha
cortado rachas ofensivas. (“Serie nacional: los toros según Rolando
Hernández”, adelante.cu, 22/09/2015)
v. ph., colloq. 2 To surprise someone when he/she is doing something

inadequate.
Un silencio dudoso. A mí me ha dado pena. Los cogió fuera de base
esta entrevista. Para mí la prensa cubana siempre ha sido un enigma.
(“Amaury Pérez habla sobre la entrevista al Cardenal Ortega”,
cubared.com, 05/09/2015)
ETYM: to catch out of base
On the whole, metaphorical calquing is the product of translation and polysemy.

The resulting constructs are probably the least easily-perceived forms by English speakers,
and they are widely found in the glossary: correr para tercera base ‘to resort to mockery
and evasion to do something’ < to run to third base, base por bolas ‘to allow someone to
get away with it’ < base on balls, esquina caliente ‘a place in which controversial issues
are discussed’ < hot corner, bombero ‘someone capable of solving problems’ < fireman.
The majority of these phraseological units are baseball-related, and they are also compiled
above in table 9.
False loans and metaphorical calquing share a great deal of similarities. The former
units are signifier-centered, i.e. a loanword is assimilated into Spanish but its meaning
differs from its English counterpart. The latter process depicts the borrowing of a meaning,
i.e. signified-centered, and its variations within the target language system.
~ 143 ~
8.5 SEMANTIC ANALYSIS OF THE DATA
One of the primary conveniences of corpus-driven analysis is the study of its lemmas, and
lexico-semantic variants more comprehensively, i.e. in the system and in contextualized
extracts. Thus, not only is semantic information revealed but also sociolinguistic and
pragmatic features.
The study confirms that the commonest semantic fields extracted are: sports
(25.7%), clothes (7.1%), technical words (5.8%), food (5.2%), transport (3.8%), house
(3.7%), medical terms/body (2.1%), occupations (1.9%). All these figures are sketched
numerically hereafter, in Figure 11. It is important to point out that these findings
correspond to the differential glossary elaborated in the present research, which is why
only those Cuban Spanish anglicized units are illustrated and sketched.
Figure 11: Commonest semantic fields extracted.
As remarked earlier, the semantic field of sports is by far the commonest one
extracted, chiefly baseball-related units: batear < to bat, jonrón < home-run, out,
montículo < mount, pitcher, rolling. Therefore, baseball has played a fundamental role in
the anglicization process of Cuban Spanish by assimilating a number of expressions and
words, whose literal meanings are at times modified or extended, and widely used in the
~ 144 ~
vernacular. Other sports were also found: clinch (boxing), handball, light welter (boxing),
noquear (boxing), polo acuático < water polo.
Due to the aforementioned influence of American English, it is not unexpected to
find a number of English-induced loanwords related to the semantic fields of clothing and
fabric types. Most fabric names remain as technical terms within the clothing industry
(guingham, broadcloth, galalith, heatherspun) whilst others have been thoroughly
assimilated into the vernacular, which is somehow noticeable in spelling shifts (linin,
chantung < shantung, guarandol < warandol, linolán < linoleum, yersi < jersey). Clothing
items have been more easily adapted into the Cuban variant: jacket (or yaqui), suéter <
sweater, pulóver < pull-over, blazer, blúmers or bloomers.
The semantic field of technical words and expressions, englobes an array of
categories, all related to specific technicalities: alimentador de caña < cane feeder (sugar
cane industry), balancear ‘to make car wheels steady by keeping weight equal on all sides’
< to balance, caja decodificadora < decoder box, kilowatt, macadán ‘a road surface made
with a dark material that contains small broken stones’ < John Mac Adam.
Curiously, a number of adapted food-related units have been found, mostly coined
in pre-Revolution times: cake, coffeecake or cofiquei, frozen ‘ice-cream served in a wafer’
< frozen ice-cream, láguer ‘beer’ < lager, malta, soda, mesa sueca < Swedish table,
panqué < pancake, peter ‘chocolate bar’ < Peter Paul. Interestingly, loanwords like láguer
and soda, initially hyponyms of types of beer and fizzy drink respectively, have evolved
into hyperonyms.
In conjunction with other semantic fields described, finding a number of transport-
related borrowings, chiefly car-related ones, reflects the high degree of influence exerted
by the American car industry throughout the Neocolonial period. The lemmas extracted
show a supremacy of adapted forms: carro, convertible, cloche < clutch, emergencia <
emergency brake, flashear ‘to signal turnings in a car’ < to flash, antifrízer < antifreeze,
serviciar < to service (a car).
A few of the house-tagged lemmas are invariably linked with generic trademarks:
ace, fab, frigidaire, yale ‘door lock’. The majority of the entries were obviously imported
during the rise of North-American trading before 1959: boxspring < box spring, breaker
‘circuit breaker’, buró < bureau, car porch, catao < cut-out box, chifforober < chifforobe,
closet, freezer, juego de living ‘living-room set’, mezzanine, pent-house, socket.
~ 145 ~
Those medical terms or body-related nouns are grouped into a single semantic field.
The number of lemmas found is much lower than the rest of the fields, and some of them
are visibly the product of calquing: arco del pie < arch of the foot, constipación ‘being
unable to release solid waste’ < constipation, doble barba < double-chinned, güito ‘whitish
spots on the skin’ < white, ojo de pescado ‘skin warts’ < fish eye, presión arterial < blood
pressure, rash, tonsila < tonsils, quiropedia < chiropody.
In the case of occupations, though comparably scarce in the glossary, these
anglicized units reveal a variety of word-building processes. Some of the entries are
expectedly denoting inexistent concepts in Cuban Spanish: cameraman, despedidor < (bus)
dispatcher, reporter, steward (-ess), tipista < typist, yatista < yacht. These are
complemented by derivatives, originally formed from loanwords (adapted or not):
güinchero < winch, lonchero ‘Someone who works in a cafeteria and is responsible for
preparing sandwiches and snacks’ < lunch, panquelero < pancake, parqueador < to park,
trailero < trailer, pipero ‘someone who is responsible for driving a tanker truck’ < pipe.
The last example, pipero, is of curious nature: it is derived from the loanword pipa < pipe,
which is one of the parts making up the whole of a tanker truck. This synecdochic figure is
also transferred to denote what is contained: refresco/cerveza/malta de pipa ‘soft
drink/beer/malt stored and distributed by tanker trucks’.
The study of anglicisms and calques through the semantic fields they belong to is
needed to have a better picture of the sociolinguistic influence American English might
have had on Cuban Spanish, especially in the Neocolonial period. Pastimes, technology
and fashion are precisely those semantic fields in which the highest number of anglicized
units has been expectedly attested. These fields are tightly linked with upper
socioeconomic stratum, which corroborates prior studies on the role played by empowered
social classes in pre-1959 Cuba in the anglicization of the language, manners and culture
(Sánchez Fajardo, 2016b).
Based on the sources consulted, a total of 137 lexico-semantic variants have been
labelled as colloquialism, which accounts for nearly 13% of the senses compiled. This
number confirms the sociolinguistic relevance of English-induced linguistic borrowing in
Cu. informal speech. The majority of the colloquialisms extracted are precisely
metaphorical senses of more literal ones. The example of bateo (< bat) certainly illustrates
this pragmatic change; in its more literal sense, it refers to the act of hitting the ball into the
infield as in:
~ 146 ~
La selección cubana sufrió este jueves su segunda derrota en el Campeonato Mundial de

Béisbol, categoría sub-12, con sede en Taipéi de China, al caer con marcador de 4-0 ante
Nicaragua, en duelo correspondiente a la segunda ronda. (“Cuba: escaso bateo y pobre
defensa”, juventudrebelde.cu, 31/07/2015)
This meaning, intended to denote a more technical concept in baseball, contrasts

with its second lexico-semantic variant described. The latter one makes reference to the
action of causing trouble or hassle, which is supplemented by verbal collocates (dar or
meter bateo) as in:
Iba y metía unos bateos por la noche según me decía la madre al día siguiente, que no eran
fáciles. Pero bueno, a lo mejor yo estaba confiado, no me despertaba porque estaba confiado
en que la madre era la que se despertaba y la atendía por la noche cuando gritaba. (Muestras
del Habla Culta de La Habana, p.146)
This process of semantic shifting is not precisely coincidental. It is determined by a

metaphorical transference of traits from a more literal sense (hitting the ball to the infield
so the other team loses) to a more figurative one (saying or doing something so that the
other person is in trouble). In a number of figurative or metaphorical variants, the
pragmatic label of colloquialism is visible, entailing a productive source of polysemy or
homonymy in the entries compiled: bayú (< bayou) ‘a brothel’ → ‘a commotion or uproar,
especially among non-educated peers’, bombero (< fireman) ‘a relief pitcher who is
brought in to end the game’ → ‘someone capable of solving problems in an efficient
manner’, ponche (< punch) ‘the result of striking out three times in a row, in a baseball
game’ → ‘a failing mark at school’.
Due to the dia-synchronic nature of the present research, some written materials
(periodicals), issued in pre-1959 times, have also been revised. One of the most significant
findings is the number of obsolete anglicized units (73 lemmas), the majority of which
were extracted from Neocolonial papers: at home, baby shower, barbecue, boy-scout,
bowling, brass, bride maid, broadcloth, buffet supper, bunch, club house, clubman,
cocktail party, cocoa, dry cleaning, easter lilies, fraternity, French poodle, galalith,
heatherspun, high-ball, jack pot, jazz-band, junior bride maid, keno, kitchen shower, long
cloth, lunch, maid of honor, mayor, minimum, mink, moss, orange, peach, privet, pump,
push-pull, Queen Mary, revue, ring boy, roof garden, skating rink, slack, splash party,
spun, steward, stewardess, sweet heart rose, sweet peas.
These obsolete units reveal not only the aforementioned anglicization process of
Neocolonial Cuban Spanish, but also how a number of loanwords, initially embraced by
middle or upper-social class, became unused. One of the earliest results indicates a
~ 147 ~
surprisingly high number of English loanwords in society columns and advertising,

especially in the former related with weddings, birthdays, and christenings. Some of these
lexical units were fresher cultural referents in Neocolonial Cuban Spanish (ring boy, flower
girl) whilst others simply replaced already-existing units in the language (wedding cake as
in tarta nupcial/de boda, baby as in bebé). After 1959, some of these referents (or cultural
borrowings) were kept but their signifiers were modified: flower girl → damita, ring boy
→ damito.
The glossary also encompasses metric system units, which were widely assimilated,
and occasionally calqued (yarda < yard, pulgada < inch, pie < foot, libra < pound).
Curiously, they all became obsolete after 1959, except for libra, which still co-exists with
kilogramo.
Obsoleteness, word abhorrence, and semantic shifting are necessarily linked to
sociolinguistics and pragmatics. The socio-economic transformations on the island after
1959’s Revolution, and the corresponding disappearance of traditional middle and upper
social class, resulted in alterations in the anglicized word stock. This might explain why a
number of already-coined loanwords went unused: kitchen shower, cocktail party, supper,
grocery, wedding cake, etc. As expected, these units were mostly used by empowered
social strata. At times, new senses were originated under the same lemma, leading to
homonymy: party ‘refined social event in which upper social class members meet for
entertainment’ → ‘an informal gathering of people in which music, food and drink are
provided’, bunch ‘a group of people’ → bonche ‘a street party’, gánster < gangster ‘a
member of a criminal gang’ → ‘someone who is known for his/her illicit activities’, bisne
< business ‘the activity of making, buying, or selling goods’ → ‘someone who is known
for his/her illicit activities’.
In general, Cu. anglicized colloquialisms are not necessarily colloquial phrases in
English. Nevertheless, some expressions are found to be semantically coincident in terms
of sociolect and register: cana ‘prison’ < can, amarillo ‘cowardly’ < yellow, barato ‘vulgar
or ill-mannered’ < cheap, palanca ‘a powerful person, used to achieved a desired result’ <
leverage, patear la lata ‘to pass away’ < to kick the bucket, tanque ‘prison’ < tank,
venderse como pan caliente ‘to sell well’ < to sell like hot cake. Most of these expressions
are visibly calques, which contrasts somehow with those anglicisms whose semantic
structure has clearly undergone pragmatic variations: all right, bacha ‘a noisy get-together’
< batch, bonche ‘a street party’ < bunch, party ‘an informal gathering’, stand by ‘a period
~ 148 ~
of time in which someone is waiting for the right time to do something’. These examples
are low-sociolect colloquialisms, as opposed to their analogous English forms.
8.6 CULTURAL BORROWINGS: GENERAL COMMENTS
The existence of ‘cultural loans’ (cf. Bloomfield, 1994; Gómez Capuz, 1998;
Hoffer, 2002; Treffers-Daller, 2010) is clearly observed: Santa Claus, Queen Mary and
easter lillies (types of flowers), fraternity, soda (soft drink), boy-scouts. Cultural
borrowings are not precisely an isolated category of borrowings. These are forms
characterized by the introduction into a given linguistic group of “a previously unknown
datum or phenomenon”, which will “predictably entail devising an appropriate means of
referring to it in the corresponding language, whether it be in the form of a new label, a
series of labels, or a new pattern for producing such within the existing grammatical
apparatus” (Fleischmann, 1976: 2). In other words, a number of anglicisms are potentially
cultural loans in the sense that not only are these forms linguistically assimilated into the
recipient language, but they also add cultural novelty and innovation.
Whilst Santa Claus and boy-scouts (also non-adapted loanwords) denote
transference of American cultural traits, miting (or its adapted form mitin) and leader (or
líder) are merely linguistic borrowings, because their referents are known to Cuban
speakers. The concept of cultural loan is most noticeable in necessarily paired collocates:
bill, Mr. or Mrs. are solely seen in the corpus preceding English proper nouns as in la bill
MacKinley, Mr. and Mrs. Noble Brandon Judah. This is utterly relevant when relating
linguistic loans, syntax, and more importantly, pragmatic meaning of collocates.
Consequently, cultural borrowing is a transversal concept occurring in conjunction
with the process of linguistic borrowing, to a lesser or greater degree. It is precisely the
gradation of cultural influence that determines the nature of loan coinages. Though its
unmeasurable index, this degree is aimed to qualify the process of anglicization in terms of
word formation and semantic load. Inexistent concepts or referents in Cuban Spanish
(scout, frigidaire ‘refrigerator’, bride maid < bridesmaid) clearly denote a higher degree of
cultural impact, whilst already-existing concepts (and their corresponding signifiers) are
supplemented by anglicized newly-coined units, e.g. party, birthday cake, slacks. These
units, showing a lesser degree of cultural loan, co-exist with their native counterparts, i.e.
fiesta, tarta de cumpleaños, pantalones, especially in pre-1959 period.
~ 149 ~
What seems obvious is that the notion of cultural borrowing is filling the cultural
gap existing in the target language. Thus, linguistic borrowing is somehow supplemented
by this notion. The majority of the anglicized units describing social events and imported
merchandise show the inexistence of these referents in Cuban Spanish: blueplate, bowling,
boy-scout, bride maid < bridesmaid, car porch, community house, fraternity, grand
dinner, kitchen shower, skating rink. Logically, these loanwords are mostly non-adapted,
and their denotation is necessarily linked to the new concept borrowed.
The fact that the examples above became obsolete after 1959 has led to their clear-
cut distinction as cultural borrowings, or loanwords. These units remained in Cu. for a
short time, brief enough not to evolve and produce new senses. In view of the foregoing,
‘short-term’, obsolete cultural borrowings are easily found in a given context by Cubans.
However, those loanwords or calques finding a way through contemporary Cuban Spanish
are generally identified as native concepts. Though recognizably cultural loans, words such
as soda, spam, serviciar < to service (a car), lunch, bellboy, boxspring, carter ‘fuel
container’ < Carter, chifforober < chifforobe, cofiquei < coffeecake, consolidado ‘a factory
unit that is composed of two or more companies’ < consololidated (companies), garaje ‘a
place where cars are repaired’ < garage, yipe < jeep, are the results of long-term
adjustments in the target language.
8.7 CUBAN SPANISH AND EUROPEAN SPANISH: A GENERAL CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS
This section is intended to contrast the lemmas, or lexico-semantic variants,

extracted from the differential glossary of Cu. anglicized units, and the entries compiled in
the Nuevo Diccionario de Anglicismos (Rodríguez & Lillo, 1997). The resulting
information is necessary to study the process of anglicization in both Spanish variants
alongside, and to contrast loanwords and calques with regard to spelling, pronunciation,
semantic shifting, pragmatic information, etc.
One of the most visible features is the existence of homographs in both variants:
ace (/eis/ in Sp.) denotes a type of serve in a tennis match while ace < Ace (/ase/ in Cu.)
refers to soap powder. Clearly, both units have been assimilated through different
mechanisms: the former is a non-adapted loanword while the latter one corresponds to a
generic trademark used as a hyperonym. Not surprisingly, are loanwords such as green and
quáker (or cuáquer) also found to comply with etymologically unlike doublets, Sp. green
is used for green areas, or a golf technicality putting-green whilst Cu. green refers to dollar
~ 150 ~
bills. The former is the resulting construct of lexical shortening, and the latter might stem
from its like American counterpart, or a metonymic transference of meaning. In the case of
quáker, Sp. lemma is merely an adapted loanword of English quaker, whereas Cuban form
derives from a cereal brand, which explains the generic trademark transition the anglicism
has undergone.
Another distinctive doublet of homographs is related to computering: backup
/bakáp/ in Sp. pertains to a gadget storing data; backup /bakúp/ in Cu., on the contrary, is a
gadget used as a power source in case of blackout. In the case of center, though belonging
to relatively similar semantic fields and conveying similar pronunciation patterns, they
have different senses: in Sp., it does refer to a basketball position whereas in Cu. it denotes
either a baseball position or the player.
Other examples reveal the fine-grained differences of semantic structures: baffle,
which exists in both variants, denotes a more technical usage in Sp.: a flat device used to
control the flow of sound, whereas in Cu. its meaning is more generic, i.e. it signifies any
type of loudspeaker regardless of size and power. An interesting common anglicized unit is
bisne, whose one-sense entry extracted from Sp. coincides fully with English business. Cu.
bisne, however, has evolved into a colloquialism, restricted to illegal business, or even
prostitution. This differential connotation contrasts with pre-1959 business or bisne, whose
senses were closer to Sp. or English counterparts (Sánchez Fajardo, 2016b). This fact
reinforces the assumption that 1959 Revolution triggered a major semantic shift with
regard to already-existing English-induced coinages. Likewise, the difference between Sp.
friqui or friki < freaky ‘a strange person’ and Cu.’s homograph friqui ‘an anti-Fidel Castro
person’ is palpable.
Occasionally, a notion is signified in both variants by two etymologically related
anglicisms. The act of reporting that you have arrived at the airport is known to Sp.-
speakers as check-in, while it is chequeo to Cubans. Interestingly, the Cu. lemma is also
registered in both lexicographical works as ‘a medical check-up’. Additionally, the
coinciding notion can also be signified through either direct or indirect borrowing: ‘a
restaurant in which customers serve themselves with food or goods to be paid at a cashier’s
desk’ is found as self-service in Sp., and sírvase-usted in Cu. The loanword self-service
/selsérbis/ is also found in Cu., but it is currently more infrequent.
The inexistence of a contrastive patterning between the two variants’ semantic
structures represents the peculiarities of word-building and lexical semantics, as far as
~ 151 ~
dialectal studies are concerned. Although homographs Cu. jersey (or yersi) /yérsi/ and Sp.
jersey /jerséi/ undoubtedly pertain to clothing and textiles, their meanings are distant: Cu.
jersey (or yersi) denotes a type of fabric, and Sp. jersey (or jersei) means a garment, i.e. a
jumper. Contrary to this distinction, Sp.’s licra < lycra ‘a type of material that stretches’
and Cu.’s licra ‘leggings’ show a distinguishable variation of the prior examples.
Some of the lemmas compiled from both variants indicate a distinctive degree of
obsoleteness, which is attention-grabbing in instances in which this gradation is highly
visible. Extremely frequent loanwords such as shopping ‘a shop in which products are not
sold in national currency’ and dancing ‘a disco’ in Cu., stand in stark contrast to obsolete
Sp.’s shopping ‘a shopping center’ and dancing ‘a dance hall or disco’. Nevertheless, some
entries do coincide in terms of lexical frequency and obsoleteness, e.g. reporter.
In cases of eponymy, etymological information of both variants coincides but
referents differ to a lesser or greater degree, e.g. bloomer (or blúmer), cárter. The former
was originally coined after feminist reformer Amelia Bloomer, and the latter, inventor
Harrison Carter. Though sharing the same etymology, these words denote noticeably
different objects: Sp.’s bloomer refers to baggy or loose trousers, and Cu.’s to female
underwear; in the case of carter, Sp.’s lemma denotes a crankcase, and Cu.’s a fuel
container. What seems most noticeable about these originally eponymic units is that
Cuban constructs have clearly undergone further semantic variations, and their usages,
especially in the case of bloomer, continues nowadays.
By contrast with European Spanish, some of the coincident homographs and/or
homophones are reckoned to possess a higher degree of homonymy or polysemy in Cuban
Spanish, e.g. background, bluf (or blof) < bluff. The table 10 below shows these differences
by depicting the simultaneous lexico-semantic variants and the differential ones in the
aforementioned examples. A long-standing period of linguistic anglicization, i.e.
Neocolonial times, and the oft-quoted sociolinguistic variations might have exerted a great
deal of influence on the semantic extension of these coinciding lemmas.
~ 152 ~
Loanword European Spanish Cuban Spanish

Background 1. The circumstances or 1. The circumstances or
events antecedent to a events antecedent to a
phenomenon or phenomenon or
development. development.
2. (comp.) A level of 2. (comp.) A level of

computer processing at computer processing at
which the processor uses which the processor uses
time not required for a time not required for a
primary task to work on an primary task to work on an
additional task additional task.
3. The total of a person’s

experience, or knowledge.
4. The number of sexual

intercourses that a person
keeps record of, especially
of a promiscuous nature.
bluf (or blof) < bluff 1. A lie or a fraud. 1. A lie or a fraud.
2. A person who shows an

arrogance attitude or
exaggerates over simple
things.
3. The result of an
intellectual activity
characterized by
superficiality.
Table 10: Coinciding and differential lexico-semantic variants of background and bluf (or blof)
Other examples are also well worth mentioning: chequera ‘checkbook’, gánster ‘a
member of a group of violent criminals’ < gangster, pun ‘related to the punk rock
movement’ /pun/ < punk, punch ‘the force possessed by boxers when hitting’, dar un mitin
< to have a meeting. Along with the simultaneous lexico-semantic variants described, these
lemmas are also characterized in Cu. by conveying more metaphorical senses: chequera
‘pensioner’s pay-book’, gánster ‘a criminal or vandal’, pun ‘a hairdo resembling punk rock
~ 153 ~
musicians’, punch ‘connections or influence allowing someone to escalate socially and/or

financially’, dar un mitin ‘to cause a hassle’.
Considering that ponche and punch are etymologically related, i.e. < punch, the
resulting lemma is surely the lemma containing the highest number of designations or
senses (see Table 11).
English Cuban Spanish Lexico-Semantic Variants

Etymology lemmas
punch punch 1. The force possessed by boxers when
hitting.
2. Connections or influence allowing someone

to escalate socially and financially.
ponche 1. A cold drink that is usually a combination

of hard liquor, wine, or beer, with pieces of
fruit.
2. A flat tire.35
3. The result of striking out three times in a

row, in a baseball game.
4. A failing mark at school.
5. A refusal to having a long-standing

relationship with someone else.
Table 11: Lexico-semantic depiction of punch and ponche in Cu.
A relevant feature retrieved from the lexicographical works consulted is the

existence of relatively similar derivational constructs. Their distinction relies on their
semantic similarities and unlike derivational suffixes: bisneador < business, escutismo <
scout (Sp.) as opposed to bisnero < business, escautismo < scout (Cu.).
Similarly, some Cu. lemmas are distinguishable from their Sp. counterparts in their
keeping with phonological adaptation, rather than spelling: payama (or piyama) < pajamas
(or pyjamas), soya < soy, yersi < jersey, blof < bluff. Sp.’s loanwords, on the contrary, are
Rather than punch, its etymology is the colloquialism punch-out.

35
~ 154 ~
noticeably grapheme-oriented: pijama, soja, jersey (or jersei), bluff. The type of loanword
adaptation in both variants might be linked to the assimilation channels. Those
phonemically-modified anglicisms may well relate more directly to colloquialisms and oral
discourse. This might explain why all the baseball-related borrowings are phoneme-
oriented36: dogao < dug-out, quécher < catcher, tubey < two-base hit, etc. More formal
lemmas are, nevertheless, grapheme-oriented or their spelling variations are insignificant:
impromptu, jornal < journal, paddock, pasaje < passage.
8.8 PERSONAL NAMES AND TOPONYMS
As commented earlier, the present glossary does not include proper names or
toponyms. Places such as Tensen or Sia have been compiled because their eponyms, i.e.
Tent-Cent and Sears, have been modified with a significant cultural load, entailing the
coinage of widely-known landmarks.
Under the socioeconomic influence of the American penetration throughout
Neocolonial times, a number of anglicized town names have been attested. These
toponyms resulted from American settlements surrounding mills or fruit corporations,
which acted as “a powerful transmitter of North American cultural forms” (Pérez, 1999:
228): Saetia, Felton, Preston, Hershey /xersi/, Durruthy, Averhoff, O’Bourke, Omaja <
Omaha, Palm City, Terry, Lawton /láuton/, Columbia, Westport, Riverside, Garden City,
Boston, Ocean Beach, etc. Some of these towns have borrowed, along with their names,
social standards, which had a deep impact on lifestyles. Omaja was mainly founded by
American Methodists, and its streets were even named after the town’s founders: Kreider,
Frankbert, Blasser, etc. Hershey, relying entirely on its sugar mill and chocolate
production, still reveals the socioeconomic transformations undergone by a once
prosperous American settlement.
These examples were likewise supplemented by more specific locations within
larger cities: Víbora Park, Tensen < Tent-Cent, Harry Brother (shopping mall), la Johnson
(drugstore), Sia < Sears, Coney Island Park (amusement park), Miramar Yacht Club,
Oriental park (horse racetrack park), Tally Ho (club), Sanyón < Saint John (hotel). These
proper names remain in contemporary Cuban Spanish, and at times, their designation
encompasses a building and the entire neighborhood they are located in. This is precisely
what characterizes these toponyms: their initial proper names, once purposeful and clearly
The only exception compiled is average /aberáxe/.

36
~ 155 ~
English-like, have become part of the Cuban language, entailing a sense of geographical
landmark and Cuban-ness.
Eponyms and toponyms synthesize the fast-growing anglicization of the Spanish
language in Neocolonial times, and the assimilation of fresher units into the vernacular.
Spanish culture was being rapidly replaced by American idiosyncrasy and novelty. Cuban
language was the most visible reflection of such replacement, and personal names and
place names, its frontline.
Undoubtedly, people’s names, or onomastic forms, have also accompanied Cuban
history really closely. Whereas these constructs in the 1910s and 1920s reflected the
persistence of Spanish usage, e.g. María, Mercedes, Rosario, Carolina, Alberto, Cristóbal,
etc., after the 1930s their eponyms changed dramatically. The older forms co-existed with
new anglicized forms, as a result of the oft-quoted anglicization process during
Neocolonial times, and obviously of Hollywood: “Marilyn Rodríguez, Ivonne Meneses de
Tamayo, Constance García, Betty González, Hedy Lluría Vázquez, Dorothy Sotolongo,
Mae de la Campa, Mary Caballero, Elizabeth Pardo (…) Lincoln Roldán, Ike Quintana”
(Pérez, 1999: 382). Hence, these designations had an impact on the anglicization of
shortened forms of names: Beatriz → Betty, María → Mary /méri/, Mercedes → Mercy,
Francisco → Frank, Ricardo → Richie, Alberto → Albert, Bárbara → Barbie. In Sp.,
more native forms are preferred: Bea, Mary /mári/, Merche, Paco (< Francisco). A number
of anglicized adapted names are also found: Maiquel, Maicol, Michael /michael/ <
Michael; Luci < Lucy; Yenifer < Jennifer; Antoni < Anthony; Jenri or Henri < Henry,
Yasmín < Jazmin.
After Fidel Castro’s Revolution in 1959, it was frequent to find Russian-like names
in Cuba: Alexei, Aliosha, Yordanka, Yuri, Liudmila, Lídice. Nevertheless, it was in the
1970s when a sweeping, unique shift of names occurred: variations were pattern-less and
not one-language-based, probably stemming from specific cultural influences and from a
long-standing co-existence of Cuban Spanish with other languages. Curiously, these new
names, though alien and not easily readable, have become the resulting constructs of
intrinsic word-building processes. One of these mechanisms is based on clipping and
blending: Mayren (Mayra and René), Robelkis (Roberto and Belkis). Another process is to
read names from back to front: Noslen < Nelson, Leunam < Manuel. At times, the blending
process implies the use of functional words, e.g. pronouns or adverbs: Yotuel < a blending
~ 156 ~
of personal pronouns yo, tú and él; Dayesi < a mix of da, yes, and si (yes in Russian,
English and Spanish).
It is perhaps the assimilation of English nouns, and their adaptation into Cuban
Spanish names, what makes these forms of pseudo-anglicisms linguistically peculiar:
Meibi < Maybe, Danger, Usarmi < US Army.
The so-called Generation Y37 in 1970s and 1980s, named after the resulting
coinages whose first letter is Y, has been led by long processes of name adaptation and an
array of eponyms identified, e.g. Yenisey, Yoani, Yusniel, Yunier, Yasmiany. These oddities
reveal that during these two decades, there was a clear tendency towards uniqueness,
ironically fostered by a social submission to sameness.
Above all, these personal names encapsulate the sociolinguistic blend of foreign
influence and socioeconomic shifting. The impact of Spanish, English, Russian, and even
French (e.g. Yompier < Jean Pierre, Yanmar < Jean Marc) on Cuban Spanish represents
the utmost illustration of languages in contact, and obviously linguistic borrowing, on the
island. Considering that names come into use due to personal choice, the study of these
linguistic units more thoroughly should lead to a better pragmatic understanding of
loanwords and calques.
This denomination coincides with the demographic cohort following Generation X.

37
~ 157 ~
Conclusions
9. CONCLUSIONS
One of the earlier findings throughout this research project is the setting up of clear-cut
anglicization patterns, mostly dependent on the historical period allotted. The Colonial
Period (eighteenth and nineteenth centuries), in spite of being the most extensive one, was
not precisely relevant for the number of anglicisms attested. Earler dictionaries and
glossaries (Pichardo, 1875; Marinello, 1926-1927) reveal that gallicisms outnumbered
English-induced units by far, being the latter ones utterly scarce. Nevertheless, after
revising dailies and magazines of the time (Diario de La Marina, Rosendo, Bohemia,
Juventud, etc.), there were indications of a higher influence and deeper assimilation of
anglicized forms than it had previously been thought of. As per baseball-related words, this
period represented the starting point of an ever-increasing adaptation process, whose prior
novelty in the language mushroomed into a massive and innovative word stock, in
contemporary Cuban Spanish.
With the establishment of the Republic in 1902, and until 1959 (Neocolonial
Period), Cuba experienced the highest level of exposure to American English, owing to an
array of sociolinguistic factors: geographical proximity, political and economic
dependency, cultural loans, Americanized high sociolect, etc. The rise of English was
palpable in written materials, and their compilation is crucial to understand their
etymology and semantic shifting. Another important conclusion is that, as opposed to an
oft-quoted logical correlation between migrants and linguistic borrowing, the number of
American settlers in Cuba before 1959 (0.36% of the population on the island) suggested
that American migration was not a key factor in the influx of English-induced units.
Socioeconomic elements were clearly more significant.
~ 159 ~
Despite the drop in anglicized coinages after 1959, this type of borrowing
continued unendingly, but at a different rate. Post-1959 Period is particularly characterized
by undergoing fresher assimilation processes, which are fully conditioned by the new
socioeconomic situation in Cuba: a continuous ‘inflow’ of already-coined anglicisms,
especially those having to do with sport, pastimes, household appliances or furniture; a
considerable increase in tourism-related vocabulary, tending to convey differentiating
markers (bus, guagua; cigar, tabaco); a rising assimilation of Cuban-American English-
induced lexical units, and an expected redistribution of semantic load: these anglicisms
(brother, bye-bye, part-time, drinking) are mostly either colloquial or vulgar in present-day
Cuban Spanish.
The study of the linkage between these three periods and the anglicization process
of the language denotes a distinctive dialectal feature of Cuban Spanish: short-term visible
semantic and pragmatic variations. By relating the unstable political and social unrests to
the sociolect assimilation of anglicisms, the understanding of the sociolinguistic
dimensions of any borrowing process is assured.
After revising the theoretical framework on the anglicization process and English-
induced coinages, the correlation between pragmatic and sociolinguistics with code-
switching phenomena is plainly evident. In conjunction with the analysis of the pragmatic
criterion, the intentionality of speakers is revealed, as well as a number of sociolinguistic
features such as sociolect, register or semantic shifting. By and large, anglicized traits are
further described provided extralinguistic features are taken into consideration.
The analysis of the influence of English on Cu. linguistic levels has shown well-
defined anglicizing patterns, easily distinguishable from their European Spanish
counterpart. As per the phonological level, there exists a nearness of Cu. vowels and
diphthongs with those of English. The cases of iceberg and wifi denote the existing
contrastive pattern between both Spanish variants diachronically and synchronically: Cu.
/áisber/ and /wáifai/ contrasts with Sp. /iθebér/ and /wífi/. Three main anglicized Cu.
vocalic phonemes have been identified: /a/, /e/, and /o/, as in ampaya < umpire, catcher,
and bluff respectively. These vowels synthesize the hispanization of a wide variety of
English phonemes, entailing a necessary process of phonemic assimilation. Additionally,
the insertion of a prothetic /e/ in both variants, Sp. and Cu., facilitates the adaptation of
consonant clusters with initial s- (sl-, sm-, sp-, st-).
~ 160 ~
Conclusions
One of the most relevant features of graphemic integration is the use of nativized
spelling in the case of unusual letters or letter combinations: guarandol < warandol, queno
< keno. Nevertheless, earlier loans are easier to spot owing to their non-adapted
graphemes. Thus, archaic or obsolete anglicisms are not excluded because they represent a
valuable source of morphological, semantic and pragmatic variations.
In terms of word formation, the majority of the anglicisms compiled in the glossary
are expectedly nouns. Adjectives are scarcer in number, and a recurring verb-forming
process suggests the attachment of a native suffix to a loaned base (nominal or adjectival)
as in ampayar < umpire, clarear < clear. Contrary to animate nouns, inanimate nouns have
been found to adopt gender either arbitrarily or according to two main patterns: adopting
the gender of the Spanish word with which a loan is associated (la barbecue), or
complying with Spanish affixation (la reservación).
In terms of plurality, one of the most visible findings indicates the existence of
duplets, consisting of a direct borrowing and a loan translation, whereby translated
constructs are affixed: catcher/receptor → receptores, center/jardinero → jardineros. This
dichotomy proves a necessary complementation of two semantically identical forms, being
their syntactic usage essential to explain the morphological variations undergone.
A few agent-forming suffixes have been identified: -ero (a), -ista, -ador (a), -er, -
man. The first three are highly productive in contemporary Cuban Spanish, and they are
morphologically related to their English counterparts, which explains their choice and
combinability load: fildeador < fielder, bisnero < business, yatista < yacht. The other two
affixes are only found in non-adapted loanwords: big leaguer, clubman.
Loaned adjectives, though low in number, are relevant in terms of the word-
building processes conveyed. Adjectives ending in –al denote the existence of duplets:
educacional/educativo, televisual/televisivo. This frequent adjective-forming pattern sheds
some light on the processes of loaned affixes and morphological productivity. Thus, a
loaned suffix might be productive enough to combine with native bases or roots.
As indicated in prior chapters, the suffix -ar (or its corresponding cognates -ear/-
iar) is by far the most productive in terms of verb formation (Cárdenas, 1999: 52):
guachinear ‘to refuse to argue about politics’ < to watch, machear ‘to wear something
coinciding with something else in color, size, etc.’ < to match.
Most loaned compounds have been borrowed directly from English, and their
existence does not imply a prior or later coinage of their constituent lexemes: beamball,
~ 161 ~
blueplate, comeback. An attention-grabbing feature of these composites is their tendency

to be fully adapted or integrated so as not to be visibly capable of discerning their
constituent units: chingala < shin-guard, tribey < three-base, cofiquei < coffeecake.
Like European Spanish, Cu. tends to be more open to anglicized borrowing than to
calquing. Curiously, post-1959 Cuban periodicals are more liable to resort to calquing, i.e.
the replacement of anglicized units with native units. What seems conclusive is that
specialized terms are more prone to keep borrowings unadapted: backup, dugout, gingham,
jingle, whilst those loans assimilated into the vernacular undergo either
phonemic/graphemic adaptation or calquing.
As to semantics, and as opposed to European Spanish (Rodríguez & Lillo, 1997),
English-induced units are not generally homonymic. Calques and anglicisms tend to be
one-sense. From a diachronic or historical perspective, originally one-sense lemmas have
undergone semantic extension or metaphorical transference, leading to polysemy, and at
times, semantic calques. Likewise, few examples of homonyms have been attested. These
constructs show different ways of lexical borrowing, and their homonymic nature relies on
the semantic depiction of the anglicized coinages: panel (sense 1) < panel truck and panel
(sense 2) ‘a group of people with special knowledge, skill, or experience who give advice
or make decisions’.
Undoubtedly, one of the most remarkable findings has to do with baseball-related
metaphors, and their complex adaptation to standard Spanish. The study of these long-
standing units encapsulates the sociolinguistic evolution of anglicized lexical units in
Cuban Spanish. Not only are they prominent in number and productivity but they also
convey the intricacy of borrowing and semantic change: jugar en los files ‘to be at the very
back of a place’ < to play in the fields.
A relevant feature of the normative and descriptive analysis of linguistic borrowing
has been to establish a direct correlation of loanwords and calques with pragmatics-driven
factors. Therefore, three diachronic motivations have been described: language contact,
social need and institutionalization. The revision of periodicals and dictionaries has also
suggested two turning points as far as semantic variations are concerned, mostly motivated
by sociolinguistic impact. The first point is historically coincident with the start of the
Neocolonial period, whereby a number of loanwords, especially unadapted ones, were
assimilated by higher class members, denoting positive prestige and acceptance. The
second point corresponds to the triumph of the Revolution in 1959. The number of newly-
~ 162 ~
Conclusions
coined anglicized units dropped and a hefty part of them have been associated with low
sociolect. The study of present-day awareness of loanwords, both in the system and the
vernacular, represents a riveting area of knowledge to be revised in further detail. This
sociolinguistic process in Cuba might clarify how given attitudes towards anglicization
might have influenced lexical frequency, productivity and semantic shifting.
Throughout the research, great importance has been given to the phenomenon of
pseudo-anglicization owing to the ever-increasing number of coinages and to the concept
of lexical productivity. A thorough description of how these anglicized units come into
light has been provided, and five global processes have been pointed out: 1) a foreign
element is borrowed and nativized, or translated, in the recipient language (foreignness
traits are not easy to be detected by RL speakers) as in bisne ‘illegal business’; 2) foreign
element is borrowed and not adapted (foreignness traits are easily spotted by RL speakers)
as in dancing ‘discotheque’; 3) native element is attached to foreign morphological or
phonological features as in corring ‘run’; 4) foreign elements are combined in the recipient
language unnaturally as in fit-doing ‘ok’; 5) nativized anglicisms undergoing extension of
meaning and leading to homonyms, whose newly-grown sense detaches completely from
its original English paronym as in fotingo ‘buttocks’.
The classification of pseudo loans has confirmed the complexity of the process. A
practical arrangement of these forms relies on the linguistic levels involved: lexical,
morphological, semantic, phonological and syntactic (Rodríguez, 2013). Another
classification is tightly linked with the word-formation processes these constructs have
undergone and the nature of these mechanisms: autonomous compounding (fit-doing ‘ok’
< fit + doing), autonomous derivation (footing ‘jogging’), compounding ellipsis (center
‘baseball position’ < center field), morphological mutation (dancing ‘discotheque’ <
dancing place), clipping (par ‘the cable having two paired wires’ < paired cable),
reduplication (tifi-tifi ‘theft’ < thief), semantic changes (péter ‘a milk chocolate bar’ <
Peter Paul), functional changes (left-field used both as a place and as a position noun),
hybrid anglicisms (manigüiti ‘theft’ < money).
An important disclosure in the sociolinguistic study of pseudo loans is the
understanding of semantic extension, namely polysemy and homonymy, within the
recipient language. These anglicized units result either from the assimilation of a lexico-
semantic variant, i.e. one sense, or from the complete lexeme. The former process has been
labeled as an ‘hourglass-shaped’ semantic evolution, sketching the primary source of
~ 163 ~
borrowing and its resulting homonyms and paronyms. The latter, though infrequent, has
been alternatively named ‘pyramid shaped’, and it denotes the assimilation of a lexeme
into the target language. The processes of semantic extension and transference of meaning
take effect within the target language, and their constructs are expectedly unidentifiable by
an English speaker.
The analysis of Cuban-American Spanish is helpful to understand both the
etymology of a number of anglicized loans and the process of code-switching between the
two variants of English and Spanish. Thus, it is noticeable that a number of borrowed
cultural and linguistic traits might have entered Cuban Spanish through its Northern
analogous variant: afideibi < affidavit, cuora ‘twenty-five cent coin’ < quarter, pin,
strapless, part-time. Besides, a few annotated calques have also been recognized in
contemporary Cuban Spanish: llamar para atrás < to call back, no mucho < not much. The
understanding of the singularities of Cuban American Spanglish, and its intrinsic rules and
paradigms, leads to a fine-grained study of Cuban Spanish.
The analysis of the corpus and glossary has revealed significant information and
data on the anglicization process in Cuban Spanish. Not being possible to compile data in
situ, the need to establish a multiple-stage procedure was paramount. Thus, the two-stage
process used, i.e. data collection and analysis of the lemmas extracted, has facilitated the
investigative progression.
A number of 14 dictionaries and glossaries were consulted. They represented the
most reliable sources of anglicized lemmas. The revision was also complemented by a total
of 61 blogs, forums and online articles; 10 online magazines and newspapers; 41 books; 4
corpora and encyclopedias. The typology of corpus-feeders denotes a visible preference
towards written discourse, and its variety reflects a wide range of registers and genres, and
precise contextual information. The compilation of merely Cuban Spanish anglicisms, i.e.
a differentiating glossary, helps examine the nature of various concepts such as typology,
frequency, productivity, etc. The resulting entries in the glossary, and the differential
nature of the information provided, constitutes a comprehensive map of anglicization in
Cuban Spanish, setting the grounds to forthcoming comparative and normative studies.
Quantitatively speaking, the number of lemmas extracted is 921, and the number of
lexico-semantic variants (or senses): 1053. Those semantic variants sharing meaning with
their European counterparts were not removed to have a better understanding of the
phenomena of homonymy, polysemy and semantic transparency. A total of 74 idioms were
~ 164 ~
Conclusions
also specified, being characterized by extending semantically from the lemmas, and by
being typically related to baseball. These idioms are mostly colloquial, and their native
syntax and adapted loanwords lead to fully integrated English-induced units: comerse un
cake /kéi/ ‘to feel let down by something or another person’ < cake.
The glossary-based information shows that nouns and noun phrases account for the
majority of the lemmas found: 77.7%. The other word types in descending order of
importance are: verbs and verb phrases (14.8%), adjectives and adjectival phrases (5.8%),
adverbs and adverbial phrases (1.2%), and interjections (nearly 0.5%). Apparently, the
superiority of noun-forming processes responds to one of the essentials of lexical
borrowing: designating unknown referents in the target language. The majority of the
nouns annotated are inanimate, which explains why the majority of them are considered
pattern-less, contrasting with grammatically marked animate nouns. One of the most
productive noun-forming sets corresponds to agents or occupations: pipero (a) < pipe,
panquelero (a) < pancake.
As per English-induced verb-forming processes, the number of transitive verbs,
intransitive verbs and verb phrases represent 22.6%, 28%, and 49.4%, respectively, of all
the verb forms culled. Thus, the semantic extension of literal senses in deverbal loans is
highly productive.
The analysis of compounds has revealed that most of the units extracted are
graphemically unadapted units: baby-doll, background, handball. Though seemingly one-
word loans, some bases are either strictly nativized: béisbol < baseball, dogao < dug-out,
or calqued: aeromoza < air-hostess, cargabates < bat-carrier. The latter examples indicate
how infrequent word-building processes in the target language are also borrowed, leading
to visibly ungrammatical units.
The commonest noun-forming suffixes are found in adapted loanwords: -ero(a), -
ista, -o, -ería, ito(a). The first two are mostly related to occupations: bisnero < business,
pantrista < pantry. Suffix –ero(a) is also adjective-forming, and it is regularly found in
relatively negative or humorous adjectives: palmolivero ‘referring to someone who drinks
alcohol on daily basis’ < Palmolive, blofero ‘characterized by showing off, or being too
pretentious’ < bluff. Diminutive-forming suffix –ito is rather frequent, and it is mostly
found in clothing-related units: shorcito < shorts, pulovito < pull-over, blumito < bloomers.
The extraction of the oft-quoted ‘pseudo-suffixes’ is of relevant nature. These
ungrammatical forms are conceived to anglicize the bases they are attached to. Their
~ 165 ~
combinability relies on its anglicizing phonemic structure, not their semantics: gratindei
‘free’ < gratis + -dei, ameriquein < Americano + -ein.
An analysis of the lexico-semantic variants compiled shows that 21.7% of these
units are indirect lexical borrowings, i.e. calques (loan translation, loan rendition, loan
creation) and semantic loans. Nearly half of the indirect loans correspond to semantic
loans, confirming then its highly productive nature in Cuban Spanish. On the other hand,
direct borrowings account for 78.3% of the variants extracted, 80.1% of which are
loanwords, both adapted and unadapted forms. The assimilation of these anglicized units
varies from slightly adapted, i.e. easily perceptible (payama < pajama, raspe < rasp) to
highly imperceptible (chalina < shawl, jaba < handbag).
A recurring pattern observed refers to polysemic lemmas, whereby a stricter or
literal sense is a calque, chiefly a loan translation or loan rendition, and another sense is the
result of a metaphorical extension: correr para tercera base ‘to resort to mockery and
evasion to do something’ < to run to third base. This type of lexico-semantic variant has
been coined as metaphorical calque. It has been singled out from the rest of semantic
processes due to its high productivity and peculiarities. They originally stem from calquing
and translation, and they are not easily discernible by English speakers. A vast majority of
them corresponds to baseball-related idioms.
The study suggests that the commonest semantic fields extracted are: sports
(25.7%), clothes (7.1%), technical words (5.8%), food (5.2%), transport (3.8%), house
(3.7%), medical terms/body (2.1%), occupations (1.9%). The revision of anglicized units
through semantic fields is crucial to comprehend the degree of sociolinguistic influence
American English might have exerted on Cuban Spanish. Pastimes, technology and fashion
are precisely those semantic fields in which the highest number of anglicized units has
been expectedly attested.
The number of colloquialisms totaled 137 lexico-semantic variants, which account
for nearly 13% of the senses compiled. This number confirms the sociolinguistic relevance
of English-induced linguistic borrowing in Cu. low sociolects.
The inclusion of obsolete English-induced units results in a fine-grained diachronic
study of semantic shifting, and in a precise depiction of the anglicization process in
Neocolonial Cuban Spanish. The number of obsolete lemmas is 73, the majority of which
are related to fashion and social pastimes: baby shower, bride maid, maid of honor. By
tracing the evolution of these lexico-semantic variants through the historical periods in
~ 166 ~
Conclusions
question, the correlation between the concepts of obsoleteness, word abhorrence, and
semantic shifting is clarified.
Some expressions are found to be semantically equivalent in both languages, in
terms of sociolect and register: cana ‘prison’ < can, amarillo ‘cowardly’ < yellow, barato
‘vulgar or ill-mannered’ < cheap, palanca ‘a powerful person, used to achieved a desired
result’ < leverage. This is rather infrequent, and these findings contrast with other
examples in which the semantic structure has undergone notorious pragmatic variations:
bacha ‘a noisy get-together’ < batch, bonche ‘a street party’ < bunch.
Some of the lemmas are thought to be potentially cultural loans because not only
are these forms linguistically assimilated into the recipient language, but they also add
cultural novelty and innovation: Santa Claus, boy-scouts. Besides filling the cultural gap in
the target language, these constructs depict the referential nature of loanwords more
thoroughly.
A general contrastive analysis between Cuban Spanish and its European counterpart
reveals the existence of homographs: ace, backup, quaker. Curiously, some of these
lemmas denote paralleled anglicized word-building processes in both variants, and the
attestation of different semantic structures. For instance, whereas bisne and friqui in Sp. are
semantically linked with their English paronyms, business and freaky, Cu. units have
evolved into ‘illegal business’ and ‘an anti-Fidel Castro person’ respectively. This type of
contrastive analysis shows a great deal of information concerning semantic evolution and
connotation, which might explain why these coincident homographs and/or homophones
are reckoned to possess a higher degree of homonymy or polysemy in Cuban Spanish, e.g.
background, bluf (or blof) < bluff.
Without doubt, this comprehensive analysis of the anglicization process in Cuban
Spanish echoes the complexity of the process as far as sociolinguistics and pragmatics are
concerned. The elaboration of a differential glossary and its corresponding examination
reveal a recognized deep-rooted-ness of English-induced constructs. This necessary
contribution is intended to set the ground for further analogous and profound analysis of
this type, hoping to decipher the riddling connection of anglicization and Cuban identity.
The study of these sociolinguistic phenomena will certainly shed more light on how
American English entered “into constructs of class, status, and nationality, whereby
English usage signified an alternative that went beyond Spanish to reach out to an
opposing cultural system” (Pérez, 1999: 53).
~ 167 ~
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~ 175 ~
Annexes
11. ANNEXES
11.1 DIFFERENTIAL GLOSSARY OF CUBAN SPANISH ANGLICISMS AND CALQUES
11.1.1 Abbreviations
Sources
CC: Catauro de Cubanismos

CORPES XXI: Corpus del Español del Siglo XXI
CREA: Corpus de Referencia del Español Actual
DEC: Diccionario del Español de Cuba
DEP: Diccionario de Esteban Pichardo
DMC: Diccionario Mayor de Cubanismos
DRAE: Diccionario de la Real Academia de la Lengua Española.
FGRAE: Fichero General de la Real Academia Española
LHCLH: Léxico del habla culta de La Habana
MHCLH: Muestras del habla culta de La Habana
MWD: Merriam Webster’s Dictionary
Morpho-syntactic Information
adj.: adjective
adj. ph.: adjectival phrase
adv: adverb
colloq.: colloquialism
Cu.: Cuban Spanish
ETYM: etymology
f: feminine
form.: formal
hum.: humorous
interj.: interjection
m: masculine
n.: noun
~ 177 ~
n. ph.: noun phrase

obs.: observations
obsol.: obsolete
pej.: pejorative
ph.: phrase
pl.: plural
prob.: probably
prop.: proper noun
redup.: reduplication
sing.: singular
Sp.: Spain’s Spanish
SYN: synonyms
var.: minor spelling variations
v. intrans.: intransitive verb
v. ph.: verb phrase
v. trans.: transitive verb
vulg.: vulgarism
Semantic Fields
anim.: animal
bot.: botanical
comp.: computering
med.: medical term
occup.: occupation
tech.: technical term
transp.: transport
Symbols
bold Indicating the lemma.
→ Referring to the original entry.
Referring to the lemma in question.
( italics) Most common collocates found with the lemma.
( bold) Idioms in which the lemma is used.
underlined The word form used in a real context.
→ typescript1 Referring to one of the senses (e.g. 1) of the lemma.
1, 2, 3,... Senses (or lexico-semantic variants) of the lemmas.
[ ] Phonetic transcription of the lemma
~ 178 ~
Annexes
11.1.2 Glossary
abanicar
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to strike out. ( la brisa)
Urbano es el pelotero cubano que acumula más veces consecutivas al bate sin poncharse (190).
También posee la mayor cantidad de comparecencias al cajón de bateo (217) sin abanicar la
brisa y jugó 50 partidos de pegueta sin llegar al tercer strike. (“Urbano González”,
desdemipalcodefanatico.wordpress.com, 04/06/2012)
SYN: poncharse (Cu.)
ETYM: to fan
ace [áse]
n, m, house Detergent powder.
Tampoco recortaba productos de aseo, porque la persona más humilde con pesos, la moneda
nacional, podía comprar una pastilla de Camay o Palmolive para bañarse o de Oso o Rina para
lavar la ropa. O una caja de ace para fregar y limpiar. (“Recortes de mi infancia”,
desdelahabana.net, 13/02/2011)
ETYM: Ace (trade mark)
aceitar
v. trans., colloq. To bribe.
En efecto, aunque ellos sigan pensando que lo decisivo es aceitar la cadena de mando y cumplir
el plan, y tú creas que eres una nulidad en el sistema, cuando pides la palabra para criticar los
Lineamientos, reclamas tus derechos en cualquier parte, protestas ante desigualdades y
privilegios. (“Cartas cruzadas: ¿Qué significa irse de Cuba?”, caféfuerte.com, 23/08/2012)
ETYM: to oil the hand (or the palm)
aeróbicos [aeróbika]
n, pl., sport A type of gymnastics (DEC)
Los aeróbicos de cada mañana. (Facebook photo caption, Sol Cayo Santa María Hotel,
09/10/2015)
SYN: gimnasia (Sp.)
ETYM: aerobics
~ 179 ~
aeromoza
n, f, occup. A woman whose job is to serve meals and take care of passengers on airplane.
¡Ah!, pero el que está allí es un asesino que mató cubanos, mató adolescentes, mató hombres y
mujeres, mató aeromozas, mató pilotos, mató turistas, puso bombas. ¡Ah!, eso no, no ponen en
alarma a nadie, no mueven ni un pelotón de ese Departamento de Seguridad. (“Nadie podrá
negar estas verdades”, juventud rebelde.cu, 14/01/2007)
SYN: azafata (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: air hostess
ajustador
n, m, clothes Female undergarment meant to support the breasts.
Una vaca se roba un ajustador de una tendedera en una finca de Pinar del Rio. Foto tomada con
celular por Liliane Perez. (“La foto del día”, cubasi.cu)
SYN: sujetadores (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from the bras adjusters accompanying the earlier bras.
ajustadores
n, m, pl., clothes → ajustador
“Bras4Cuba” es una campaña que se inició en una universidad en Kentucky y que intenta
ofrecer ajustadores y otro tipo de ropa interior a mujeres en Cuba. (“Done sostenes para las
mujeres de Cuba”, Voz de América, 04/12/2012)
SYN: sujetadores (Sp.)
ETYM: bras adjusters
al bate
adv., sport An official turn at batting charged to a baseball player.
Funkohouser cargó con la derrota a pesar de tirar también un gran partido durante cinco y dos
tercios en los que permitió dos indiscutibles, una carrera, regaló dos bases por bolas y propinó
ocho ponches. Por Cuba sobresalió al bate David Castillo con dos hits, igual que Christin
Stewart por Estados Unidos. (“Cuba barre a EE.UU. en tope de béisbol”, escambray.cu,
27/07/2014)
ETYM: at bat
alimentador
n, m, tech. A piece of equipment being responsible for feeding a sugar cane shredder. ( de
caña)
En los sistemas neumáticos los consumidores de energía son la máquina motriz y algunos
alimentadores. Mostrando resultados en otra de las tablas. (“Economía de los sistemas de
transporte neumáticos para el bagazo de la caña de azúcar”, www.buenastareas.com, 2011)
ETYM: feeder
~ 180 ~
Annexes
all around
n 1 Someone who is capable of developing several trades or activities. (DEC)
Un all-around perfecto: corredor, jugador de basket y handball, nadador. Seguro que hubiera
derrotado en diving a la estrella de la Universidad contraria. (“Las fiestas de Chiviricuán”, La
Jiribilla, 2006)
SYN: multioficio (Cu., Sp.)
n, m, sport 2 A type of gymnastic performance involving different categories of exercises.
Gabrielle Douglas se llevó con facilidad el primer puesto en el all around femenino con un
total de 62.232. La estadounidense dominó el caballo de salto y la barra de equilibrio con
puntuaciones bien altas (15.966 y 15.500) y mantuvo el nivel en los otros dos ejercicios. Gabby
se convierte en la primera afro-americana en ganar el evento all-around. (“Londres 2012: Oro
para Estados Unidos en el all around femenino”, cubadebate.com, 02/08/2012)
ETYM: all around
all right [ólrai]

interj., colloq. Used to express agreement with a proposal. (DEC)
SYN: ok, oká, dale, bárbaro (Cu.), vale (Sp.)
ETYM: all right
All Star [ol estár]

n. ph., m, sport In baseball, a match made up only or mostly of outstanding participants.
¿Qué peloteros conformarían el “All Star” del béisbol cubano? Las respuestas a esa pregunta
probablemente generen enormes polémicas entre fanáticos y especialistas, porque resulta muy
complicado elegir tan pocos jugadores en un deporte que se ha practicado en Cuba por más de
140 años. (“El All Star del béisbol cubano de todos los tiempos”, beisbolencuba.com,
7/09/2015)
SYN: Todos Estrellas (Cu.)
ETYM: all star
amarillarse
v. intrans., colloq. To be intimidated or to get frightened at a situation or someone.
Resulta que el Madrid se amarilló ayer en el Pizjuán, vamos que se les aflojaron las patas, esta
vez sin conspiración ni nada, y cometió la penosa torpeza de perder. (“En la recta final y con
un solo portero”, soycuba.cu, 27/03/2014)
SYN: acobardarse (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: to yellow
Obs.: It is also figuratively used in English for cowardly behavior.
amarillo, -a
adj., colloq. Characterized by shrinking back or being cowardly.
~ 181 ~
Pero con los equipos Serranos y de Santiago Valle era tremendo amarillo. Internacionalmente
hubo decenas de derechos que se destacaron más. (Comment Post, “Mi ranking del team
Cuba”, cubadebate.cu, 04/09/2015)
SYN: cobarde, gallina (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: yellow
ampaya [ampáya]
n, m, sport Someone who works as a referee in a baseball game.
Atrás, muy atrás, van quedando los tiempos de la novena manigüera en el solar inapropiado.
Ya no se ven las mascotas de lona, ni las pelotas entisadas con esparadrapo. Y casi nadie
recuerda los días del ampaya situado detrás del pitcher, portando un pavoroso revólver, árbitro
supremo en caso de diferendos con el bateador de turno. (Yo vendí mi bicicleta, Enrique Nuñez
Rodríguez, 1989).
ETYM: umpire
ampayar
v. intrans., sport To referee in a baseball game.
Es que un árbitro de béisbol provincial cobra diez pesos por juego: imagínense, "ampayar" con
32 grados bajo el sol para ganar una plata que se gasta en dos panes con croqueta.(“Mientras
llega el mundial”, Diario de Cuba, 10/06/2014 )
ETYM: umpire
antifrízer
n, m, transp. 1 A substance that is added to the water in a vehicle's engine to prevent it
from freezing. (cf. MWD)
SYN: anticogelante (Sp.)
v. ph., vulg. 2 (medir el ) To be homosexual. (DMC)
Ese dicen que es el que le mide el antifrizer a Conrado. (DMC, p.44)
SYN: caerse la mano, batear por el lateral (Cu.)
ETYM: antifreeze
aplicador
n, m, med. A device that is used to apply medicine.
Coloque el aplicador dentro del tubo previamente rotulado, tape el mismo y sitúelo en un lugar
visible y seguro para su envío inmediato al laboratorio de Microbiología. (Manual de
Procedimientos de Enfermería, BVS-Cuba)
SYN: bastoncillo (Sp.)
ETYM: applicator
~ 182 ~
Annexes
aqualung [akwalón]
n, m, sport Equipment used for breathing underwater. (DEC)
El Centro Internacional de Buceo localizado en este puerto deportivo ofrece cursos de buceo
con aqualung para todos los niveles, con certificados internacionalmente reconocidos. (Online
Ad on “El Colony” hotel, havanatur.cu)
ETYM: Aqua-Lung (trademark)
árbol del pan

n, m, bot. A 15-meter flowering tree, whose ripe fruit has a potato-like flavor, similar to
freshly baked bread.
Se busca una hoja del árbol del pan (nombre científico o latino: Artocarpus altilis) y se hierve
en un recipiente con dos litros de agua durante cinco a ocho minutos, después de la ebullición
se cuela y se deja la hoja dentro, se toma tres veces al día en un vaso de ocho onzas. (“Utilidad
del árbol del pan para tratar la diabetes”, radiorebelde.cu, 19/01/2012)
ETYM: breadfruit tree
arco del pie

n, m, body Lower curvature of the foot formed by bones and strengthened by ligaments and
tendons. (DEC)
El proceso empezaba antes de que el arco del pie de las niñas tuviese la oportunidad de
desarrollarse plenamente. El vendado se hacía a edad temprana, entre los dos y los cinco años.
(“Pies de loto”, juventudrebelde.cu, 16/12/2013)
SYN: puente (Sp.)
ETYM: arch of the foot
áreas verdes
n, f, pl. Public, in-city areas comprising of lawn, trees, or bushes.
Con 7,4 metros cuadrados de áreas verdes por habitante, por debajo de los parámetros
nacionales e internacionales, el centro de la ciudad del Yayabo se encuentra sometido al
fenómeno de isla de calor urbano, con temperaturas 5,5 grados Celsius superiores a lo que
marca la estación meteorológica de la periferia espirituana. (“Areas verdes urbanas: antídoto
contra el calor”, juventudrebelde.cu, 25/0672012)
SYN: zonas verdes (Sp.)
ETYM: green areas
arena
n, f, form. A sphere of interest, activity, or competition.
La sección de recreo y Adorno de la Asociación de Dependientes vuelve a la arena donde
tantos y tan resonantes triunfos ha sabido conquistar. (Diario de la Marina. 01/04/1930, p.10)
SYN: tema (Cu., Sp.), tópico (Cu.)
ETYM: arena
~ 183 ~
arriba de la bola
adv. ph., colloq. In an alert manner, by means of which things are clearly noticed.
Te fuiste, y si te fuiste, perdiste. Yo me quedé y ahora soy el rey, si te gusta bien, y si no,
también. Porque hay que estar arriba de la bola, arriba de la bola, arriba de la bola… (“Arriba
de la bola”, Popular song by Manolín)
ETYM: on the ball
asopado, -a
adj. Characterized by having excess of water, especially in meals.
Se prepara exactamente igual al Arroz con Pollo tradicional, pero en el momento de hacer el
arroz, en vez de utilizar 3 tazas de caldo, se utilizan 9 tazas, de manera que el arroz quede bien
asopado. (“Arroz con pollo a la chorrera”, recetasdecocinacubana.com)
SYN: caldoso, -a (Sp.)
ETYM: soupy
asumir
v. trans. To think that something is true or probably true without knowing that it is true.
(cf. MWD)
SYN: presumir, suponer (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: to assume
apretazón
n, f, med. 1 A medical condition characterized by breathing problems.
Según dicen, los habitantes del El Marañón son los únicos que ríen a carcajadas al probar la
fruta, a despecho del resto de la población que experimenta una apretazón inevitable. Son
privilegiados por tener entre sus vecinos de honor a Mercedes Bordallo. (“Abrazo merecido”,
bohemia.cu, 19/12/2013)
n, f, vulg. 2 ( económica) Scarcity of money and supplies. (DMC)
SYN: carencia (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: tightness
at bat
adv., sport → al bate
ETYM: at bat
at home
adv., obsol. In a home-made manner.
~ 184 ~
Annexes
Elegante comida en el Yacht Club “at home” la señora de Menocal: esta comida (…) se
desarrolló en el comedor del piso principal en un ambiente de alto refinamiento. (Diario de la
Marina. 14/12/1955, p.5)
ETYM: at home
auto-servicio
n, m, food (restaurante de ) → self-service
En la segunda etapa debían haberse edificado un restaurante de autoservicio, con capacidad
para 480 personas, el cual quedó suspendido, y hasta con franjas de azulejos puestos. (“¿Qué
pasó con el acuario nacional de Cuba?”, cubanet.org, 21/01/2013)
ETYM: self-service
average [aberáxe]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a number assessing a player’s performance in the field.
(DEC)
De esta manera, Yulieski aumentó su average ofensivo, que ahora es de 310, con 22 imparables
en 71 oportunidades, incluyendo seis dobles y cuatro jonrones. (“Aumenta Yulieski su average
y falla Cepeda tres veces en el béisbol japonés”, juventudrebelde.cu, 05/07/2014)
v. ph. colloq. 2 (llevar el ) To observe someone’s behavior to use for one’s own sake.
SYN: vigilar (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: average
babiney
n, m, colloq. Mess and dirt left after some spilled liquid. (DEC)
ETYM: Prob. from bobbinet (a shapeless, cotton-woven net).
baby
n, m, obsol. A newly-born child.
Alegrías de un hogar: Un baby en el que cifran todo su cariño ha venido a completar su cariño.
(Diario de la Marina. 01/04/1930, p.9)
SYN: bebé (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: baby
~ 185 ~
baby-doll [béibidól]
n, m, clothes A see-through, short lingerie.
Mami solamente qui-ta-me el dolor (medicina)
Y ponte el babydoll (tu Sabes Ya!)
Me encanta cuando pierdes el temor
Te deslizas por el piso y pierdes el control (1, 2, 3 plah)
(Song Lyrics “Quítame el dolor”, Wisin & Yandel, youtube.com)
SYN: bobito (Cu.)
ETYM: babydoll
baby shower
n, m, form. A gathering organized by a would-be mother to collect baby-related presents.
Animado baby shower a la Sra. Siomara Martín de Etcheverry celebrado en el Vedado Tennis.
SYN: fiesta para la canastilla (Cu.)
ETYM: baby shower
babyto
n, m, obsol. A newly-born child.
Anselmo Luis: El pasado domingo recibió las regeneradoras aguas del Jordán, en la quinta
señorial de sus abuelos, el gracioso babyto. (Diario de la Marina. 16/01/1947, p.19)
SYN: bebito, bebecito (Cu.)
ETYM: baby
bacha
n, f, colloq. A noisy get-together in which people drink and dance non-stop (DEC).
Aquí hay ritmo negro, canción de bongó transformada en lascivia, en sensualidad, en erotismo.
El desenfrenado ritmo de 3a danza negra, la bulla de la bacha o de la cumbancha, es ritmo
lujurioso en "Liturgia etiópica" (Lo negro y lo mulato en la poesía cubana, I. Pereda Valdéz,
p.50)
SYN: cumbancha, despelote (Cu.)
ETYM: Prob. from batch (group of people).
background
n, m 1 Group of conditions being antecedent to a phenomenon or development (DEC)
Por eso tuvimos que consultar periódicos, libros de Historia y Noticieros ICAIC para ver cómo
pasaron los hechos, además de ir a investigar en bibliotecas y centros de documentación. De
esta manera nos formamos un background de los sucesos que estábamos contando y su relación
con otros hechos. (“Cuba Roja: la historia contada en imágenes”, cubacine.cult.cu)
SYN: antecedentes (Cu., Sp.)
n, m 2 The total of a person’s experience, or knowledge.
~ 186 ~
Annexes
La familia, que inicialmente la había recibido a regañadientes con el background de la tía

desamorada por 40 años que no había mandado ni un peso en los peores tiempos del periodo
especial, se hacía más a la idea de tenerla cerca..(“Ella love USA pero la salva Cuba”,
eskinalilith.wordpress.com, 23/11/2013”)
SYN: historial (Cu.)
ETYM: background
backup [bakáp]
n, m, comp. A computering gadget that stores data (as a hard drive).
Otro de los mitos es que apagar las fuentes de respaldo, conocidas como backup, puede
dañarlas y que es conveniente dejarlas encendidas para que se carguen durante la noche. Los
backup se cargan durante la operación de la computadora y a menos que haya habido una
interrupción eléctrica, al finalizar la jornada de trabajo el backup posee suficiente energía
eléctrica almacenada. (“El uso racional de las computadoras y equipos periféricos alarga su
vida útil”, juventudrebelde.cu, 07/04/2009)
ETYM: backup
baffle [báfle]
n, m, house A device that is used to make sound louder.
Vendo equipo de música con bafles y con USB nuevo de paquete. (Online Post, revolico.com,
18/07/2014)
SYN: altavoz (Sp.), speaker (Cu.)
ETYM: baffle (screen used to control the flow of the outcoming sound)
bajar
v. intrans., vulg. To pay for something that was owed at first.
ETYM: Probably from down payment.
balance [balánse]
n, m The ability to retain one’s equilibrium.
Corresponde a la articulación de la rodilla desarrollarlo; sobre este mecanismo recae la
responsabilidad del soporte y balance del peso corporal, además de participar activamente en la
propulsión del sistema asociado al trabajo de la articulación talocrural (tobillo). La orientación
del fémur condiciona el mecanismo flexoextensor, y particularmente la situación de los
cóndilos determina un movimiento rotatorio interno, que se incorpora a la flexión y extensión.
(Morfología funcional deportiva, Hernández Corvo, Roberto, 1989; CREA)
SYN: equilibrio (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: balance
balancear
v. trans., tech. To make car wheels steady by keeping weight equal on all sides. (DEC)
~ 187 ~
SYN: alinear (Cu., Sp.)

ETYM: to balance
balanceo
n, m, tech. The act of making car wheels steady.
Por su parte, Roberto Cazuzo, presidente de la cooperativa Novedades, especializada en el
servicio de tramado de dirección, fregado, ponche, engrase y balanceo de neumáticos, defiende
también la rentabilidad de su asociación pues asegura haber duplicado sus ingresos hasta la
fecha. (“Talleres con nueva imagen”, trabajadores.cu, 06/12/2013)
ETYM: balance
balk [bok]
n, m, sport In baseball, an occurrence in which a pitcher stops suddenly or makes an
illegal movement after starting to throw a pitch. (cf. MWD)
El vigente bicampeón tomó el control del partido en su primera oportunidad ofensiva al pisar
tres veces el home gracias a dos imparables, igual cantidad de errores y un balk. (“Leones gana
por primera vez en final de béisbol dominicano”, radiohc.cu, 24/01/2014)
ETYM: balk
baño de sol
n, m An exposure to sunlight, especially at the beach. (tomar un )
Tome una siesta bajo las palmas reales, bucee con snorkel, nade y tome un baño de sol en estas
gloriosas playas tropicales. (“Cayo Coco”, turismodecuba.info)
ETYM: sunbath
baño de pies
n, m, med. A bath for cleansing or soothing the feet. (LHCLH)
Se debe colocar la infusión en una palangana; mezclarla con el bicarbonato y dar un baño de
pies. En algunas personas este baño puede causar urticaria por lo que se recomienda su empleo
con precaución. (“Recomendaciones contra las várices”, salud.cibercuba.com)
ETYM: footbath
barato, -a
adj., colloq. That is characterized by being vulgar or ill-mannered. (DEC)
SYN: vulgar, barriobajero, -a (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: cheap
~ 188 ~
Annexes
barbecue [barbikiú]
n, f, food A social gathering especially in the open air at which barbecued food is eaten.
(cf. MWD)
Oasis Hotel: Barbecues, Cine, splash parties, camp fires en la playa (…), y bridge cocktail
parties de luna de miel. (Diario de la Marina. 08/07/1958, p.11)
SYN: barbacoa (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: barbecue
base
n, f, sport 1 In baseball, any one of the four stations at the corners of a baseball infield.
Ese fue el equipo que llamaron Habana y que no tendría a Rigoberto “Tito” Fuentes en la
segunda base, porque ya había reportado al béisbol profesional de Estados Unidos como parte
del último grupo de peloteros firmados por los clubes del Béisbol Organizado. (“Nubes negras
en el firmamento del béisbol castrista”, conexioncubana.net)
adj., colloq. 2 (quieto en ) To behave adequately after a reprimand.
La Policía Nacional Revolucionaria inició un operativo para garantizar el orden en el concierto
de Juanes el próximo domingo 20 de septiembre (…) El operativo incluye que los citados
firmen" actas de advertencia" comprometiéndose a no asistir a la Plaza ese día, ni alterar el
orden. (“Quietos en base antes del concierto”, cubaverdad.net, 16/09/2009)
SYN: tranquilo, -a (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: base
baseball var. base-ball

n, m, sport, obsol. → béisbol
SYN: pelota (Cu.), béisbol (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: baseball
bate
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a usually wooden implement used for hitting the ball.
Historia de un niño que tiene la oportunidad de convertirse en héroe con la ayuda de una pelota
y un bate de béisbol parlantes. (Film Review, juventudrebelde.cu, 11/08/2014)
v, ph., colloq. 2 (partir el ) To do something unsual and surprising.
Que el bloqueo, que la crisis en el Medio Oriente, que Obama partió el bate o que Daniel
Ortega dejó hace muchos años de ser un político de izquierda. Definitivamente, la política es
EL tema de los cubanos, aunque te digan que no quieren hablar de política. Siempre, todos y
cada uno de los caminos de Cuba conducen a un análisis político de la realidad… (“Siete cosas
que la gente de Cuba hace mejor que nadie”, negracubanateníaqueser.com, 13/10/2015)
SYN: comérsela (Cu.)
v. ph., colloq. 3 (tener un buen ) To have a huge penis.
(…) mira mejor compórtate como el homosexual de Petate que por asosiación oye bate y piensa
en pene, hasta hacen buen pareja Pototi y Petate, qué lindos. (Online Post, “¿Sobra Yulieski
Gourriel en la Alineación de Cuba?”, 04/04/2013)
ETYM: bat
~ 189 ~
bate emergente
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a substitute batter during a critical moment of the game.
Pero al final de la jornada sabatina, en medio de una incertidumbre que todavía debe esperar a
la mañana del domingo, las lluvias comenzaron a amainar y las esperanzas de celebrar el
partido decisivo comenzaron a reaparecer, con la posibilidad de un cambio de sede para el
buen bate emergente que ha sido el terreno de “La Hacienda” en Coacoyul, probablemente en
horas de la tarde. (“Clima adverso demora definición de corona panamericana”,
beisbolcubano.cu, 02/09/2007)
n, m, colloq. 2 Someone who substitutes another one in a critical moment.
ETYM: emergent batter
batear
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, to hit or strike with a bat.
Cuarenta y ocho atletas estuvieron entrenándose, no fue fácil de ninguna manera para el
directivo del equipo hacer la selección, pero la hizo sobre la base de normas, de criterios, de
principios. Nosotros sabíamos que ese equipo era capaz de batear cuantos jits hicieran falta y
se crecería en el momento en que había que crecerse, y por eso obtuvo una victoria que
pudiéramos llamar espectacular. (“Fidel Castro’s Speech given to baseball players who had
returned from Baltimore”, www2.cuba.cu, CREA)
v. ph., colloq. 2 ( por la otra banda) To be homosexual.
Pero también refiriéndose a las preferencias sexuales de un individuo se dice que batea para la
otra banda quien es homosexual. (“Frases y dichos populares cubanos, tomados del argot
beisbolero (I)”, palabrasyfrasescubanas.blogspot.com, 05/10/2014)
v. ph., colloq. 3 ( por una banda) To be bisexual.
v. ph., colloq. 4 ( de jonrón) To accomplish a task successfully.
La nueva vacuna cubana para combatir la hepatitis B crónica ya se encuentra en su fase de
prueba inicial, tanto en la isla como en ocho países asiáticos, informó este martes el portal web
del diario Granma. (“Cuba la sigue bateando de jonrón con la creación de una nueva vacuna
(+hepatitis B crónica)”, laiguana.tv, 11/08/2014)
ETYM: to bat
bateador
n, m, sport In baseball, the player who bats.
Ésta es la galera más difícil que uno pueda imaginar. Ser mayor aquí es como dirigir un equipo
de pelota donde todos creen ser "cuarto bate". En referencia al bateador más recio y acreditado
de un equipo de béisbol. Ésta es una constelación de líderes y supuestos líderes. Hay que ser
mago para lidiar con tanta luminaria. (Cómo llegó la noche. Revolución y condena de un
idealista cubano, Huber Matos, 2002, CREA)
ETYM: batter
~ 190 ~
Annexes
bateador designado
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who is chosen at the beginning of a game to bat in the
place of the pitcher and who does not play a position in the field. (cf. MWD)
Ortiz pegó un doble en su primer turno al bate para superar a Bates con el mayor número de
imparables como bateador designado, y una entrada después conectó un cuadrangular de dos
carreras, para impulsar el miércoles a los Medias Rojas de Boston a una victoria por 11-4 sobre
los Marineros de Seattle. (“Papi Ortiz impone record de hits para bateadores designados”,
cubadebate.cu, 11/07/2013)
ETYM: designated hitter
bateo
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the act of hitting the ball into the infield.
La selección cubana sufrió este jueves su segunda derrota en el Campeonato Mundial de
Béisbol, categoría sub-12, con sede en Taipéi de China, al caer con marcador de 4-0 ante
Nicaragua, en duelo correspondiente a la segunda ronda. (“Cuba: escaso bateo y pobre
defensa”, juventudrebelde.cu, 31/07/2015)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (dar/meter ) To cause problems.
Iba y metía unos bateos por la noche según me decía la madre al día siguiente, que no eran
fáciles. Pero bueno, a lo mejor yo estaba confiado, no me despertaba porque estaba confiado en
que la madre era la que se despertaba y la atendía por la noche cuando gritaba. (MHCLH,
p.146)
ETYM: to bat
batería
n, f, tech.1 A device that is placed inside a machine (such as a clock, toy, or car) to supply
it with electricity.
Entre 1940 y 1942 entraron en el país 111.888 radiorreceptores, número sobresaliente si
tomamos en cuenta la población entonces de la isla y estos aparatos, de electricidad o batería,
se esparcieron por toda la geografía cubana. (El exilio republicano español en Cuba, Jorge
Domingo Cuadriello, 2009, p.201)
SYN: pila (Cu., Sp.)
n, f, sport 2 In baseball, the duplet catcher-pitcher.
n, f, sport 3 In baseball, all the batters in a team.
Su lugar lo ocupó el diestro Zach Jackson, quien tampoco pudo apagar la llama encendida de
los rivales, y vino en su rescate Bailey Clark, también víctima de la batería cubana, y con él
completaron las cinco anotaciones. (“Tope de Béisbol Cuba-EE.UU.: Yoanni Yera puso el
freno con excelente labor”, girón.cu, 04/07/2015)
ETYM: battery
bayú
n, m 1 A brothel.
Mariela, la segunda hija del actual presidente de Cuba, Raúl Castro, nacería el 27 de julio de
1962, ya cerrados los prostíbulos bajo el falso factum de las 100.000 prostitutas explotadas por
la burguesía esbirra y el imperialismo yanqui. Nunca antes ha sido una estadística más inflada
~ 191 ~
que ésta. Mariela nunca conoció la Cuba de los bayúes, aunque se dice que tanto su padre
como sus tíos fueron tan putañeros como cualquier machito de barrio. (“De casa Marina a casa
Mariela”, diariodecuba.com, 08/11/2011)
SYN: burdel (Sp., Cu.)
n, m, colloq. 2 A commotion or uproar, especially among non-educated peers.
Madre mía, pensé en cubano, vaya “bayú” que tenemos montado, e inmediatamente, como si
esa palabra hubiese actuado como detonante, se desató mi memoria. (“Blanco bayú”, opinfo.es,
28/03/2013)
ETYM: bayou.
Obs: Prob. from the word bayou, used in Southern regions of the States to denote swampy waters.
The number of prostitutes and merchants coming from New Orleans could have served to
introduce and spread the word.
beamball [bímbol]
n, m, sport In baseball, a type of play in which the pitcher intentionally throws the ball at
the batter to hit him.
ETYM: beamball
béisbol
n, m, sport A game played on a large field by two teams of nine players who try to score
runs by hitting a small ball with a bat and then running to each of the four bases without
being put out. (cf. MWD)
El béisbol de Cuba no fue menos y en tres meses logró una terna de trofeos: Panamericanos de
República Dominicana, Copa mundial de La Habana y Preolímpico de Panamá, con un equipo
donde escasean los nombres que estuvieron en los pasados Juegos Olímpicos de Sydney.
(“2003: las estrellas iluminaron el deporte latinoamericano”, trabajadores.cu, 01/01/2004)
SYN: pelota (Cu.)
ETYM: baseball
beisbolero, -a
adj., sport Related to baseball.
Y es que en el “championismo” se pierde la noción de la disciplina, la exigencia. Los mánagers
son, por encima de todo, pedagogos, educadores. (Serie Nacional de Pelota: ¿un oeste
beisbolero?, 19/02/2014, escambray.cu)
SYN: pelotero, -a (Cu.)
ETYM: baseball
bellboy
n, m, obsol. A young man who used to run errands for banks, hotels or small businesses.
A los 19 años se fue a Nueva York, un proyecto que tenía desde los 14 años. En la ciudad
norteamericana realizó todo tipo de trabajos: lavó platos, cortó yerba en un cementerio e
incluso fue bellboy en un hotel. (La radio en Cuba. Oscar Luis López, 1998)
~ 192 ~
Annexes
SYN: botones (Cu., Sp.)

ETYM: bellboy
bendix
n, m, tech. A gear based on a spiral drive mechanism of an inertia-type starter.
ETYM: Bendix (trademark)
besaculo
n, m, colloq. A person who behaves insincerely or falsely to gain another person’s
approval. (DEC)
SYN: lameculo (Sp.), guataca (Cu.)
ETYM: butt kisser
betibú
n, f, hum. A provocative woman. (DMC)
Juana enseña como betibú en televisión. (DMC, p.83)
ETYM: Betty Boop
big liguer [big líger]

n, m Someone possessing high qualifications and/or skills to carry out a given activity.
Por estos días lo hicieron los “big liguer” del béisbol norteamericano Ken Griffey Jr. y Barry
Larkin. Ambos recorrieron lugares históricos y de turismo en La Habana, y conversaron con
fanáticos, que se sorprendieron con la presencia de los ex- peloteros estadounidenses. (“Mafia
anticubana de Miami: un negocio que se tambalea”, radiohc.cu, 10/02/2014)
ETYM: big league
bilcrim
n, m Hair gel.
A alguien en el barrio se le ocurrió que el Bilcrim era perfecto. Solo había un problemita; yo
vivía en calle de tierra. Asique la cosa era: baño, bilcrim, y tierra. (“La moda”,
discoc.blogspot.com, 28/05/2007)
ETYM: Billcream
bill
n, m, obsol. A draft of a law presented to a legislature for enactment. (cf. MWD)
Tampa y la Industria tabacalera: los efectos del bill MacKinley por un lado, y por otro los
persistentes movimientos huelguísticos (Diario de la Marina. 01/04/1930, p.12)
SYN: proyecto de ley (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: bill
~ 193 ~
birthday cake
n, m, food, obsol. A sweet baked food served at birthday parties.
Fiesta de quince años: junto al birthday cake aparece la festejada con sus padres. (Diario de la
Marina. 14/12/1955, p.38)
SYN: cake de cumpleaños (Cu.), tarta de cumpleaños (Sp.)
ETYM: birthday cake
bisne
n, m, colloq. 1 An illegal business. (DEC)
Mientras más alto el volumen, mejor. En las discotecas es de mal gusto o tener un pésimo
sentido del "bisne", contratar a alguien que cante boleros. "Solo en las 'discotembas'
contratamos a un pobre diablo para que interprete cuatro o cincos bolerones. Pero la cuenta no
da. Apenas vienen gente", señala el gerente de un centro nocturno habanero. (“Boleros en
fade”, diariodecuba.com, 06/04/2014)
SYN: negocio (Cu.), chanchullo (Sp.)
n, m, colloq. 2 An informal love affair, particularly kept in secret. (DEC)
(...) son hombres aunque hay algunas mujeres, son los llamados jineteros profesionales que te
encontrarás por cualquier parte, no les gusta trabajar el trabajo es para los tontos, ellos hacen
bisnes intentarán sacarte todo el dinero posible con todo tipo de mentiras, por muy simpáticos
que te parezcan diles un NO ROTUNDO. (“Consejos para tu seguridad en Cuba”, Internet
Forum Post at tripadvisor.com, 19/10/2007)
ETYM: business
bisnear
v. intrans., colloq. To do illegal business. (DEC)
El camino fácil es el que han seguido todos los demas, jinetear y bisnear hasta conseguir poner
un pié en la yuma, engañar a los USA diciendo que son refugiados políticos (ley de ajuste) para
entonces dedicarse a hacer proselitismo castrista, y a jinetear y a bisnear para poder ir a cuba
cada tres meses. (“La cubana que abandonó Más Médicos pedirá a Brasil una indemnización
por 'daños morales'”, Internet Forum Post, diariodecuba.com, 07/02/2014)
SYN: negociar (Cu.)
ETYM: business
bisnero
n, m, colloq. A person who does illegal business. (DEC)
Fíjense si los precios del 200 y pico % de las TRD están tan elevados, que esos "bisneros"
pagaban permiso de salida en CUC a Inmigración, pasaje de ida y vuelta a Ecuador, se llevaba
2 o 3 mulas, le pagaba el hotel y la dieta en dólares en ese país, compraba toda su mercancía,
llegaba aquí y pagaba su arancel y el de las mulas, repartía a todo el mundo en taxi y así y todo
vendía más barato que las TRD y le daba negocio....ejem…(“Emite la Aduana nuevas
resoluciones sobre la importación de productos”, Internet Forum Post at granma.cu,
10/07/2014)
~ 194 ~
Annexes
ETYM: business
blazer [bléiser]
n, m, clothes A jacket that is worn over a shirt and that looks like a suit jacket but is not
part of a suit.
Sin dudas el siguarayense añora las bajas temperaturas, las desea, las vigila en sus termómetros
y a la menor bajadita del mercurio sale a que su abrigo se sienta realizado: así, un viejo exhibe
su “macfarlán” traído del antiguo campo socialista, un joven se cala un mullido gorro
“pasamontañas”, otros visten un sweater cuello-tortuga con blazer, y otros andan de saco y
corbata sin temor a la asfixia o la deshidratación. (“Y al fin chifló el mono”,
oncubamagazine.com, 08/01/2014)
SYN: americana (Sp.)
ETYM: blazer
block [blók]
m, n, tech. 1 A steel-made piece, in which the crankshafts, cylinders, camshaft, etc. in a
combustion engine.
Lógicamente, la obsolescencia es notable, pero el concurso de la ANIR posibilita que se den
otras prestaciones como la rectificación de block de motores de todo tipo y camisas
individuales; la rectificación de tapas de block –solo de aluminio– y la metalización del
casquillo del árbol de leva, lo que comúnmente se le llama encasquillado. (“El policlínico de
los carros”, guerrillero.cu, 13/05/2014)
n, m, form. 2 A large amount of sheets of paper. (LHCLH)
SYN: paca de papel (Cu.), paquete (Sp.)
ETYM: block
blof
n, m 1 A person who shows an arrogance attitude or exaggerates over simple things.
n, m 2 A lie or fraud.
Si pidieran la opinion de los cubanos de a pie seguro unanimemente pediriamos que la dejaran
salir pero sin vuelta atras, asi se dedica a ser agazajada por porrazos en otro pais donde se
resuelvan las cosas con violencia policial; mira que tiene un buen catalogo para escoger y de
todos los idiomas, asi no se le pierden las traducciones de su blof. (Post Comment, “El caso
Carromero y #YoaniFraude: ¡Cuidado con la historieta!”, lapupilainsomne.wordpress.com,
05/10/2012)
adj. 3 The result of an intellectual activity characterized by superficiality.
¿La electricidad subsidiada? este es el problema de citar fuentes oficiales y darlas como
verdaderas.Con relación al gas habría que investigar la relación real de precios con relación a la
producción, y después de la “revolución energética” otro programa blof y disparate del ex
presidente, que obligó a cocinar con electricidad y suspendió al gas como combustible para la
mayoría de la población, habría que cuestionarse todas estas cifras oficiales. (“Adiós a la doble
moneda: Cuba se prepara para el “día cero””, havanatimes.org, 11/10/2014)
ETYM: bluff
~ 195 ~
blofero, -a
adj. Characterized by showing off, or being too pretentious.
ETYM: bluffer
blofista
adj. → blofero
Los congresistas, que reaccionaron a los insultos de Kruschev, calificaron al premier soviético
de blofista y fanfarrón. Funcionarios del Gobierno de los Estados Unidos declararon que,
habiendo manifestado el presidente Kennedy no tener intención de invadir a Cuba, esas
advertencias soviéticas son gratuitas. (cubarepublicana.org)
ETYM: bluff
bloomer [blúmer] var. bloomers

n, m, clothes Underwear worn chiefly by girls and women.
SYN: bragas (Sp.)
ETYM: bloomers
blooper [blúper]
n, m 1 An embarrassing public blunder.
En el Allianz Arena Pep Guardiola recibió el tradicional baño de cerveza, que se le da al
técnico ganador de la ensaladera, e incluso protagonizó un “blooper” o hecho tonto, cuando se
le resbaló de las manos el trofeo. (“Resumen de las principales ligas del fútbol europeo”,
12/05/2014, radiococo.icrtv.cu)
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, a fly ball hit barely beyond a baseball infield. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: blooper
blower
n, m The act of blow-drying the hair, especially in a beauty salon.
Contamos con equipos ultrapotentes, cepillos térmicos especializados, planchas especiales para
el tratamiento, tiempo de reposo en secador iónico profesional, hacemos perfecto blower antes
de sellar por primera vez, y antes de sellar por segunda vez aplicamos botox incluido en el
precio. (Ad Post, bachecubano.com, 10/02/2015)
SYN: secado del pelo (Sp.)
ETYM: blow-dry
blueplate [blúpléi]
n, m, obsol. A set of dishes, arranged in a special tray, offered in some cafeterias.
En un espacio moderno y alegre con bellas fotos de Italia en su planta alta, atendido
constantemente por el restaurant que puso a disposición de los estudiantes una mesa buffet
~ 196 ~
Annexes
variada con frutas, pasteles, dulces, jugo y café con todo lo necesario, además de ofrecer un
blue plate económico con los deliciosos platos que ofertan. (“México a través de la mirada de
una cubana”, adligmary.blogspot.com.es, 26/02/2014)
ETYM: blue plate
blúmer
n, m, clothes → bloomer
Maricarla siente un olor nuevo, que evidentemente procede del sexo de su amiga, y entonces
continúa descendiendo con su mano hacia el vientre de Cary. Allí tropieza con el elástico del
blúmer y continúa buscando bajo la tela fina, moviendo sus dedos suavemente por entre el
vello púbico de Cary. (Naufragios, Álvarez Gil, Antonio, 2002; CREA)
ETYM: bloomers
bmx
n, f A mountain bike.
vendo bicicleta bmx negra de uso pero en perfectas condiciones traida de USA (Ad. Post,
revolico.com, 12/12/2015)
SYN: todoterreno (Sp.)
ETYM: BMX (trademark)
bobine [bobíne]
n, f, tech. A type of woven cotton. (DEP)
ETYM: bobbin (textile industry)
bobito
n, m, clothes A see-through, short lingerie.
New bobitos de dormir cómodos y ligeros: cada uno por 12 CUC. El azul y blanco son
roponcitos satinados, talla entre L y XL a 10 CUC. Servicio domicilio 2 CUC se llevan todos
los modelos que desee. (Classified Post, revolico.com, 25/12/2015)
ETYM: babydoll
bocadulce
adj., colloq. Characterized by being keen on sweets or sugary food. (DMC)
ETYM: sweet tooth
bola
n, f, sport 1 In baseball, a type of pitch not swung at by the batter that fails to pass through
the strike zone. (cf. MWD)
~ 197 ~
Esa noche, el cubano cantó bolas y strikes con la luz que irradiaban 288 focos distribuidos en
ocho torres. El “respetable” que abarrotó las gradas retornó a sus hogares satisfecho con la
iluminación del viejo parque marianense. (“Los Havana Cubans fueron los primeros”,
cubahora.cu, 22/09/2013)
n, m, sport 2 (toque de ) A smooth hit towards a defenseless area in the infield.
A través de los años, muchas personas han “atacado” el toque de bola, sin embargo, los juegos
de la MLB aún son testigos de este tipo de jugada. De hecho, estadísticas recogidas en
FanGraphs muestran que el porcentaje de hits conseguidos con toques de bola ha incrementado
en los últimos años, y que los managers aún mantienen el toque de sacrificio dentro de sus
libritos. (“¿Por qué el toque de bola ha perdido interés en Grandes Ligas?”, cubadebate.cu,
07/04/2014)
n, m, colloq. 3 (toque de ) An unexpected action, conceived to trick another person.
¿Nunca has dado un toque de bola con el fin de sorprender a tu rival y salir así de un apuro?
(Eliseo Alberto, “Informe contra mí mismo”, p. 201)
v. ph., colloq. 3 (dejar pasar la ) To do badly due to lack of concentration or
absentminded-ness.
Coño, pues si tú te dejas pasar esa bola eres un comemierda, flaco. (Mi vida sexual, Paquito
D’Rivera, p. 212)
ETYM: ball
bola de tenedor
n, f, sport → tenedor
Aquí hay buenos jugadores y muy buenos lanzadores, la mayoría de los cuales te tira la bola de
tenedor, que allá no es muy común. (Foro: Jugadores de la serie, 20/0672015,
beisbolencuba.com)
SYN: tenedor (Cu.)
ETYM: forkball
bombero
n, sport 1 A relief pitcher who is brought in to end the game.
Ratificando la mano blanda del pitcheo relevista en la LII Serie Nacional, los dos compromisos
vespertinos de este martes tuvieron en su segunda mitad un verdadero incendio, con alivio de
última hora para los apagafuegos de Industriales, pero quemaduras graves, más bien mortales,
en el pellejo de los bomberos pinareños. (“Bomberos quemados”, beisbolencuba.com,
08/05/2013)
n, colloq. 2 Someone capable of solving problems in an efficient manner.
SYN: fireman (Cu.)
ETYM: fireman
bonche [bónshe]
n, m, colloq. 1 The act of clowning around or mocking, especially in groups.
Botella de ron, tabaco habano, chicas por doquier, bonche en casa de huano. (A lo cubano,
song by Orisha)
~ 198 ~
Annexes
n, m, colloq. 2 A street party.

Al unísono, se desarrollan además en varios sitios de la periferia de la ciudad, algunas fiestas
denominadas “bonches” (fiestas callejeras), que se planifican con poca antelación. (ahs.cu,
2011)
ETYM: bunch
bonchar [bonshár]
v. intrans., colloq. To mock someone.
Y los . . . casi veinte mil curiosos, estuvieron como cuando yo estaba en el pre universitario
que empezamos a bonchar con/sobre los profesores a la hora de dormir y los profesores de
guardia sacaron a dos culpables. (“Un disco volador en La Habana”,
sitiosdecuba.blogspot.com)
ETYM: bunch
boom [búm]
n, m, tech. 1 A long horizontal supporting arm or brace as for holding a microphone.
Compro micrófono boom y baterías y cargador para CANON VIXIA HFm32. (Internet ad,
n, m, colloq. 2 Importance or popularity. (tener )
ETYM: boom
botar la bola
v. ph., sport → botar la pelota
ETYM: (to hit out) the ball
botar la pelota
v. ph., sport 1 In baseball, to hit the ball out of the field.
En el final de la entrada, con dos strikes, Alfredo Despaigne golfeó una slider bajita de quien
vino a ocupar la loma, Noe Ramírez, y le botó la pelota para empatar el desafío. (“Cuba se
impuso en el Mundial de Béisbol Universitario”, cubamatinal.es, 07/08/2010)
v. ph., colloq. 2 To accomplish an unusual and amazing task.
ETYM: (to hit out) the ball
bounce [bauns]
n, m, sport In baseball, a hit that hits the ground before it reaches an infielder.
Al siguiente día, los tres muchachos se reunieron para fonguear pelotas en la barriada del
Vedado donde se dice que tres bolas atrapadas de aire o al primer bounce le daban al fildeador
el derecho a utilizar el bate. (“Se cumplieron 139 años del primer juego de béisbol en Cuba”,
31/12/2013, catrachosports.com)
ETYM: bounce
~ 199 ~
bound [báun]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the bounce of the ball once hit into the field.
Inmediatamente que Ixis dio el hit le dije a Lourdes que me diera el bate, ya yo estaba
preparado para dar un batazo, sabía lo que me iban a tirar y efectivamente di doble al
izquierdo, o sea no pude traer para el plato a Ixis porque la bola salió del estadio al primer
bound, fue tubey por regla. (“Renier Yero: confesiones sin máscaras”, cafefuerte.com,
17/04/2012)
adj. ph. 2 (al ) Characterized by working perfectly well, especially in relation with home
appliances.
ETYM: bound
box [bóks]
n, m, sport In baseball, the area on which the pitcher stands while playing.
La selección cubana irá hoy al que puede calificarse su primer compromiso fuerte en la Serie
de las Américas, al enfrentar, con José Ibar en la lomita, a un conjunto dominicano invicto en
tres salidas, luego de pasar por encima de la débil escuadra de Guatemala, en un choque de
puro trámite donde el mentor Higinio Vélez aprovechó para darles juego a los suplentes y
colocar en el box a Norge Vera. (“Ofensiva sigue al tope”, granma.cu, 02/12/2002; CREA)
SYN: montículo (Cu.), lomita (Cu.)
ETYM: box
boxspring [bóksesprín]
n, m, house A flat box that is filled with metal springs and covered with cloth, which is put
under a mattress for support.
Vendo escaparate espacioso con puertas de corredera y gavetas, cama 3/4 con su colchón,
boxspring con su colchón y otros muebles de uso a buen precio. (Internet Ad,
cuba.anuncio.com, 23/08/2012)
SYN: sommier (Sp.)
ETYM: box spring
bowling
n, m, obsol. A game played by rolling a large, heavy ball down a smooth floor (called a
lane) towards a set of pins in order to knock down as many pins as possible. (cf. MWD)
Brunswick: cuando hay calor fuera, disfrute el bowling dentro. (Diario de la Marina.
27/12/1958, p.22)
SYN: los bolos (Cu.)
ETYM: bowling
~ 200 ~
Annexes
boy-scout
n, m A member of any of various national scouting programs.
Excelsior Music Co.: Solicite nuestra lista de precios especiales de todos los instrumentos para
Bandas rítmicas, Bandas Escolares, Sociedades Deportivas y Boy-Scouts. (Diario de la
Marina. 16/01/1947, p.7)
ETYM: boy-scout
breaker [bréker]
n, m, house A device for opening a circuit.
Actualmente, como parte de la Revolución Energética que desarrolla el país, no solo se están
mejorando las redes eléctricas, y en ocasiones las acometidas, sino también se instalan nuevos
breakers en las casas y se reparten equipos eléctricos modernos a la población. (“Crecen
accidentes relacionados con los accidentes domésticos”, juventudrebelde.cu, 26/08/2006)
SYN: interruptor (Sp.)
ETYM: (circuit) breaker
bride maid
n, f, obsol. A female friend or relative who helps a bride at her wedding.
La boda de hoy: Igualmente llevará la etiqueta de este edén, el bouquet de la novia, y los de la
bride maid, la graciosa señorita Carmita Brando, y de la flower girl, la linda niña Edelmira
Méndez, completándose la corte con el ring boy, el niño Juan José Fernández. (Diario de la
Marina. 16/01/1947, p.7)
SYN: dama de honor (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: bridesmaid
broadcloth
n, m, clothes A twilled napped woolen or worsted fabric with smooth lustrous face and
dense texture. (cf. MWD)
Premier: Waldorf de finísimo broadcloth cuello peco propias para traje blanco. (Diario de la
Marina. 10/04/1952, p.17)
ETYM: broadcloth
brother [bróder]
n, m, vulg. someone with whom we keep friendship bonds.
Oye brother todo el mundo sabe que la mlb es la mejor pero eso de que la liga mexicana es una
mierda tampoco es así Michel el año pasado no bateo en México y no es buena mi hermano, es
una forma de decirte las cosas saludos y un abrazo. (“Alfredo Despaine da dos home-run en un
mismo juego”, post internet forum, beisbol.com)
SYN: consorte, asere, monina, hermano (Cu.)
ETYM: brother
~ 201 ~
bugalú
n, m 1 A genre of Latin music popular in the 1960s in the US.
v. trans., vulg. 2 (a poner a alguien a bailar el ) To satisfy someone sexually. (DMC)
ETYM: boogaloo
buffet supper
n, m, food, obsol. A social event especially for raising money, that includes food served in
a buffet.
En el liceo: en horas de la tarde de mañana, la directiva del liceo (…) ofrecerá un buffet supper
a las directivas y asociados. (Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.22)
ETYM: buffet supper
bul
n, m A refreshing drink which is made of beer or sparkling water, lemon, and sugar.
ETYM: Prob. from bowl, a container in which the drink is prepared.
bull-pen [búlpén]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the area used by pitchers and catchers to warm up before taking
the mound when playing.
Las autoridades cubanas realizan la remodelación del casi septuagenario estadio
Latinoamericano, con vistas a la LIV Serie Nacional de Béisbol. “Se está trabajando duro para
contar con el bullpen bien cerca de los dugouts”, dijo a Jit el director de la instalación, Eduardo
Delgado. (“Remodelan el mayor estadio de béisbol de Cuba”, beisbolencuba.com, 30/07/2014)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (haber movimiento en el ) Referring to a changing situation.
Gracias a Obama y Kerry por lo menos ahora noto "movimiento en el bullpen". (“Embajada
americana en Macondo”, cubaencuentro.com, 13/08/2015)
v. ph., colloq. 3 (haber movimiento en el ) Referring to a group of people who conspire
in secret behind others’ back.
Aseguran que hay movimiento en el bull pen, pero lo que se nota es confusión. El blog del
seguroso Yohandry no se sabe si cierra por reformas o por derribo. Y M. Lagarde, oficial
empistolado de la Contrainteligencia, en la primera línea del enfrentamiento a los
ciberdisidentes, dicen que sigue preso, sabrá Dios y sus jefes por qué. (“¿Se mueve algo en la
prensa oficialista?”, cuba-solidaridad.blogspot.com, 02/07/2012)
ETYM: bull-pen
bunch
n, m, obsol. 1 A group of (people).
Tendremos aquí a los esposos Ramírez de Olivella-Parodi, a Ernestina Trelles, a Berta Pina, y
Humberto de Cárdenas, y a un gentilísimo bunch de mademoiselles. (Diario de la Marina.
30/04/1930, p.2)
n, m, obsol. 2 A large amount of things.
~ 202 ~
Annexes
Una boda muy lúcida tuvo lugar el domingo en la capilla La Salle: los muros de privet, sobre
los cuales se dispusieron de trecho en trecho unos finísimos bunches de gladiolos amarillos.
ETYM: bunch
buró
n, m, form. 1 An office that gives information to the public. ( de arriendo)
n, m, house 2 A studio or office desk.
Se vende este magnífico buró de oficina con gavetero y bandeja para teclado. Su precio: 330.00
CUC. Llame al...(Ad Post, cuba-ads.com)
SYN: escritorio (Sp.)
ETYM: bureau
business meeting
n, m, tech. A gathering of business people in which economic issues are discussed.
Del Lyceum: mañana, miércoles, a las 3 p.m. se celebrará el Business Meeting del English
Book Club, seguido de merienda y tarde de juego. (Diario de la Marina. 10/11/1952, p.15)
SYN: reunión de negocios (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: business meeting
cabeza
n, f The end of the cigar that one puts into the mouth. (DEC)
Una vez preparada la hoja de la capa, el torcedor tiene que colocarla perfectamente, de forma
que quede lo más sujeta y estirada posible. La punta de la hoja debe quedar en el pie mientras
la base en la cabeza; así, el tabaco es más suave. (“El maestro torcedor de tabaco”,
cibercuba.com)
SYN: perilla (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: head
cabús
n, m, transp. A part of a train that is attached at the back end and is used for fuel and water
storage. (DEC)
Detrás de una montaña de papeles, en su despacho del Centro Territorial de Infraestructura
Ferroviaria, en Santa Clara, el ingeniero Ernesto Simonó, especialista principal, no oculta su
admiración por la obra que se perdió: “No exagero si digo que sobre el puente Agabama cabía
perfectamente el tren de petróleo que llevaba el crudo a la refinería de Cabaiguán, con su
~ 203 ~
locomotora, 20 tanques y el cabús”, dice. (“Ferrocarril Trinidad-Placetas: El ramal

condenado”, escambray.cu, 10/08/2012)
SYN: ténder (Sp.)
ETYM: caboose
cachar
v. intrans., colloq. To watch someone closely in order to catch him/her by surprise. (DEC)
El mal ambiente y las riñas que se forman dejan una sensación de miedo. En la entrada hay tres
policías cachando a los jóvenes para no dejarles pasar objetos punzantes, debido a broncas en
veranos anteriores”. (“¿Dónde me baño?”, cubanet.org, 04/08/2015)
SYN: cazar (Cu.)
ETYM: to catch
cache
n, m Ready money. (LHCLH) (al )
Un ejemplo ilustrativo para entender lo definido como estrategia articulacionista de las mujeres
canarias en la zona suroriental de Cuba durante la primera mitad del siglo XX, tiene que ver
con la complejidad de la trama sociocultural expresada en las maniobras y operaciones
implicadas en el cache, un constructo revelador de género y las redes sociales. ‘Cache’ es u
término derivado de la construcción lingüística to pay cash (pagar al contado). (La
alimentación: el dominio invisible de las mujeres canarias en Cuba, Juan Carlos Rosario
Molina, p.27)
SYN: en efectivo (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: cash
cácher
n, m, sport → catcher
SYN: receptor (Cu.)
ETYM: catcher
cacheo
n, m, sport In baseball, the act of playing the catcher’s position in a game.
SYN: quecheo, recepción (Cu.)
ETYM: catcher
cachú
adj. Resembling ketchup in color. (DMC)
Salsas (Mayonesas, cachú, mostaza, barbacoas…): Antes de la apertura, se pueden agregar dos
semanas a las recomendaciones de los fabricantes. Una vez abierto, se pueden consumir
~ 204 ~
Annexes
durante las siguientes dos a tres semanas. (Comment Post, “¿Caduca la protección a
consumidor?”, juventudrebelde.cu, 16/10/2013)
ETYM: ketchup
caja de bateo
n, f, sport In baseball, the area in which the batter stands while trying to hit the ball.
En 1938 conquistan nuevamente el campeonato, esta vez liderados por Martín Dihigo, tanto en
la loma de pitcheo como en la caja de bateo, el cubano batea para 364 de average. (“Agustín
Bejerano”, ecured.cu, Enciclopedia Cubana Online)
ETYM: batter’s box
caja decodificadora
n, f, tech. An external gadget, connected to the TV, necessary to display TV signal to the
screen.
También posibilita establecer recordatorios de programas seleccionados y emplearla como
referencia para el uso del PVR. PVR – “Personal Video Recorder” o videograbador personal.
(“Venta de cajas decodificadoras”, juventudrebelde.cu, 03/09/2014)
ETYM: decoder box (cable TV)
cake [kéi]
n, m, food 1 A sweet baked food made from a mixture of flour, sugar, and other ingredients
(such as eggs and butter).
...y Caruca desde temprano acumulando velitas, amasando la harina, el pan, el huevo, batiendo
las claras; un cake enorme, una boca cuya respiración se iba haciendo cada año más débil, un
grupo de manos flacas y de pulsos que sonaban y llenaban su oído y un poco de saliva en la
cara y un beso único, largo. (En mi jardín pastan los héroes, Heberto Padilla, 1981, p.157,
CREA)
SYN: tarta (Sp.)
v. ph. 2 (comerse un ) To feel let down by something or another person.
Se comieron un cake, porque después de tantos preparativos para la reunión no vino ningún
invitado importante. (“¿Es correcto el uso del término 'almibaíto' cuando en las calles los
vendedores pregonan, "el cake almibaíto de capuchino"?”, juventudrebelde.cu)
SYN: decepcionarse (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: cake
cake de café
n, m, food → coffeecake
ETYM: coffeecake
calentar el banco
v. ph., sport 1 (a player) To wait for next turn to be at bat.
~ 205 ~
Volvemos con Del Rosario, Quintana y los otros dos en peores condiciones, dudo que no
existan muchachos jóvenes con talento, pero no talento para calentar el banco, sino para jugar,
dejarlos crecer, vamos a dejar de pensar que con un círculo de abuelos vamos a clasificar.
(“Holguín para LIV Serie Nacional de Béisbol”, ahora.cu, forum post, 10/09/2014)
v. ph., colloq. 2 To sit for a long time doing nothing.
ETYM: bench-warmer
calle ancha
n, f → vía ancha
Yo saludaba y desaparecía. Sin tocar el suelo andaba cuadra y media, hasta La Callancha (la
calle ancha), hasta la casa de mi primo Hectico, para reencontrarme con el Chentum, Carlitos,
los dos Julios, Kike, el indómito Guácara, Arminda y Miriam. (“Silvio Rodríguez: Seguir
siendo San Antonio de los Baños…”, eltaburete.wordpress.com, 11/11/2014)
SYN: calle principal (Cu.)
ETYM: broad way
camarero
n, m, sport In baseball, the player defending the second base.(DEC)
El camarero Royce Lewis guió la ofensiva norteamericana al pegar de 3-2 con tres anotadas y
par de remolques, en tanto el antesalista Miguel Vargas conectó de 5-2 y pisó la goma en par
de ocasiones para sobresalir madero en ristre por el representativo de Cuba. (“Cuba pierde
invicto en Mundial sub-15 de béisbol”, tvsantiago.icrt.cu, 07/08/2014)
ETYM: waiter
cambric
n, m, clothes A light, thin, white linen or cotton cloth.
Fin de Siglo: Todos estos precios del nuevo plan están fijados al mínimum. Cambric inglés
(Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina. 30/04/1930, p.5)
ETYM: cambric
cameraman [kámeramán]
n, m, occup. A person who operates a camera (films or television).
Cardiólogo de profesión, Luis Álvarez Tabío se hizo cargo de la naciente empresa, a la que
entregó su auto personal. Para seguir atendiendo las consultas de sus clientes se valió, ante la
sorpresa de colegas y amigos, de una motocicleta. José Tabío se unió al proyecto como
fotógrafo y cameraman. A su lado, Raúl Corrales completó un aprendizaje decisivo. (“Alejo
Carpentier y la Cuba Sono Films”, cubarte.cult.cu, 22/04/2013)
SYN: camarógrafo (Cu.), cámara (Sp.)
ETYM: cameraman
~ 206 ~
Annexes
campo corto
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the player’s position standing between second and third base.
Con bastante fanfarria, y algo del habitual misterio, el Cuba se alista para las acciones del
Premundial y Prepanamericano en Puerto Rico a partir del próximo 1 de octubre. ¿Dudas? unas
pocas; ¿atreverse a pronosticar? Difícil; ¿Certezas? Solo una, el lado flaco del equipo grande
está en el campo corto. (“El hueco del Cuba, evidentemente está en el campo corto”,
baseballdecuba.com, 24/09/2010)
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, the player who stands between second and third base.
Muchos se inclinan por señalar al antesalista y campocorto Esteban Bellán no sólo como el
primer pelotero latinoamericano en actuar en Grandes Ligas, sino también como el pionero
cubano. (“Los 10 mejores jugadores cubanos en Grandes Ligas”, beisbol.about.com, Fernando
Conde)
ETYM: short field
cana
n, f, vulg. A place where people are kept when they have been arrested for a crime.
Hace seis meses están en la calle. Y ya están próximos a visitar de nuevo la prisión. "Estamos
a la espera de un juicio, donde la petición del fiscal es de 12 años", cuentan de manera casi
jocosa. Y agregan: "Nuestros socios de la cana (cárcel) ya nos están guardando una litera".
Estar presos para los hermanos Martell es un estado natural. (“Ratas de prisión [ser preso en
Cuba]”, elmundo.es, 17/08/2010)
SYN: tanque (Cu.), talego (Sp.)
ETYM: can
canibalear
v. trans., tech. To remove parts from a machine, car, etc., to repair or build another one.
(cf. MWD)
SYN: desmantelar (Cu., Sp.), desguazar (Sp.)
ETYM: to cannibalize
captura
n, m, sport In baseball, the act of catching the ball in the air.
Lanzamientos y capturas de pelotas con desplazamientos y giros. (“La práctica del béisbol en la
comunidad como vía de mejoramiento de las capacidades motrices en los niños de 13 -14
años”, efdeportes.com)
ETYM: catch
capturar
v. intran., sport In baseball, to catch the ball in the air.
Al capturar la bola, el guante del cubano estaba tres pies por encima de la valla central. “Nunca
perdí la pelota,” dijo Martin. “Sabía dónde estaba y la seguí, llegué hasta la cerca y realicé un
gran salto.” (“Martín le roba un jonrón a un amigo”, beisbolencuba.com, 05/07/2014)
~ 207 ~
ETYM: to catch
car porch
n, m, house, obsol. A roofed area, next to the main entrance, used as a garage.
Casa en jaimanitas playa, cuba. Precio: 110000 casa moderna y elegante. Tiene portal, jardín,
car porch por 2 carros y garaje, 2 cuartos, 1 baño, sala, comedor, cocina grande, y terraza con
jardín precioso. Incluye teléfono, aire acondicionado en los cuartos. (Internet Ad.,
cubisima.com, 13/02/2014)
ETYM: car porch
carga
n, f, vulg. State of being really drunk. (DEC) (llevar una ).
ETYM: loaded
cargabate var. cargabates

n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a person in charge of collecting bats from the field or any other
minor errands.
Son los cargabates: con sus jolongos repletos de maderos torneados y que conservan los
atributos de cuando fueron parte del cuerpo de árboles con suficiente entereza para resistir los
encontronazos. (“Los cargabates en el béisbol cubano”, perlavision.icrt.cu, 06/01/2011)
n, m, colloq. 2 Someone characterized by flattering for some hidden interest.
Pero concluimos que en Cuba cualquier cargabates podía ser influyente allí donde otros más
cocotudos no podían. Porque en ese caso el cargabates era amigo del que decidía. (Estampas
Cubanas, Emilio Cosío, 2004, p. 70)
SYN: pelotas (Sp.), guataca (Cu.)
ETYM: bat-carrier
carpor
n, m, house A shelter for a car that has open sides and that is usually attached to the side of
a building. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: carport
carrera
n, f, sport In baseball, a score given to a player advancing around first, second and third
base and returns safely to home plate.
En el único partido de la tarde la Habana dejó al campo 4 - 3 a Pinar del Río y le ganó la
subserie. A la hora de emitir este despacho Isla de la Juventud e Industriales jugaban el
decimotercer inning, empatados a una carrera, en el parque Latinoamericano. (“Benavides con
las bases llenas”, trabajadores.cu, 19/03/2003, CREA)
ETYM: run
~ 208 ~
Annexes
carro
n, m, transp. A vehicle having four wheels and used for carrying passengers.
Déborah, antigua capitana del equipo nacional de nado sincronizado, nació hace 30 años en
Ciudad de La Habana, pero fue adoptada con orgullo por los habitantes de la Isla de la
Juventud, la segunda ínsula del archipiélago cubano. "Me sentí muy emocionada con el
recibimiento que me otorgaron en Nueva Gerona, la capital, luego del récord. Las autoridades
nos pasearon en un carro descapotado por las principales avenidas y la gente, con mucho
cariño, nos expresaba su afecto. (“Deborah Andollo”, Granma Internacional, 12/1997, CREA)
SYN: coche (Sp.), máquina (Cu.)
ETYM: car
carta nocturna
n, f A telegram sent at night at a reduced rate for delivery the following morning.
ETYM: night letter
carter
n, m, tech. A container that is used for fuel. (DMC)
ETYM: Carter (inventor)
cartones
n, pl. Animated film or television show. (LHCLH)
SYN: dibujos animados (Cu., Sp.), muñequitos (Cu.)
ETYM: cartoons
casetera
n, f, house A piece of electronic cassette-driven equipment for reproducing sound.
Radio/grabadora con lector de CD y casetera marca Panasonic en perfecto estado de
funcionamiento. Tiene mando de control remoto. (Ad Post, revolico.com, 10/06/2015)
SYN: minicadena (Sp.), grabadora (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: cassette
cash
n, m Ready money.
El gobierno cubano acaba de anunciar la decisión de “poner en vigor el cronograma de
ejecución de las medidas que conducirán a la unificación monetaria y cambiaria”. (“Aquí lo
que importa es el cash”, cubaencuentro.com, 24/10/2013)
Obs: Chiefly used in an adverbial phrase (al ).
SYN: al contado (Sp., Cu.), cache (Cu.)
~ 209 ~
ETYM: cash
catao [katáo]
n, m, house 1 A box or cabinet housing the switches and fuses of an electrical wiring
system.
SYN: caja de fusibles
v. ph., col. 2 (quitar el ) To stop thinking or worrying about something.
SYN: desconectar
ETYM: cut-out (box)
catchear [késhear] or [késhiar]

v. intrans., sport In baseball, to catch the ball thrown by the pitcher.
Me gustaba ver catchear a Lázaro Martínez, pero mi estilo es una mezcla de él, de Evelio
Hernández y Lázaro Pérez. Cogí lo mejor de ellos e hice el mío. (“Soy el mejor cátcher de
Cuba”, cubahora.cu, 21/06/2013)
ETYM: to catch
catcher [késher]
n, m, sport In baseball, the player standing behind the batter and catches the pitches thrown
by the pitcher.
Sin embargo, la suerte estaba echada: el Habana logró con esa innovación gran ventaja, pues la
fuerza de su pitcher R. Mora, cuyo throwing era tan rápido y tanta la ligereza que su catcher
(mister Bellán del Mutual Club de Nueva York) apenas permitía al batmen matancero
distinguir la pelota. (“¿Cómo llegó el béisbol a Cuba?”, radiorebelde.cu)
SYN: receptor (Cu.)
ETYM: catcher
cebra
n, f A path that is painted with stripes on a street or road and that marks the place where
people can safely cross. (cf. MWD)
A tener más cuidado, por ejemplo, mira, yo te voy a poner, por ejemplo, cuando nosotros
estuvimos en Bélgica, en Bruselas, por primera vez, a nosotros nos llamó mucho la atención la
limpieza que hay en las calles de Bruselas y la disciplina que hay en el, por ejemplo, para pasar
las calles, para todo, no se puede botar un papel en la calle, la calle hay que pasarla
exactamente por la cebra. (Comment Post, 14ymedio.com)
SYN: paso de peatones (Sp.), paso de cebra (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: zebra crossing
celular
n, m A small telephone that people take with them, and use them anywhere.
~ 210 ~
Annexes
El celular, ese aparatico tan simpático, ¿es para comunicarse o para divulgar nuestra intimidad?
Desde su nacimiento el artilugio no deja de provocar los criterios más diversos. (“Las paradojas
de un celular”, juventudrebelde.cu, 18/07/2015)
SYN: móvil (Sp.)
ETYM: cell phone
center field
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the part of the baseball outfield between right field and left field.
Matanzas ha sido pródiga en la historia beisbolera cubana. Allí y en La Habana fue donde
primero se jugó béisbol en la isla. En la tierra del Yumurí se celebró un partido de béisbol el 27
de diciembre de 1874 que hasta el momento es el score de un juego de pelota más antiguo de
Cuba. Matanzas ha sido cuna de una lista interminable de peloteros: José de la Caridad
Méndez, Martín Díhigo, Orestes Miñoso, Tony Taylor, Dagoberto Bert Campaneris y tantos
otros de la pelota cubana antes de 1961 y fuera de la isla en el beisbol profesional. (“Estrellas
de SN: Lázaro Contreras: El ángel caído del center field”, baseballdecuba.com, 01/12/2011)
SYN: jardín central
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, the player defending the center field.
He visto lo que más vale y brilla del deporte nacional de Cuba en los últimos 30 años. Sin
embargo -y es mi derecho de aficionado, pues no trato de convencer a nadie sino a exponer mi
criterio- mi pelotero favorito es el que vio la luz por primera vez en el pequeño poblado de
Sitiecito, municipio Sagua la Grande, actual provincia de Villa Clara. Estoy hablando –y aquí
soy absoluto- del mejor center field de Cuba, del jugador más explosivo e inteligente de las
Series Nacionales, de uno de los tres más completos después de 1959. (“Estrellas de SN: El
"Show Man" de la pelota cubana (Parte I)”, baseballdecuba.com, 13/04/2010)
SYN: jardinero central (Cu.)
ETYM: center field
center [sénter]
n, m, sport → center field
SYN: jardinero central (Cu.)
ETYM: center field
centropen
n, m A type of felt pen used for technical drawing.
Vendo estuche de 4 plumas tipo centropen, estudiantes de dibujo y diseño, para dibujantes,
pintores, ingenieros y arquitectos. Es de uso pero esta en perfectas condiciones. (Ad Post,
cubredirectme.net, 16/09/2015)
ETYM: Centropen (trademark)
chalina
n, f, clothes A piece of light cloth, used especially by women as a covering for shoulders.
(LHCLH)
~ 211 ~
Tenis de hombre…28.00; tenis de mujer…22.00; enguatadas con gorro de mujer…13.00;

blusas de hilo con mangas...17.00; chalinas sin encaje…15.00; licras larga color entero…10.00;
blusas de pico…(“Vendo ropa para todos los gustos”, habanaporlalivre.com, 21/12/2015)
SYN: chal (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: shawl
championismo
n, m, sport In baseball, the negative competitive attitude shown during a National League.
Y es que en el “championismo” se pierde la noción de la disciplina, la exigencia. Los mánagers
son, por encima de todo, pedagogos, educadores. (Serie Nacional de Pelota: ¿un oeste
beisbolero?, 19/02/2014, escambray.cu)
SYN: competitividad (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: champion
chance
n, m 1 An opportunity to do something.
- Oye, Paco -le digo a Cabrera-, esta posición serviría sólo si tuviéramos más hombres. El
enemigo es numeroso y bien armado; no tenemos chance de detenerlo. Yo vengo de refuerzo,
pero te sugiero que cambies esta posición y se lo informes a Fidel. Aquí vamos a perder
hombres y armas. (Cómo llegó la noche. Revolución y condena de un idealista cubano, Huber
Matos, 2002, CREA)
n, m 2 A free ride (especially in a passing vehicle).
SYN: autostop (Sp.), botella (Cu.)
ETYM: chance
chantung
n, m, clothes A fabric in plain weave having a slightly irregular surface due to uneven
slubbed filling yarns. (cf. MWD)
Ya tenemos el nuevo chantung en todos los colores…crepes mongol. (Clothing Shop Ad,
Diario de la Marina. 02/04/1930, p.11)
ETYM: shantung
chapear [chapéar] or [chapíar]

v. trans. To cut the standing grass.
Y acabada la zafra, sembrar caña y chapear los cañaverales, que es de las faenas más recias de
un ingenio, por las postura del cuerpo inclinado hacia adelante. (Cultura Afrocubana,
Castellanos, J.et al, Tomo I)
SYN: cortar el césped (Sp.)
ETYM: to chop
~ 212 ~
Annexes
charcoal
adj., obsol. A dark gray color.
Fin de Siglo: Tiene un amplio colorido donde escoger: rojo charcoal, verde, orange, turquesa,
royal, azul acero, soldier blue. (Fabric Ad, Diario de la marina. 16/11/1954, p.5)
SYN: cenizo (Cu.)
ETYM: charcoal
chaúcha
n, f, food Food for humans. (DEC)
ETYM: Prob. from chowchow or its shortening chow.
cheche [chéshe]
n, m, obsol. 1 Check (in chess). (DEP)
ETYM: check
checkmark
n, m In a piece of text or list, a mark made on a component to distinguish it from the
others.
ETYM: checkmark
cheese cloth
n, m, tech., obsol. A very thin cotton that is used for covering tobacco plantations to protect
plants from the sun. (DEC)
El cultivo bajo cubierta de tela cheese cloth, llamada así por ser igual tipo de tela que se
utilizaba en la envoltura del queso fresco en los Estados Unidos y bautizado por el veguero
cubano como mosquitero. (Cuba agrícola: mito y tradición, 1878-1920, Leida Hernández
Prieto, p.246)
SYN: tela de mosquitero (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: cheesecloth
chenche
n, m, colloq. An exchange of goods or money. (DEC)
SYN: trueque (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: change
chenche por chenche

n. ph., colloq. A type of exchange in which goods are handed in at the same time. (DEC)
~ 213 ~
Estados Unidos y Cuba tienen muchas diferencias; hoy enfrentan una muy específica
relacionada con las condenas que en ambos países cumplen el contratista Alan Gross y los
luchadores antiterroristas cubanos. Aunque los casos sean diferentes, la solución podría
encontrarse en una verdadera reciprocidad. Para decirlo claramente: “Chenche por chenche y
Guanajay por tierra”. Si el gobierno norteamericano no entiende, cualquier cubano le podría
traducir la frase. (“Washington y La Habana: “Chenche por chenche y Guanajay por tierra””,
cambiosencuba.blogspot.com, 26/02/2012)
SYN: dando y dando (Cu.)
ETYM: change
chequear [chekéar] or [chekíar]

v. intrans. To check in (especially at an airport).
De todas las filas para chequear en el Aeropuerto de Barajas, hay una que es la más larga y
lenta. Se trata del vuelo de Air Europa que parte desde Madrid hasta La Habana. (“La pegatina
de la vergüenza”, Yoany Sánchez, El País, 19/10/2013)
ETYM: check
cheque de retención
n, m, tech. A type of valve allowing water (or liquids in general) to flow in only one
direction.
Además en la descarga se instalarán cheques de retención horizontal con las siguientes
características:
Tipo: Horizontal
Diámetro: 200 mm
Presión de Trabajo: PN10
Tipo de Unión: Wafer
(Proyecto: “Mejora y ampliación de los servicios de agua potable y saneamiento de cinco
pequeñas ciudades cubanas”, camarazaragoza.com, 08/05/2014)
ETYM: retention check valve
chequeo [chekéo]
n, m 1 The act of testing or supervising.
Consideró el General de Ejército este sábado durante el chequeo de las inversiones del Proyecto
Mariel. (Granma, 19-05-2014)
SYN: control, supervision (Sp., Cu.)
n, m 2 The act of checking at airports.
Cubana de Aviación no se compromete con la transportación de los pasajeros que se presenten
después de la hora límite de chequeo. (Information Post, cubanadeaviacion.com)
SYN: check-in (Sp.)
ETYM: checkup
chequera
n, f A book containing checks/receipts/coupons, especially handed after retirement age.
~ 214 ~
Annexes
Una mujer de pueblo y 56 años de edad. En la actualidad cobra chequera 1. Pensión de jubilada
y cuida enfermos en hospitales para mejor subsistir económicamente. Es elemental, llorona,
noble y melodramática. (Te sigo esperando (Una crónica cubana de los noventa), Héctor
Quintero, 1996, CREA)
ETYM: checkbook
chiforrober
n, m, house A piece of furniture resulting from a combination of wardrobe and chest of
drawer, originally used for men’s clothes.
Ofrezco chiforrober de madera muy buena, con cuatro gavetas y espacio para colgar. Puede ser
adaptado para un escaparatico de niño. Está barnizado y en buenas condiciones . (Internet Ad.,
ETYM: chifforobe (originally in English a blending of chiffonier and wardrobe)
chingala
n, f, sport In baseball, a piece of equipment worn by catchers on their legs to protect them
from injuries.
ETYM: shin-guard
chivo [shíbo]
n, m, body Small pointed beard on the chin.
(…) un pañuelo puede ser rojo u azul, zapatos blancos,esto viene desde las gestas
independentistas de cuando los mambises,en ese momento se usaba el bigote, chivo,y las
patillas largas,o si no barba. (es.answers.yahoo.com)
SYN: perilla (Sp.)
ETYM: goatee
choquear
v. trans. 1 To cause surprise or amaze on someone.
La retirada de la delegación de Cuba del debate chocó a muchos. El periodista de
Trabajadores, Francisco Rodríguez, sintetizó en las redes sociales un sentir compartido: “Si yo
considero que tengo derecho a estar en un lugar, nada ni nadie me haría renunciar a estar allí”.
(“La sociedad civil y el debate”, oncubamagazine.com, 16/04/2015)
v. intrans. 2 ( se) To get surprised or amazed at something.

Es difícil describir lo que significa el Partido para mí como militante y revolucionario, con
tantos años de militancia política, desde la AJR en 1959, hasta hoy. Cinco décadas, por eso me
chocó tanto la sanción que se me ponía. En realidad no lo podía creer. Me costó trabajo
recuperarme y poder analizar las cosas más fríamente. (“Esteban Morales narra por primera vez
su reincorporación al Partido Comunista de Cuba: “Tuve que luchar por mi militancia””,
cubainformacion.tv, 17/06/2013)
ETYM: to shock
~ 215 ~
chor
n, m, clothes → shorts
SYN: pantalones cortos (Sp.)
ETYM: shorts
chucho
n, m, house 1A small device that starts or stops the flow of electricity to something.
El cubano no tiene interruptor de corriente: tiene chucho. (“Cubanos Todos”, Facebook page)
SYN: interruptor (Sp.)
n, m, house 2 A receptacle for the plug of an electrical device.
n, m, colloq. 3 Mockery or teasing. (dar )
Usted porque llegó ahora y no escuchó, pero aquí ahorita alguien dijo que qué suerte la de los
venezolanos por sus elecciones, y acá mi amigo, dijo que las elecciones no eran una suerte sino
un derecho, y por dar chucho (incitar) dijo que los cubanos también teníamos elecciones. (“La
victoria opositora venezolana desde una cola en Cuba”, cubanet.org, 08/12/2015)
SYN: enchufe (Sp.)
ETYM: switch
cinco
n, m, colloq. A short break or recess. (coger un )
SYN: diez, time (Cu.)
ETYM: five (take five)
círculo de espera
n, m, sport → deck circle
La máxima autoridad del béisbol caribeño confirmó que las conversaciones con la Federación
Cubana han estado relacionadas con la posible incorporación de la Mayor de las Antillas a la
organización que dirige (“Béisbol cubano en el círculo de espera”, juventudrebelde.cu,
11/04/2015)
SYN: deck circle
ETYM: deck circle
clarear
v. trans. To remove brushes and bushes from an uncultivated area.
A Cuba los isleños trajeron gofio, sedas policromadas, aperos de labranza como el arado de
tipo andaluz, conocido también como criollo, las guatacas o azadas de palo corto y largo, el
rastrillo y el machete, devenido en arma símbolo de la nación cubana, durante las guerra de
independencia. Los isleños empleaban sus hachas con el afán de clarear los bosques para la
siembra, sobre todo, de la caña de azúcar. (“Me voy para Cuba”, cubarte.cult.cu, 28/06/2013)
SYN: talar (Sp., Cu.)
~ 216 ~
Annexes
ETYM: clear
cleanup hitter
n, m, sport → cuarto bate1
ETYM: cleanup hitter
clinch
n, m, sport 1 In boxing, a position in which both boxers are holding each other very
closely.
El Norte es fiero y rudo, boxeador.
Ese mismo Broadway,
que en actitud de vena se desangra
para chillar junto a los rings
en que tú saltas como un moderno mono elástico,
sin el resorte de las sogas,
ni los almohadones del clinch;
ese mismo Broadway
que unta de asombro su boca de melón
ante tus puños explosivos
y tus actuales zapatos de charol (…)
n, m 2 The act of kissing or holding each other in a continuous manner. (DEC)
SYN: apretazón (Cu.), (darse) el lote (Sp.)
ETYM: clinch
clipper
n, m, transp. A type of aeroplane, used for short-distance commercial flights.
Cubana de Aviación: Especial atención se dispensa a bordo de sus modernos y veloces clippers
a las damas, ancianos, y los niños.” (Airways Company Ad, Diario de la Marina. 20/02/1947,
p.5)
ETYM: clipper (named after a very fast type of sailing ship that was used especially in the
1800s)
cloche
n, m, transp. 1 A car lever (as a pedal) transmitting power produced by the engine to the
gear box.
Los motores diesel los encuentras vendidos por el Estado desde 3405 hasta 5111 dólares; los
amortiguadores, tanto delanteros como traseros, los más baratos están a 45 dólares; algunos los
encuentras a 132 dólares, en dependencia de la marca del vehículo; las bombas de agua, sus
precios varían de 98 dólares hasta 290 dólares; un motor de arranque no baja de 257 dólares;
los platos opresores de cloches están 290 dólares y el plato a 98 dólares. (“Los costos de
mantener un auto en Cuba ”, primaveradigital.org, 22/03/2012)
~ 217 ~
SYN: embrague (Sp.)

v. ph., colloq. 2 (patinarle el ) To have mental faculties changed.
ETYM: clutch
closet [klóse]
n, m, house A small built-in room, used as a wardrobe.
En presencia de ellos tuve que vestirme. Hice un ademán para abrir el closet, pero uno de los
policías cortó mi intención. Abrió él mismo la puerta y haló las gavetas una a una; luego echó
una rápida mirada a todo lo demás. Y comencé a vestirme, mientras ellos me rodeaban y
vigilaban. Iniciaron el registro. Los veía más tranquilos, más confiados. Estos operativos
reciben órdenes de detener a un ciudadano, sin saber quién es ni por qué se le detiene. Como
sistema les dicen que es muy peligroso y que está armado. (Contra toda esperanza, Armando
Valladares, 1985, CREA)
SYN armario empotrado (Sp.)
ETYM: closet
clubroom
n, m A place within a bigger complex in which visitors or members can have a drink and
chat.
Montmartre: Mañana viernes (…) no habrá música ni show en Montmartre, solamente
permanecerán abiertos el bar y el club room. (Diario de la Marina. 10/04/1952, p.6)
ETYM: club room
coach [kóuch]
n, m, sport A person who trains an athlete or a performer.
A mediados del octubre de 1971, el equipo VEGUEROS, de Pinar del Río, fue
convocado al cine Pionero, de la capital vueltabajera, para recibir la disertación
de un afamado manager, coach y scout de las Mayores: el cubano Pedro
Preston Gómez. (“Mike Cuellar, el Cy Young cubano”, 01/10/2015,
guerrillero.cu)
SYN: entrenador (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: coach
coachear [koashéar] or [koashíar]

v. trans. 1 To train batters and runners in a baseball match.
"Yo no iba a 'coachear' en ligas menores porque reconozco que la experiencia que yo tengo de
20 años en Grandes Ligas es para ser coach en Grandes Ligas no en ligas menores. Si yo tengo
que ir para ligas menores, mejor me quedo con mi familia", sentenció. (deportes.yahoo.com,
“No consiguió trabajo en las Grandes Ligas y se convirtió en cantante”, 11/06/2014)
v. intrans. 2 To manipulate someone’s behavior.
ETYM: to coach
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Annexes
coacheo [koashéo]
n, m The act of coaching or training in a baseball match.
SYN: entrenamiento (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: coach
Coca-Cola
v. ph., colloq. 1 (descubrir la ) To introduce an apparently novel idea, which is widely
known.
v. ph., colloq. 2 (tomarse la ) To forget past acquaintances once improving one’s
economic status.
A través del tiempo se ha demostrado que son pocos los amigos que emigran que mantienen
comunicación con los que se quedan, en este caso los que se marchan hacia los Estados Unidos.
(“Los que se van y se toman la Coca Cola del olvido”, havanatimes.org, 07/08/2015)
ETYM: Coca-Cola (trademark)
cocktail party
n, m, obsol. A usually formal party at which alcoholic drinks are served.
Cocktail Party: un simpático cocktail party tuvieron ayer tarde en su nueva y preciosa casa de
Miramar, el conocido odontólogo Luis Amado Bianco y su esposa. (Diario de la Marina.
20/02/1947, p.5)
SYN: recepción (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: cocktail party
cocoa
adj., obsol. That resembles chocolate in color.
La casa cofino: tonos jaspeados de gris, azul, cocoa, y Prusia. (Clothing Shop Ad, Diario de la
Marina. 27/12/1958, p.21)
SYN: chocolate (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: cocoa
cóctel de frutas
n, m, food A dessert or appetizer made with chopped fruit, juice,sugar, and occasionally
some alcohol.
Cómo hacer Cóctel de frutas a la cubana paso a paso: Se prepara una buena cantidad de jugo de
naranja y se coloca en una jarra aparte, por otro lado se pica las frutas en pequeños trocitos y se
vierten en el jugo de naranja. (“Cóctel de frutas a la cubana”, mis-recetas.org, 06/10/2009)
SYN: macedonia (Sp.)
ETYM: fruit cocktail
~ 219 ~
coffeecake [kófikei] var. coffee cake

n, m, food A sweet bread usually made with raisins and spices (cinnamon).
Con el nombre de coffee cakes (cakes de cafe), se designa una gran variedad de panecillos
rápidos o de levadura que se sirven con el café a la hora del desayuno. Esta es una receta
sencilla y rápida de este tipo de panecillos. (“Coffe cakes”, guije.com, 04/04/2011)
SYN: cakes de café (Cu.)
ETYM: coffecake
cofi
n, m, colloq. A cup of coffee.
ETYM: coffee
coger fuera de base

v. trans., sport 1 In baseball, to catch out a baseball runner for not being on base.
Teniendo en cuenta todo lo que hemos hablado, si creo que este equipo de dirección ha dejado
mucho que desear y sino busquen cuantos corredores nos han cogido movido fuera de base,
cuántos han sido mandado para home sin el más mínimo de posibilidades de anotar, cuántos
han sido mandados al robo suicida en situaciones que ha cortado rachas ofensivas. (“Serie
nacional: los toros según Rolando Hernández”, adelante.cu, 22/09/2015)
v. ph., colloq. 2 To surprise someone when he/she is doing something inadequate.
Un silencio dudoso. A mí me ha dado pena. Los cogió fuera de base esta entrevista. Para mí la
prensa cubana siempre ha sido un enigma. (“Amaury Pérez habla sobre la entrevista al
Cardenal Ortega”, cubared.com, 05/09/2015)
ETYM: out of base
cold cream [kolkrím]

n, m Emulsion of water and fats, designed to smooth skin and remove make-up.
Queilitis por contacto: detectar el elemento causal (sustancia química) es difícil en ocasiones,
pero la primera medida es la supresión del cuerpo nocivo, antihistamínicos en caso de que lo
requiera, aplicación de linimentos oleocalcáreos o cold cream y/o crema de Ictiol. (“Queilitis:
Revisión bibliográfica”, Revista Cubana de Estomatología, mayo-agosto de 2004)
ETYM: cold cream
colgar los spikes

v. ph., colloq. To give up on an activity before finishing it.
SYN: renunciar (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: spikes
~ 220 ~
Annexes
combinada
n, f, tech. A type of machinery used for cutting the sugar cane, transporting it and piling it
in a truck.
Estaba diseñado para acompañar a las combinadas KTP, pero al decidir usarlo, igual que otros
de su tipo, con las Case, la carga se iba por arriba en 2 o 3 toneladas. (“Zafra a todo taller”,
granma.cu, 25/08/2014)
ETYM: combine (machine or harvester)
cold wave [kólgei]

n, m 1 A product used for curling the hair.
Ella no sólo ha de ser diestra y mañosa con el cabello, sino que ha de poseer facultades
químicas y de laboratorio para obtener algunos productos como tintes, aceites y materia prima
para el cold wave. (“La peluquera”, cubanet.org, 19/02/2004)
n, m 2 A hairdo characterized by having hair curl.
ETYM: Cold Wave (trademark)
collin
n, m A machete. (DMC)
ETYM: Collin (trademark)
comeback [kómba]
n, m, sport, obsol. In boxing, a new effort to win or succeed after being close to defeat or
failure.
Pronostico que doy votacion cerrada favorable al azeri, por que es un rival fogueado al más alto
nivel, no obstante nuestro atleta es un boxeador que cuando se entrega se puede esperar lo
mejor de su accionar, le deseamos el mayor de los éxitos en tan duro "comeback" al ring.
(“Serie Mundial de Boxeo: Entrenador azerí promete lucha por el triunfo “, Internet Forum
Post, cubasi.cu, 28/02/2014)
ETYM: comeback
comercial
n, m 1 An advertisement on radio or television.
Sorpresivamente el viernes 30 de diciembre, en el programa "Hola Habana" del canal CH-TV,
dedicado a despedir el año 2011, fue promocionada una oferta gastronómica para la cena de fin
de año, con un menú típico de cerdo asado, congrí, yuca y ensalada. (“Primer comercial en la
televisión cubana”, conexióncubana.net)
SYN: anuncio (Sp.)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (hacerse un ) To show off.
ETYM: commercial
~ 221 ~
community house
n, m, obsol. A public place where towners gather to celebrate meetings, social events, etc.
Crónicas Habaneras: aquí vemos a las señoritas Rusela Martínez Villena, Miriam Suárez, y
Gladys Menéndez, que ejecutaron un interesante número musical durante la fiesta celebrada el
sábado en el community house. (Diario de la Marina. 29/04/1947, p.7)
SYN: círculo social (Cu.)
ETYM: community house
concretera
n, m, tech A device used for mixing cement, water, etc. resulting in concrete.
De pequeño la conocí como concretera y así se me grabó; pero también la nombran
hormigonera, mezcladora de concreto o trompo por la forma de su recipiente. (“¿Trompo o
concretera?”, Héctor Quintero, zunzun.cu)
SYN: hormigonera (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: concrete
concreto
n, m, tech A hard, strong material, used for building, that is made by mixing cement, sand,
and broken rocks with water.
¿Sustituirán finalmente estos sistemas constructivos a nuestros tradicionales inmuebles
sostenidos por los ladrillos y el concreto? ¿Resultarán asequibles incluso para el hijo del vecino
que hoy levanta su vivienda -ya sea por la microbrigada o por esfuerzo propio- penosamente,
según los viejos códigos? ¿Serán las nuevas tecnologías duraderas a largo plazo, o cambiará la
mentalidad del cubano, acostumbrado a construir no sólo para él y para sus hijos, sino para un
buen número de generaciones venideras? (Bohemia. Revista Ilustrada de Análisis General,
23/07/2002 , CREA)
SYN: hormigón (Sp.)
ETYM: concrete
conductor(a)
n, m, transp. A person who collects money or tickets from passengers on a train or bus.
Resultó que la persona que mi padre nos llevaba a conocer era el conductor de la guagua, el
cobrador, eso que se llama en La Habana un guagüero, un empleo no sólo humilde sino que
conllevaba una particular psicología: una manera de ver la vida y de comportarse y de hablar,
un oficio nada alto en la estratificada esfera social habanera. Pero por supuesto yo no conocía
estas distinciones entonces y miré al amigo familiar como se mira a un héroe: de abajo arriba,
casi con reverencia, y un héroe escandinavo parecía; era alto, rubio. (La Habana para un
infante difunto, Guillermo Cabrera Infante, 1986)
SYN: revisor (Sp.)
ETYM: conductor
~ 222 ~
Annexes
consolidado
n, m, tech. A factory unit that is composed of two or more companies.
Se han reunido aquí, por ejemplo, las cooperativas cañeras, las granjas del pueblo, la
Asociación de Agricultores pequeños, los administradores de las empresas nacionalizadas, los
administradores de los consolidados, los obreros representados en sus sindicatos. (Fidel
Castro’s speech, 28/08/1961)
ETYM: consolidated
constipación
n, f, med., form. The condition of being unable to easily release solid waste from your
body. (LHCLH)
La constipación es un síntoma y no constituye una enfermedad en si misma. Habitualmente el
paciente se queja de defecación infrecuente o dificultosa en forma persistente, o sensación de
evacuación incompleta; las deposiciones son escasas, difíciles de expulsar o demasiado
infrecuentes. (“Costipación o estreñimiento”, cibercuba.com, 03/10/2007)
SYN: estreñimiento (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: constipation
control
n, m, sport In baseball, the ability of a baseball pitcher to control the location of a pitch
within the strike zone. (cf. MWD)
Por ahora es un pitcher de bullpen con problemas de control, 23 BB en 27.2 IP. Solo le batean
para 205. (“Los mejores 25 prospectos del béisbol en Cuba”, 23/02/2015,
oncubamagazine.com)
ETYM: control
convertible
n, m, transp. A car with a roof that can be lowered or removed. (cf. MWD)
¡Vete a la mierda!", usando esa palabra que tanto gusta a los habaneros que han llegado a crear
un cenador de caca, el comemierda. En ese momento resultaba yo un mal Mefistófeles para un
falso Fausto y abandonando su auto, tan usado por mí, el blanco convertible raudo, le dije,
respondiendo a sus frases frustradas con mi felicidad: "Me voy a la miel", dando a entender que
perseguía, que seguía aquella dulzura, bombón o caramelo que entró en este recinto encantado
que es un cine. (La Habana para un infante difunto, Guillermo Cabrera Infante, 1986)
SYN: descapotable (Sp.)
ETYM: convertible
corduroy var. corduroi

n, m, clothes A strong cotton cloth with straight raised lines on it, especially for pants.
Cuando era niña, los suéters más usados eran de orlon, fibra sintética producida por la empresa
estadoundinse Du Pont durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Tanto el orlon como el corduroy
~ 223 ~
eran ideales para los suaves inviernos cubanos. (“Retro-nostalgia”, desdelahabana.net,

19/09/2010)
SYN: pana (Sp.)
ETYM: corduroy
corporación
n, f A company resulted from the fusion of foreign investment and a Cuban company.
Por ejemplo, él ahora es presidente de una corporación, él nunca estudió economía, entonces,
bueno, yo trato de ayudarlo en todo eso, él algunas cosas las consulta conmigo, [...] de finanzas,
de contabilidad, y él se siente con eso satisfecho, respaldado, y yo igual. (MHCLH, p.201)
SYN: multinacional (Sp.)
ETYM: corporation
corredor
n, m, sport In baseball, a player that runs to a base.
Chirinos desapareció la pelota en el quinto episodio sin corredores en el camino al cazar la
serpentina de Gibson, cuando el lanzador buscaba el primer out de la entrada. La derrota la
cargó el abridor mexicano Joakim Soria (1-3) en un episodio, aceptó dos imparables y una
carrera. (“Kendrys empuja la victoria en la novena”, béisbolencuba.com, 30/06/2014)
ETYM: runner
correr para tercera base

v. intrans, sport 1 In baseball, to move to third base to try to score one point.
v. intrans., colloq. 2 To resort to evasion and mockery to do something.
ETYM: to run to third base
corring
n, m, sport In baseball, the act of running from base to base.
Una cosa es la rivalidad propia del deporte, el juego caliente, apasionado, las miradas entre
lanzador y bateador, los corring arriesgados, la bola pegada, o hasta un dead ball “normal”, que
para eso es una acción del juego. (“Serie Nacional: ¿un oeste beisbolero?”, 19/02/2014,
escambray.cu)
ETYM: Spanish verb ‘correr’ and –ing suffix.
cortina de hierro
n. ph., f A political, military, and ideological barrier that separated the Western countries
from the Communist block.
El grupo Public Campaign menciona varias ocasiones en las que legisladores cambiaron su
posición sobre asuntos relacionados con Cuba, en especial la prohibición de visitarla, meses
después de haber recibido dinero de un llamado Comité de Acción Política (PAC). Tras la
Segunda Guerra Mundial, Washington acusaba a los países socialistas de tender una cortina de
~ 224 ~
Annexes
hierro. Pero no ha vacilado en encerrar a Cuba bajo una cortina de fraudes. (“Una cortina de
fraudes (XXX)”, granma.cu, 25/06/2011)
SYN: telón de acero (Sp.)
ETYM: iron curtain
cotel de frutas
n, m, food → cóctel de frutas
ETYM: fruit cocktail
cowboy
v. ph. (estar como un ) To be armed. (DMC)
ETYM: cowboy
cranque
n, m, colloq. The act of encouraging someone to say or do something, usually leading to a
state of annoyance.
Y que nuevos tiempos provocan nuevos amores y nuevos espacios para su ejercicio; pero no
estaría nada mal hacernos un museo de las prácticas sentimentales cubanas, donde haya un bar
con su “vitrola”. Donde uno pueda darle cranque a la nostalgia, obligando a Rolando Laserie a
repetir: Vieja calle de mi barrio,/ donde he dado el primer paso,/(...) con una daga en el
pecho,/ con mi sueño hecho pedazo,/ que se rompió en un abrazo / que me diera la verdad.
(“La tienda de los Menéndez”, jiribilla.cu, 2002)
ETYM: Prob. from crank
cranquear
v. trans., colloq. To encourage someone to say or do something, usually leading to a state
of annoyance.
En septiembre de 2012, la representante a la Cámara dio los mismos argumentos para reclamar
a la señora Clinton contra la presencia en territorio estadounidense del trovador cubano Vicente
Feliú. Entonces, el gestor del blog Café fuerte, Wilfredo Cancio Isla, fue acusado por el
periodista Edmundo García de “cranquear” a la congresista Ros-Lehtinen para que actuara
contra Feliú. (“¿Por qué le preocupa a la mafia anticubana de Miami el viaje de Beyonce a
Cuba?”, cubainformacion.tv, 09/04/2013)
ETYM: Prob. from to crank
crash
n, m, clothes A coarse fabric used for draperies, toweling, and clothing and for
strengthening joints of cased-in books .
El Encanto: Preciosos juegos de manteles y doilies.” “Satín para sobrecamas y cortinas.
Colores: verde, fresa, peach, oro, crema y blanco.” “Gabardinas con modernas estampaciones
~ 225 ~
(hand-printed).” “Crash color entero en mate”. (Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina.
16/01/1947, p.14)
ETYM: crash
crayón
n, m A stick of colored wax that is used for drawing.
SYN: cera (Sp.), crayola (Cu.)
ETYM: crayon
cremería
n, f A type of cafeteria where ice-cream is served.
SYN: heladería (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: ice-cream
creche
n, m, form. A place where young children are cared for during the day while their parents
are working. (cf. MWD)
La creche “Berta Machado” cuenta ya con 42 niños, todos de la localidad: (….) dicho creche
tiene capacidad para cincuenta niños, y se encuentran ya 42, pertenecientes todos a esta
localidad, que son atendidos admirablemente, y los de edad escolar son llevados al
kindergarten. (Diario de la Marina. 02/04/1930, p.15)
SYN: círculo infantil (Cu.), guardería (Sp.)
ETYM: creche
creyón
n, m → crayón
SYN: crayola (Cu.)
ETYM: crayon
crol
n, m, sport A swimming stroke, used during freestyle swimming competitions. (LHCLH)
ETYM: front crawl
cuáquer
n, m, food Oatmeal cereal for breakfast. (DEC)
ETYM: Prob. from Quaker Oats (trade mark)
~ 226 ~
Annexes
cuarto bate
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, someone who is fourth in the batting order of a baseball team.
En el último día de la competición, el cuarto bate de Cuba fue de 4 por 4 con un doble, dos
jonrones y cinco de 10-1 de Cuba derrota del equipo de EE.UU. (“Antonio Muñoz”, ecured.cu)
SYN: cleanup hitter
ETYM: fourth-batter hitter
adj. 2 Characterized by eating excessively.
Soy como dicen por ahí, «cuarto bate». Mi plato es una cazuela bien honda, y la que más sufre
es abuela, que tiene que cocinarme como si fuera para un batallón. (“El secreto de un gigante”,
16/11/2010, juventudrebelde.cu)
ETYM: cleanup hitter
cuello-tortuga
n, m, clothes A high collar that covers most of your neck even when the collar is folded
over itself.
Sin dudas el siguarayense añora las bajas temperaturas, las desea, las vigila en sus termómetros
y a la menor bajadita del mercurio sale a que su abrigo se sienta realizado: así, un viejo exhibe
su “macfarlán” traído del antiguo campo socialista, un joven se cala un mullido gorro
“pasamontañas”, otros visten un sweater cuello-tortuga con blazer, y otros andan de saco y
corbata sin temor a la asfixia o la deshidratación. (“Y al fin chifló el mono”,
oncubamagazine.com, 08/01/2014)
SYN: cuello de cisne (Sp.)
ETYM: turtleneck
cuello de tortuga
n, m, clothes → cuello-tortuga
ETYM: turtleneck
cuello-V
n, m, clothes A piece of garment having a V-shaped neck.
SYN: cuello de pico (Sp.)
ETYM: V-neck
cuora
n, m, colloq. A twenty-five-cent coin. (DEC)
ETYM: quarter
curva
n, f, sport 1 In baseball, a pitch that is thrown with spin so that the ball curves in the air.
~ 227 ~
El “Chiqui” fue dueño de una curva preciosa, que unida a su recta de más de 90 millas, causó
estragos en los bateadores de la isla entre las décadas del setenta y el ochenta del pasado siglo.
Dominó como pocos el arte de lanzar pero, sobre todo, fueron su valor y su compromiso eterno
con la victoria, los sellos distintivos de su carrera. (“De luto el béisbol cubano: falleció José
Modesto Darcourt”, oncubamagazine.com, 18/02/2014)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (meter una ) To provide a valid argument to avoid an uncomfortable
situation.
ETYM: curve
dancing [dánsin]
n, m, colloq. A place where people enjoy themselves by dancing, drinking, and listening to
recorded music.
Los sábados por la noche, la gente joven de Manacas se concentraba en el dancing, una especie
de solar al aire libre, y cerrado por los lados, habilitado como discoteca, en el que dos mulatos
pinchaban discos de música salsa, de manera frenética y terriblemente ruidosa. (Cuba: Período
especial, Angel Sabaté, 2011)
SYN: discoteca (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: dancing (club)
dar base por bola

v. ph., sport 1 In baseball, to give away first base for bad pitching.
En el primer desafío de este jueves Sancti Spíritus anotó tres carreras y los azucareros una, con
triunfo para el lanzador Pedro Álvarez y juego salvado para Yankiel Mauri, en el segundo turno
con marcador de siete anotaciones por una, a favor de Villa Clara, el éxito fue para Alain
Sánchez, quien propinó seis ponches y no dio base por bola. (“Béisbol: Gallos y Naranjas
dividen honores”, escambray.cu, 18/09/2015)
v. ph., colloq. 2 To allow someone to get away with it.
SYN: dejarlo pasar (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: base on balls
dead ball [désbol]

n, m, sport In baseball, a kind of play in which the batter is hit by a pitch.
¿Se hubiesen evitado males mayores si tras el dead ball por la cabeza a Yasiel Santoya el
árbitro principal expulsa a Freddy Asiel o si Ramón Moré extrae a su lanzador? Quizás. Pero
nada justifica la tamaña agresión de Valdés, que puso en peligro la vida de Lunar por lo fuerte
del batazo en pleno rostro. (“Serie Nacional de Pelota: ¿Un oeste beisbolero?”, escambray.cu,
19/02/2014)
~ 228 ~
Annexes
ETYM: dead ball
deck circle [dek sérkol]

n, m, sport In baseball, a place, not far from the team’s dugout, where batters await and
prepare.
SYN: círculo de espera (Cu.)
ETYM: deck circle
desenclochar
v. intrans., transp. 1 To stop slamming on the car clutch pedal.
SYN: desembragar (Sp.)
Él, como cada noche conducía aquella mierda de TAXI, un Ford que había que desenclochar a
cada rato y mandarlo al taller dos veces por mes. El pasajero recogido tenía la pinta de cubano
viejo, marielito quizás, o de los siquitrillados del 59´ Llevaba casi dos años en San Diego y ya
reconocía de vistazo a cualquier emigrante que transportara. (“Béisbol”,
hectordarioreyes.wordpress.com, 2010)
v. intrans., colloq. 2 To stop doing an activity to take a short break.
ETYM: to clutch
desfibrado
n, m, tech. The act of cutting (sugar cane) in smaller strips.
Asimismo, su inventor, Jorge Antonio Bazé, solicitaba una patente para un aparato inyector con
tablero metálico cuya función sería retirar las materias sólidas de la caña después del desfibrado
mediante una infusión de vapor de agua. (Espacio de poder. Ciencia y agricultura en Cuba: el
círculo de hacendados, 1878-1917, Leida Fernández Prieto, Universidad de Sevilla: p.122)
ETYM: defiber
desfibrar
v. trans., tech. To cut (sugar cane) in smaller strips.
Dos años después, en 1887, Juan. M. Clark, residente en Matanzas, inventó otro aparato para
desfibrar la caña antes de triturarla en el trapiche con un mecanismo movido a vapor y la
aplicación de un martillo que funcionaba como palanca para destruir su resistencia. (Espacio de
poder. Ciencia y agricultura en Cuba: el círculo de hacendados, 1878-1917, Leida Fernández
Prieto, Universidad de Sevilla: p.123)
ETYM: to defiber
designated hitter
n, m, sport, obsol. → bateador designado
SYN: bateador designado (Cu.)
ETYM: designated batter
~ 229 ~
despedidor, -a
n, m, occup., transp. An employee who is charge of coordinating bus routes in a bus
station.
El despedidor Sr. Guillermo Ferreiro, con más de 30 años de servicio en la Empresa, ordenó la
salida, ya con algo de nostalgia en su rostro. Este último tranvía en su recorrido era conducido
por el motorista Señor, J. Amonedo con el No. 3219 en su uniforme, el conductor era el Sr. M.
Rey con el No. 1172, conocido en el paradero con el apodo de «Serrucho». (“Tranvías en La
Habana”, ecured.cu)
ETYM: Prob. from dispatcher.
dial
n, m, tech. A circular, numbered plate, e.g. a telephone dial.
El Encanto: pesa para el baño, con mecanismo de gran precisión y dial de aumento que facilita
la lectura. (Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina. 08/07/1958, p.20)
ETYM: dial
diamante
n, m, sport In baseball, a baseball infield.
La notable «sangría» que ha experimentado en los últimos tiempos el béisbol doméstico —
cerca de 80 jugadores dejaron de estar disponibles en los dos últimos años— afecta a todos los
equipos que concursarán en la venidera campaña. A unos más que otros, pero ninguno ha
logrado escapar a la tempestad. (“Revolico sobre el diamante”, beisbolencuba, 23/08/2015)
ETYM: diamond
directorio telefónico
n, m A book listing the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of telephone customers.
Más de 800 000 ejemplares del Directorio Telefónico de Cuba comenzaron a distribuirse en
todo el país, junto con sus Páginas Amarillas, las cuales incluyen los servicios que prestan
trabajadores por cuenta propia en los diferentes territorios. (“Directorio Telefónico 2012
incluye trabajo por cuenta propia”, juventudrebelde.cu, 31/05/2012)
SYN: guía telefónica (Sp.)
ETYM: telephone directory
display [displéi]
n, m, comp. The screen of a personal computer.
Es de noche. Él se sienta frente al display y comienza a leer en pantalla como si todo el día
hubiera estado pendiente de mis dedos. Me va corrigiendo erratas, me consulta para decidir
algo de puntuación, y siempre sonríe. Yo activo la caja tonta en el 46: otra vez Beavis and Butt-
head. Están mirando algún clip de Smashing Pumpkies sentados en el sofá de su departamento.
(De modo que esto es la muerte, Ronaldo Menéndez, 2002, Lengua de Trapo: p.83, CREA)
~ 230 ~
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SYN: monitor (Sp.)

ETYM: display
ditto
n, m, tech. A device used in a mimeograph to produce many copies of a document, usually
used with stencil.
Hacia fines de la década dejaron de usarse las duplicadoras, máquinas mecánicas que previo
químico y ‘ditto’ o esténcil marcado, proporcionaba en papel y tinta morada tantas copias como
giros manuales se diera a las manivelas. (“Notimex cumple 44 años”, cubadebate.cu,
20/08/2012)
ETYM: ditto (trademark Ditto Inc.)
diving [dáivin]
v. ph. (hacer un ) To jump off the springboard into the pool.
ETYM: diving
doble
n, m, sport In baseball, a base hit that enables the batter to reach second base.
Otro que lo hizo bien fue Cañizares, con triple, doble y sencillo, 3 anotadas y otras tantas
impulsadas. Y, paradójicamente, ni Kendry ni Cepeda pudieron conectar imparables, aunque el
primero remolcó dos carreras y acumula seis. En otros resultados, Panamá noqueó a Bahamas,
12 - 2, y Estados Unidos superó a Aruba, 3 - 1. Hoy, Cuba enfrentará a Dominicana a partir de
las 9:00 p.m., con Ibar en función de abridor. (Sport Edition, Granma, 01/10/2002, CREA)
SYN: tubey (Cu.)
ETYM: double
doble barba
n, f, body A fleshy or fatty fold under the chin. (LHCLH)
SYN: papada (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: double chin
doily var. doile

n, m, house A small, individual table mat.
En algunos lugares ni siquiera se come en plato de cristal, en vez de ellos en pozuelos plásticos
que son más baratos. Ni pensar en el uso de servilletas, tampoco se usan manteles o doilys, que
solo se adquieren en cuc. Todo esto influye para que las personas no se laven las manos antes
de comer o ingerir cualquier alimento y sobre el hábito de cepillarse los dientes, por la carencia
de cepillos y pasta dental (aunque se puede adquirir a 8 pesos cup). (“Tarea de la Fundación de
Madres, Familia y Futuro y del Movimiento Juvenil del Barrio”, redcubanacc.blogspot.com,
28/11/2012 )
~ 231 ~
ETYM: doily
dollar
n, m, obsol. A basic unit of money in the U.S.
Perdido: alfiler de señora en forma de corazón…La persona que lo encontrase al devolverlo se
le entregarán cuatrocientos dollars. (Diario de la Marina. 01/04/1930, p.21)
SYN: dólar (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: dollar
double play [dóblepléi]

n, m, sport In baseball, a play in which the team in the field causes two runners to be put
out.
Cole en realidad estuvo todos los innings permitiendo al menos un cubano entrar en circulación
y hubo entradas en donde logró salir de grandes apuros como en la tercera cuando Cuba
conectó tres indiscutibles pero la misma defensa de Cole y un bateo para “double play” del
cuarto hombre de Cuba, Alfredo Despaigne, lo hicieron escapar en el mismo. (“Decisivo jonrón
de Despaigne y pitcheo de Miguel A. González dan sensacional triunfo a Cuba ante Team USA
4-3 en Mundial Universitario”, baseballdecuba.com, 07/08/2010)
ETYM: double play
dril
n, m, clothes A durable cotton twilled fabric.
Linker: driles crudos desde $4.50. Yacht Club desde $2.50 (Diario de la Marina. 30/04/1930,
p.12)
ETYM: drill
drinking [drínkin]
n, m, vulg. The act of drinking alcohol. (darle / meterle al )
Quizás sea esa insatisfacción general la que incite al personal a darle al drinking. Ángel
Lehrum, me manifestó algo similar: “el trabajo produce tan pocas satisfacciones que al beber
por lo menos te olvidas de él y del resto de tu vida.” (Diario no velado de La Habana, Xavier
Vila-Coia, Lapinga Ediciones: 2008, p. 90)
ETYM: drinking
dugout [dogáo]
n, m, sport In baseball, a low shelter that faces a baseball field and contains the bench
where the players and coaches of a team sit. (cf. MWD)
Las autoridades cubanas realizan la remodelación del casi septuagenario estadio
Latinoamericano, con vistas a la LIV Serie Nacional de Béisbol. “Se está trabajando duro para
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contar con el bullpen bien cerca de los dugouts”, dijo a Jit el director de la instalación, Eduardo
Delgado. (“Remodelan el mayor estadio de béisbol de Cuba”, beisbolencuba.com, 30/07/2014)
ETYM: dugout
easter lily
n, m, obsol. A white garden flower that blooms in spring.
Para el día de las Ofelias: entre las flores importadas, expondrá el aristocrático Milagros una
colección admirable riquísima, de claveles rosados y rojos, tulipanes en los mismos colores,
easter lillies, callas, etc. (Diario de la Marina. 01/04/1930, p.11)
SYN: lirio de pascua (Cu.)
ETYM: easter lily
elástico
n, m, clothes A rubber band, usually sewn in garments.
Me miró de soslayo y empezó a medir la escasa resistencia del elástico del calzoncillo que
luego exprimió y tendió, como toda una maestra de la sugerencia.
- Elena -dijo al fin, mientras se escurría el agua de las manos con una elegancia reposada-, ¿tú
me odias, verdad?
La pregunta fue una afirmación, sólo que la maldita había deslizado su estocada con una
sutileza tal que me situó a la defensiva. Entonces decidí tomar el mando.
- No -repliqué, encarándola-, ¿por qué?
(La piel y la máscara, Jesús Díaz, Anagrama: p. 140, CREA)
SYN: goma (Sp.), liga (Cu.)
ETYM: elastic (band)
elefante blanco
n, m, colloq. A company or institution, which are burdensome to the owners, and whose
costs are difficult to keep up.
Sigo siendo, por lo que veo, converso y leo en todos los medios, uno de los pocos críticos de la
idea de restaurar el Capitolio para convertirlo en sede de la Asamblea Nacional. (“De nuevo el
elefante blanco”, elcolimador.cu, 12/02/2014)
ETYM: white elephant
elevador
n, m A machine used for carrying people and things to different levels in a building.
~ 233 ~
Y ese espantoso ruido del elevador. Arañando los pisos, fantasma destartalado. (Aunque, a
veces, al descender, sólo se le oiga, está ahí, sin embargo, la marca que deja su luz en el espejo
de la bastonera). (Los años de Orígenes, Lorenzo García Vega, 1978, p. 185, CREA)
SYN: ascensor (Sp.)
ETYM: elevator
embasado, -a
adj., sport In baseball, when a player reaches a base safely.
Enríquez y Rivera sonaron sencillos, Gómez logró sacrificarse y Jorge Barcelán descargó un
cohete al jardíon central parta traer a los dos jugadores embasados. (“54 Serie Nacional: Ciego
de Avila, campeón en tiempos raros para el béisbol cubano”, cafefuerte.com, 12/04/2015)
ETYM: base
embasar
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to reach a base safely.
Entre hits conectados y bases por bolas y pelotazos recibidos se han embasado 29,29
bateadores en cada uno de los 601 desafíos efectuados hasta el presente. (“Continúa por encima
el bateo cubano”, radiorebelde.cu, 03/08/2011)
ETYM: base
embolia
n, m, med. 1 → embolismo
SYN: íctus (Sp.)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (dar una ) To faint.
"¡No te bañes acabado de comer, que te puede dar una embolia!". La frase, quizás familiar
para muchos cubanos, irrumpe en mi memoria histórica cuando me reúno con la doctora
Delfina Machado Molina, Directora del Hospital Especializado Neumológico Benéfico
Jurídico, de esta capital. (Consultas Médicas, Granma.cu)
ETYM: embolism
embolismo
n, m, med. The sudden obstruction of a blood vessel. (LHCLH)
SYN: íctus (Sp.)
ETYM: embolism
emergencia
n, m 1 A place in a hospital where the emergency unit is located. (sala de )
Tosiendo e insomne, Virgilio Marín Fuentes, de 61 años, había conducido al hospital pasada la
medianoche esta semana pero chocó en el garaje a escasos 40 metros (125 pies) de la entrada a
~ 234 ~
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la sala de emergencia. (“Cubano muere frente a hospital de Portland sin recibir ayuda”,
SYN: urgencias (Sp.), cuerpo de guardia (Cu.)
ETYM: emergency
n, f, transp. 2 A speacial brake in a car used to stopping the car in case the ordinary brakes
fail.
SYN: freno de mano (Sp.)
ETYM: emergency (brake)
emergente
adj., sport In baseball, (a player) characterized by doing a sudden substitution, after the
manager’s election.
Por lo general, son minimizados, sin recordar que muchos han decidido juegos y hasta
campeonatos, con el añadido de que su función es una de las más complicadas, por las altas
dosis de concentración y flema que se deben tener al salir al plato con la responsabilidad de
conectar a la hora buena. (“Emergentes en el béisbol: Exigidos a la hora cero”, granma.cu,
23/01/2014)
ETYM: Prob. from emergent.
encanar
v. trans., colloq. To cause someone to go into jail.
Me sostuve en que no, en que no podía cumplir. Me llamaron a una reunión y me preguntaron
qué hacíamos, y les respondí: “Mándenme a encanar”. “¿Y el prestigio tuyo?”, me dijeron. A lo
que les contesté: “Yo no me siento desprestigiado si me dicen que me meten a la cárcel por
cobrar impuestos.” (Qué pasa en Cuba que Fidel no se afeita, Mario Agudelo, 2005, p. 223)
SYN: enchironar (Sp.)
ETYM: can
enclochar
v. intrans., transp. To slam on the clutch pedal.
SYN: embragar (Sp.)
ETYM: to clutch
ensopado, -a
adj. Having the consistency of soup.
Una variante de arroz con pollo, para los que gustan del arroz asopado, o ensopado, tipo paella.
Exquisito, se debe comer bien caliente. (“Arroz con pollo a la chorrera”,
recetasdecocinacubana.com)
SYN: caldoso, -a (Sp.), asopado, -a (Cu.)
ETYM: soupy
~ 235 ~
entrada
n, f, sport In baseball, one of the usually nine parts of a game.
Muy polémicas resultaron en el partido la sustitución de Lorenzo Quintana por Orbe Luis Peña
en el noveno inning, así como la estrategia de Víctor Mesa de lanzarle a Roel Santos con la
primera desocupada y hombre en segunda en el noveno inning. (“Abrazo rojo y verde en final
de la pelota cubana”, trabajadores.cu, 12/04/2014)
SYN: inning (Cu.)
ETYM: inning
error
n, m, sport In baseball, a mistake made by a person who is playing.
Estados Unidos derrotó a Cuba 12 x 10 y eliminó a la escuadra antillana de toda posibilidad de
titularse en el torneo beisbolero de los XVI Juegos Panamericanos que se disputan en
Guadalajara, México. Totales: EE. UU. 12 carreras, 11 hits, 1 error; Cuba 10-15-1. (“Debacle a
la vista: Cuba pierde también el béisbol panamericano”, cafefuerte.com, 24/11/2012)
ETYM: error
escauteo
n, m, sport The act of gathering information before a game to make the right decision.
Lo más impresionante para mí fue el sistema de “escauteo”. Es increíble la cantidad de
información que se estudia para un juego, determinante para el bateador y el pitcheo. (“Con
Cuba quiero volver a planos dorados”, 16/10/2014, baseballdecuba.com)
ETYM: scout
escoba amarga
n, f, bot. (Parthenium hysterophorus) A much-branched shrub from the hot areas of the
Americas, used for home remedies.
La sangre de gallo se recoge en una cazuela y mezclada con aguardiente de caña se moja en ella
un manojo de escoba amarga con la cual se frota bien la espalda, el pecho y la frente del
iniciado. (Los criminales de Cuba, José Trujillo y Monagas, 2006, p. 270)
ETYM: Prob. from a similar North-American shrub, bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata),
whose features coincide greatly with the Cuban species.
esconder la bola
v. ph., sport 1 In baseball, to hide the ball to trick runners infield.
Apoyo en todo lo que puedo a la Comisión Provincial de béisbol. Enseño fundamentalmente a
los infilders. Estoy jubilado, pero no retirado. Estaré en la pelota hasta que no pueda esconder
la bola. (“Habla el hombre de la bola escondida”, jit.cu, 22/11/2012)
v. ph., colloq. 2 Not to show the real intentions.
ETYM: to hide the ball
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Annexes
eslogan
v. ph. (ser como un ) To be perfect. (DMC)
ETYM: slogan
esmít
n, f A revolver. (DMC)
ETYM: Smith (trademark)
esquedo
n, m, sport In baseball, a prior setup of players and batters in a game.
ETYM: schedule
esquina
n, f, sport In baseball, the side of home plate nearest to or farthest from a batter.
ETYM: corner
esquina caliente
n, f, sport 1 In baseball, the third base before scoring.
(...) el jovencito Lourdes Gourriel (hijo) quien ya acumula tres cuadrangulares y defiende con
éxito la esquina caliente, en sustitución de uno de sus hermanos mayores, Yulieski, quien se
desempeña en la pelota profesional de Japón. (“Imbatibles los leones de industriales en la
temporada cubana de béisbol”, 30/09/2014, tiempo21.cu )
SYN: tercera base
n, f, colloq. 2 A place in which people tend to debate controversial issues.
ETYM: hot corner
estación de policía
n, f A place where local police officers are based in.
Cuando llegué a la estación de policía los dos patrulleros estaban parqueados enfrente. Me
vieron entrar. Expliqué a la oficial de guardia que estaba en la carpeta las expresiones abusivas,
discriminatorias y homofóbicas del agente, y la improcedencia de la multa aplicada. (“Mi
desencuentro en lugar de encuentro gay y una rápida respuesta policial”, paquitoeldecuba.com,
14/12/2010)
SYN: comisaría de policía (Sp.), precinto (Cu.)
ETYM: police station
~ 237 ~
expreso
adj., form. Characterized by (letters or parcels) being delivered quickly. (LHCLH)
Paquete expreso a Santiago de Cuba…0,68 (Cuba, otro scenario de lucha, Consuelo Naranjo
Orovio, p.244)
SYN: urgente (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: express
extensión
n, f, house An electric cord that is used to make another electric cord reach farther.
Generalmente las regletas poseen un interruptor, aunque también las extensiones de múltiples
tomacorrientes que no poseen interruptores son regletas de menos prestaciones. (“Recomiendan
uso de regleta eléctrica”, juventudrebelde.cu, 14704/2009)
SYN: alargador, regleta (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: extension (cord)
extinguidor de incendios
n, m A container filled with chemicals, used to put out a fire.
SYN: extintor (Sp.)
ETYM: fire extinguisher
extrabase
n, f, sport In baseball, a hit that lets the batter take more than one base.
Por su parte, la nueva sensación del bateo en Cuba, el granmense Alfredo Despaigne, tiene la
mejor frecuencia histórica de extrabases: uno cada 7,21 veces al bate. (“Se retira Osmani
Urrutia, uno de los grandes bateadores del béisbol cubano”, cubadebate.cu, 19/11/2009)
ETYM: extra-base (hit)
extrainning [ékstraínin]
n, m, sport In baseball, an additional inning in a game to break a tie.
La selección de Cuba doblegó este jueves 8-7 en diez entradas a la de Puerto Rico y mejoró a
2-1 su marca en el Grupo B del torneo de béisbol Premier 12. (“Premier 12: Cuba vence
agónicamente a Puerto Rico en extrainnings 8-7”, cubadebate.cu, 12/11/2015)
ETYM: extra-inning
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fab [fá]
n, m, colloq. Soap powder used for washing.
ETYM: Fab (trademark)
fachar [fashár]
v. trans., vulg. To steal.
SYN: trincar (Sp.)
ETYM: to fetch
facho
n, m, vulg. The act of stealing something.
ETYM: fetch
facilidades
n, f, pl. Something (such as a building or large piece of equipment) that is built or used for
a specific purpose.
Facilidades: 69 apartamentos de una habitación, de ellas 22 destinadas al turismo de larga
estancia, con el avituallamiento necesario y una agradable vista al mar, aire acondicionado, caja
de seguridad, baño privado, teléfono, TV satélite, grocery, tienda, lobby bar con especialidades
de café y servicio de alimentos ligeros en la terraza. (“Aparthotel Islazul”, Internet Ad.,
cubaweb.cu)
ETYM: facilities
Obs.: Especially used as a tourism-related term.
fai var. fail

n, m 1 → file1
Tengo una duda con esta palabra, ¿cómo se escribe fail o file? para referirme a la carpeta donde
se transportan los papeles o documentos. Gracias. (“Dudas sobre el idioma español”,
juventudrebelde.cu)
ETYM: file
n, m, vulg. 2 A five-peso or a five-dollar bill.
ETYM: five
fantasma
n, m, tech. A secondary image surrounding the principal silhouettes on a TV screen.
ETYM: ghost
~ 239 ~
farmer
n, m, vulg. Someone who fornicates continuously. (DMC)
ETYM: farmer
Obs.: Prob. from the fact that farmers milk on regular basis, and ‘to milk’ (sacar leche) in
Cuban Spanish means to fornicate. (DMC)
feed-back
n, m, tech. Electricity that is returned to a machine.
ETYM: feedback
ferryboat
n, m, transp., obsol. A boat that is used to carry people and things for a short distance
between two places.
Proyectan establecer servicio de ferries entre Cuba y México: el ferryboat que operaría entre
Florida, Cuba y (…) y México, conducirá 50 automóviles. (Diario de la marina. 16/11/1954,
p.7)
SYN: ferry (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: ferryboat
fielder [fílder]
n, m, sport → fildeador
SYN: jardinero (Cu.)
ETYM: fielder
fildeador
n, m, sport In baseball, one of the players defending a position in the field.
Quizás la joya de la corona sea Yoan Moncada. Tiene pinta de Big Leaguer. A sus 17 años es el
pelotero juvenil que más impresiona (...) Mide 6 pies y batea a las dos manos, algo poco
frecuente en la pelota cubana, tiene fuerza, tacto, buen fildeador y es un relámpago en bases.
(“Las nuevas joyas del béisbol cubano”, desdelahabana.net, 10/06/2013)
SYN: jardinero (Cu.)
ETYM: fielder
fildear
v. intrans., sport 1 In baseball, to catch or stop and throw a ball in the field.
Su padre según sus propias palabras, le regaló un guante y se preocupó tanto por enseñarlo a
fildear en los terrenos del Central Velasco, que nunca pudo aprender a darle en el centro a la
pelota, por tanto su mérito es aún mayor, porque se mantuvo durante nueve temporadas en el
~ 240 ~
Annexes
Gran Circo, solamente por sus grandes dotes de fildeador. (“Willy Miranda, el mejor torpedero
defensivo del béisbol cubano”, cubaencuentro.com, 11/10/2009)
v. intrans., colloq. 2 To watch someone with the aim of surprising him/her.
ETYM: field
fildeo
n, m, sport In baseball, the act or result of catching or stopping and throwing the ball in the
fielder’s position.
Esta noche, la afición santaclareña, en el estadio Augusto César Sandino, despedirá, tras más de
dos décadas de acción sobre el diamante, no solo al jugador espectacular, al virtuoso del campo
corto, si no también, al hombre modesto, caballeroso, padre de familia, esposo e hijo ejemplar.
Comparto sus declaraciones. (“Eduardo Paret: Mi fildeo más difícil”, radiorebelde.cu,
25/04/2012)
ETYM: field
fields
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the field upon which the game of baseball is played.
SYN: jardines (Cu.)
ETYM: field
file [fái(l)]
n, m 1 A device (as a folder, case, or cabinet) by means of which papers are kept in order.
(cf. MWD)
Escenario: Una pequeña mesa rectangular al centro sobre la que reposa un vaso de agua y
frente a ella una silla. Entra un hombre de "cuarenta y" a "cuarenta y" años de edad que usa
espejuelos y trae consigo un file. (Antes de mí: el Sahara, Héctor Quintero, 1990, CREA)
SYN: carpeta, archivador (Cu., Sp.)
n, m, comp. 2 A computering file containing sorts of documents, photos, graphs, etc.
- A trabajar, compadre, ahí tienes la computadora.
Tengo tantos dilemas en la cabeza que me distraigo ante uno falso: ¿cómo nombrar el file del
texto que K. R. quiere que yo escriba? Desde ayer no he hecho más que mentir. Le digo a K. R.
que estoy intrigado por ver cómo acaba esto, cuidándome bien de no aclararle lo que significa
esto. Beavis ha decidido cercenarse el dedo índice (la fascinación de la hoja de la sierra y todo
eso). En la siguiente secuencia aparecen en una enfermería, pero Butt-head insiste en
obstaculizar el trabajo quirúrgico maniobrando dentro de sus fosas nasales con el índice
solitario de Beavis. (De modo que esto es la muerte, Ronaldo Menéndez, 2002, p. 77, CREA)
SYN: archivo (Sp.)
ETYM: file
files [fíles]
n, m, pl., sport 1 → fields
v. ph., colloq. 2 (estar en los ) To be at the back of a place, a list, or competition.
~ 241 ~
SYN: jardines (Cu.)

ETYM: fields
filin
n, m 1 Music style emerging in the 1940s.
Los lugares seleccionados son los de más tradición habanera, algunos ejemplos: el Callejón de
Hamel (donde surgió el filin), la sala Ernesto Lecuona del Gran Teatro de La Habana, la sala
Atril del teatro Karl Marx, el teatro Mella, el Centro Nacional de Música de Concierto, las salas
Covarrubias y Avellaneda del teatro Nacional, el Patio de la Salsa en el municipio San Miguel
del Padrón, el Club Cubano de Jazz, la Casa de las Américas, el Capitolio y el salón Rosado de
la Tropical. (“Armonía y diversidad cultural”, Granma Internacional, 07/1997, N. 28, CREA)
v. ph. 2 (tener ) To possess gracefulness when talking or moving around.
ETYM: feeling
film
n, f A motion picture.
Una interesante film educativa: después de la exhibición el profesor doctor Pardo Castelló
pronunciará una conferencia. (Diario de la Marina. 30/04/1930, p.14)
SYN: filme, película (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: film
finta
n, m, colloq. The act of fooling someone by playing a trick or lying.
Los legalistas norteamericanos, en la Cámara de Representantes, en la OEA, hablan de cosas,
pero el Pentágono trabaja en silencio haciendo fórmulas y algún día vendrán a buscar sus
polluelos, que piensan ya grandecitos entre las tierras cálidas y acogedoras de Cuba, y vendrán
precedidos de sus aviones multimotores, de sus bombas multitoneládicas, de sus múltiples
divisiones, de los cañones de sus acorazados, navegando sobre sus fórmulas. (“La acusación
ante la OEA, las Naciones Unidas y otras fintas”, Verde Olivo, 10/07/1960)
ETYM: Prob. from feint.
fintear
v. intrans., sport To pretend to make an attack as a trick to fool your opponent. (cf. MWD)
Da gusto verlos pelear. Yosvel combate con garra. Concentrado en sus acciones y sin quitar la
vista al contrario, va siempre adelante. Esquiva y contrataca, fintea y ataca. Son sus piernas
ágiles y certeras. Y Cobas no se queda atrás. (“Concluye hoy Campeonato Nacional de
Taekwondo”, juventudrebelde.cu, 06/02/2014)
ETYM: Prob. from to feint.
fitdoing [fitduin]
~ 242 ~
Annexes
adv. ph., vulg. (no ) Used to express disagreement.

SYN: ni de coña (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from a blending of fit and doing.
flachear
v. intran., transp. To signal turnings in a car.
ETYM: to flash
flai var. flay

n, m, sport → fly
Bateo flay y el tipo [... ], pan, la coge de picón en el primer bound, nada, deja que pique y la
coge calmado, pero si es de los Industriales, se tira de cabeza, se tira de cabeza a coger la
pelota, out, entonces le juegan así, entonces Industriales se ve presionado también porque si
todo el mundo te juega a ti al cien por ciento, tú te ve... ¿me entiende? (MHCLH, p.64)
ETYM: fly
flit [flí]
n, m, colloq. 1 An insecticide used for flies and mosquitoes.
Tradicionalmente se ha cazado al anófeles o al Aedes aegypti (las dos especies son igualmente
dignas de figurar en la pared, disecadas, como trofeos de caza) con un arma mortífera
denominada aparato de flit cargado con insecticida, pero estas armas, por razones
desconocidas, no son fáciles de encontrar en el mercado. (“Los tres mosquiteros”,
tribuna.co.cu, 23/08/2014)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (dar ) To rule someone out while doing a given activity or project.
ETYM: flit (trademark)
floor
n, m, sport → floor de basket
SYN: tabloncillo (Cu.)
ETYM: Shortening of floor de basket.
floor de basket var. básquet

n, m, sport The rectangular court in which basketball is played.
A los seis meses de fundada esta logia, sus miembros fueron invitados a la Concentración
Juvenil de Pinar del Río. Conjuntamente con los masones construyen un floor de básquet para
el fomento del deporte y la recreación. (“Memoria cultural del las logias de victoria de Las
Tunas 1930-1945”, Didáctica y Educación, p. 129)
SYN: tabloncillo (Cu.), cancha (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: floor and basketball (basketball’s floor)
~ 243 ~
flower girl
n, f, obsol. A young girl who carries flowers at a wedding.
Marina. 16/01/1947, p.7)
SYN: damita (Cu.)
ETYM: flower girl
flumbear
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to fail to catch or hold the ball. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: to fumble
fly [flái]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a hit high into the air.
Eso trajo la explosión de Monthiet quien fue reemplazado por Carlos Ramírez, quien no pudo
evitar que anotaran los dos corredores que encontró en circulación. El primero de ellos por fly
de José Adolis García. (“Béisbol cubano: Tigres se imponen ante Leones”, invasor.cu,
16/12/2015)
n, m, colloq. 2 An upsetting or complicated business.
adv. ph., colloq. 3 (de ) In an unexpected manner.
La cantante, que mostró una foto del momento en su cuenta de Instagram, "llegó de 'fly', como
decimos los cubanos. La acompañaban cuatro personas, aparte de los custodios (escoltas)",
según el dueño del restaurante, Ernesto Blanco. (“Rihanna está en Cuba”, martinoticias.com,
28/05/2015)
SYN: de improviso (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: fly
fly-back [fláiba]
n, m, tech. A high-voltage converter, especially built in TV sets.
algo así debe quedar claro, que para los trabajadores le es muy difícil llegar a estos precios,
cuando de PC y Climatización se trata, porque la reparación de TV, Atec Haier y Atec Panda se
cobran en MN y a un precio aceptable, ejemplo: un Flyback de Panda cuesta 47 pesos mas 80
del servicio, total 127 MN. (“Nuevos servicios para la población”, Forum Post, granma.cu,
23/05/2014)
ETYM: flyback
fólder
n, m A folded cover or large envelope for holding documents.
SYN: file (Cu.), carpeta (Sp.)
ETYM: folder
~ 244 ~
Annexes
fongueo
n, m, sport In baseball, a fly ball hit especially for practice fielding by a player who tosses
a ball in the air and hits it as it comes down. (cf. MWD)
Prefiero ser entrenador de bateo, en especial de fongueo, que lo aprendí en Washington.
(“Adiós al guajiro del laberinto: Conrado Marrero”, 23/04/2013, trabajadores.cu)
ETYM: fungo
fotingo
n, m, colloq. 1 Old-fashioned car, in particular that of American origin and manufactured
before the 50s.
Quedamos en ir a recogerlos a las siete de la noche y quiero tirarle un poco de agua al fotingo.
Después que fui al campo no lo he lavado. Ella parece conformarse con la explicación por el
desplante de las etiquetas y él toma lo que necesita y baja y en una pila del patio instala una
manguera y conecta la radio del carro y emprende su limpieza como si se tratara del aseo de
una criatura recién nacida. (Naufragio, Antonio álvarez Gil, 2002, p. 40, CREA)
n, m, colloq. 2 Humorous way of denoting the buttocks.
ETYM: foot in and go (Prob. from the logo “foot in and go” used in early billboards
promoting the first three-gear cars; the second entry is merely a rhyming phrase in
synchrony with the word fondillo, which also means “bum”).
foul [fao]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a batted ball that lands outside the foul lines: a foul ball.
El árbitro del jardín derecho cantó foul pero Urquiola reclamó una presunta interferencia y
exigió la revisión de la jugada por medio del video, algo que la Federación Cubana aprobó
desde comienzos de la presente temporada. (“Béisbol Cubano: Pinar devuelve el play off al
"Capitán San Luis"”, fanalcubano.blogspot.com, 03/04/2014)
n, m, sport 2 In basketball, an action that is against the rules and for which a player is given
a penalty.
SYN: falta (Cu.)
ETYM: foul
foul line [fául lain]

n, m, sport In baseball, either one of two straight lines that go from home plate through
first and third base onto the edge of the outfield. (cf. MWD)
SYN: línea de foul (Cu.)
ETYM: foul line
fraternity
n, f, obsol. An organization of male students at a college.
~ 245 ~
También se recordará el primer Team Varsity (…) primera fraternity que se iniciara por
elementos entusiastas. (Diario de la Marina. 16/01/1947, p.11)
ETYM: fraternity
freezer [fríser]
n, m, house A device for freezing food or keeping it frozen.
Según establece la Resolución 143, de mayo 2013, se podrá importar hornillas eléctricas,
refrigeradores, freezer, duchas, freidoras, calentadores de agua, planchas, entre otros equipos.
(“Cuba: Autorizan importar equipos electrodomésticos y ciclomotores”, escambray.cu,
21/05/2013)
SYN: congelador (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: freezer
french poodle
n, m, clothes Ornaments attached to pieces of garments resembling poodle’s fur.
Fin de Siglo: medias de fieltro rojo o blanco, adornadas con french poodles. (Department Store
Ad, Diario de la marina. 16/11/1954)
ETYM: French poodle
Obs.: This word only exists in English as a dog breed, not as a garment accessory.
frigidaire
n, m, house A device for keeping food cold.
Los recuerdos de esos tiempos tumultuosos cuentan como un propietario murió de un infarto
cuando discutía con el compañero que imponía llevarse el viejo refrigerador funcionando para
dejar el chinito que esperaba en la puerta, o de los compañeros exigiendo a una anciana
personarse en el banco para realizar el contrato y pagar. Incluso en una Bienal de La Habana la
original obra escultórica del actor Jorge Peregorría era su viejo frigidaire. (“Oportunidad de
nuevos créditos bancarios para la población cubana”, reconcilicióncubana.wordpress.com,
20/01/2014)
SYN: nevera (Sp.), refrigerador (Cu.)
ETYM: frigidaire (trademark)
friqui
n, m, colloq. Someone who is not pro-Fidel Castro. (DMC)
SYN: gusano (Cu.)
ETYM: freaky
frozen
n, m, food A type of ice-cream made with flavoring powder and served in a wafer. (helado
)
~ 246 ~
Annexes
Un recorrido de este diario por varios puntos de venta del producto arrojó que los usuarios
piensan que «lo más reprochable del frozen es lo «aguadito» que está la mayoría de las veces.
(“El dilema con el helado frozen”, juventudrebelde.cu, 07/04/2009)
ETYM: frozen
fuiqui-fuiqui
n, m, vulg. The act of sexual intercourse. (DMC)
SYN: soqui-soqui (Cu.)
ETYM: to fuck (Prob. from a reduplication process)
full
adj. 1 To be really busy.
adv. ph. 2 (a todo ) Referring to the quick way one leaves a place or develops an activity.
ETYM: full
galalith
n, m, clothes A synthetic plastic material.
Fin de Siglo: bolsa de piel imitada, con cierre de metal dorado y detalles imitando galalith.
Bolsa modelo alargado en piel sintética imitando pig. Pañuelo de linolán blanco. (Department
Store Ad, Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.5)
SYN: galalita (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: galalith
galón
n, m Measurement of capacity that equals to 4,5 liters.
ETYM: gallon
gánster
n, m, colloq. Someone who is known for his/her illicit activities.
SYN: delincuente (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: gangster
~ 247 ~
garaje
n, m, transp. A shop where vehicles are repaired, or gasoline for vehicles is sold.
En 1900 los hermanos Dámaso y Honoré Laine adquieren la Representación en Cuba de los
Automóviles marca White y deciden montar un Garaje con Servicio de Reparación completa de
Mecánica, arreglo de carrocería y pintura así como suministro de gasolina para estos vehículos.
(“Historia de los autos de Cuba”, alocubano.org)
SYN: servicentro (Cu.), taller (Sp.)
ETYM: garage
garante
n, form. Someone who promises to pay back a loan if the original borrower does not pay it
back. (LHCLH)
Los trabajadores por cuenta propia en Cuba podrán solicitar créditos hasta 10.000 pesos
cubanos (400 dólares) sin necesidad de presentar avales económicos o garantes, que podrán ser
aprobados en un plazo de tres días, informaron hoy medios oficiales de la isla. (“Los
cuentapropistas cubanos podrán solicitar préstamos sin presentar garantes”, diariolibre.com,
02/09/2015)
SYN: avalista (Sp.)
ETYM: guarantor
gardear
v. intrans., sport In basketball, to station in the backcourt.
Guantánamo para este segundo tope debe mejorar la efectividad de los tiros libres, que no fue
buena en la jornada anterior, gardear a las pinareñas para impedir canastas de tres puntos y
saber preservar la ventaja ante un marcador amplio. (“Rompe Guantánamo invicto a Pinar del
Río en Baloncesto femenino”, radioguantanamo.icrt.cu)
ETYM: to guard
gardeo
n, m, sport In basketball, the act of stationing in the backcourt.
Capitalinos, al parecer, se siente el agotamiento de la semifinal contra los Tigres de Camagüey,
que se extendió hasta el límite de cinco partidos, además de seguir sin descifrar bien la
hermética defensa de los Búfalos. No obstante al gardeo incisivo sobre él, Jasiel Rivero, el
muchacho de más perspectiva en el baloncesto cubano actual, aportó 20 unidades. (“A una
«patada» del cielo”, juventudrebelde.cu, 17/12/2013)
ETYM: guard
gascar
n, m, transp. A means of rail transport, fueled by gas or oil, especially used for carrying
passengers.
~ 248 ~
Annexes
Su misión era levantatr los rieles del ferrocarril, y descarrilar el gascar, un coche
autopropulsado; atacar los soldados de custodio, y apoderarse de su armamento. (La
Revolución: pilares del socialismo en Cuba, Ramón Pérez Cabrera, 2013, p. 113)
ETYM: gas-car
gingham [gínga]
n, m, clothes A cotton cloth that often is marked with a pattern of colored squares.
Brevemente te contaré que cuando finalmente en el año 93, pude salir de de Cuba, y asentarme
en aquel momento en Venezuela,lo primero que hice fue comprarme algunas prendas de vestir
con la tela de Gingham, roja, azul, amarilla. (“Retro-nostalgia (III y final)”, Forum Post,
taniaquintero.blogspot.com, 07/08/2009)
ETYM: gingham
goma
n, f, sport In baseball, a rectangular slab of white rubber in the middle of an infield on
which a pitcher stands.
Los matanceros comenzaron impetuosos y en el mismo capítulo inicial pisaron la goma en dos
ocasiones para hacer saltar del box al abridor Erlys Casanova, mientras Pinar anotó una en el
final de esa entrada pero los visitantes hicieron otra en el segundo para poner el marcador tres
por una. (“Pinar del Río se acerca al título del béisbol cubano”, cibercuba.com)
SYN: montículo, lomita (Cu.)
ETYM: rubber
grand dinner
n, m, obsol. A formal social gathering of important people with the aim of giving awards,
raising money, etc.
Grand Dinner: chez Bretos. Ofrecen el día tres la comida que suspendieron el pasado sábado en
consideración al duelo de las familias Luque y Echemendía. (Diario de la Marina. 30/04/1930,
p.2)
ETYM: grand dinner
Grandes Ligas
n, m, pl., sport In baseball, the professional league of highest classification in the United
States.
El exjugador de Grandes Ligas dominicano Miguel Tejada dirigirá el equipo de béisbol de su
país que participará en el Premier 12. (“Torneo Premier 12: Miguel Tejada dirigirá el equipo de
República Dominicana”, 24/09/2015, cubadebate.cu)
SYN: Mayores (Cu.)
ETYM: Major Leagues
~ 249 ~
grand slam
n, m, sport In baseball, a home run that is hit with three runners on base. (cf. MWD)
Alfredo Despaigne bateó un grand slam en su única vez al bate y encarriló el triunfo de los
Alazanes que los convierte en el cuarto equipo de la Liga Oriental y sexto del país. (“Granma,
sexto equipo con 40 victorias”, 17703/2012, cubahora.cu)
ETYM: grand slam
gratindei
adj., vulg. Free.
SYN: gratis (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: gratis + -dei
Obs.: This inexistent suffix might have an anglicizing effect in the resulting word.
grocery [gróseri]
n, m, obsol. A shop where edibles and cleaning products are sold.
Facilidades: 69 apartamentos de una habitación, de ellas 22 destinadas al turismo de larga
estancia, con el avituallamiento necesario y una agradable vista al mar, aire acondicionado, caja
de seguridad, baño privado, teléfono, TV satélite, grocery, tienda, lobby bar con especialidades
de café y servicio de alimentos ligeros en la terraza. (“Aparthotel Islazul”, Internet Ad.,
cubaweb.cu)
ETYM: grocery
Obs.: Chiefly kept as a tourism-related word.
guachinear
v. intrans., colloq. To refuse to interfere in an argument, especially in politics. (DEC)
No lo podrás compremeter jamás; sabe guachinear. (DMC, p.332)
SYN: guabinear (Cu.)
ETYM: to watch
guarandol
n, m, clothes → warandol
En esta gran industria se fabricaban hilazas de algodón, rayón y tejidos de algodón como
lienzo, opal, poplín, guarandol, dril fino y mezclilla. Los sacos para envasar mercancía, de
algodón o rayón, se elaboraban en la propia textilera, de donde salían para los principales
almacenes del país. (“Vestirse en Cuba cuesta caro”, cubanet.org, 21/07/2015)
ETYM: warandol
guarfarina
n, f, clothes → warfarina
ETYM: warfarine
~ 250 ~
Annexes
güin
n, m, bot. 1 A spiny yellow-flowered shrub growing next to rivers and springs, whose long
stem is used for hand-made kites and cages.
Considerando que una de las principales diversiones de los niños cubanos y de otros países es
empinar papalotes y que en la mayoría de los casos los construyen ellos mismos utilizando
distintos materiales, fundamentalmente güin, nylon, hilo y algún adherente o esparadrapo
resulta atrayente una actividad investigativa de los escolares sobre papalotes. (Experiencias de
avanzada en la mejora escolar desde la evaluación educativa, Paul Torres Fernández et al.,
2012, p.32)
n, m, colloq. 2 An extremely thin person.
ETYM: whin
güinal
n, m place characterized by being abundant in “güines”.
Pero, al salir del güinal y atravesarse un lechoncito, Mariano hala riendas, Chifladita se aturde,
pierde el lazo, corcovea, y el carretón da tal tumbo, que Pepe casi se cae. (“Mariano”, El mar y
la montaña, p.30)
ETYM: whin
güinche
n, m, tech. A machine that has a rope or chain and that is used for pulling or lifting heavy
things
El dirigente accedió y me dijo: “sin problemas”, y penetramos ambos al interior de una oscura
torre, cuyo borde acumulaba los residuos del humo incrustado a través de varias zafras. En
instante descendió de las alturas un cable mediante una especie de güinche, que soportaba una
cubeta en la cual subían la mezcla de hormigón. (“Cosas del Periodismo: Un reportaje de
altura”, cubaperiodistas.cu, 01/04/2014)
ETYM: winch
güinchero
n, m, tech., occup. A person who is in charge of using and operating a winch.
Este hombre jaranero y alegre, de piel cobriza, que tengo frente a mí fue retranquero, fogonero
de máquinas de vapor, maquinista de un tren cañero y güinchero de la barca, todas estas tareas
vinculadas a la caña de azúcar, pero también ejerció otras faenas. (“Cuba: Optimismo en más
de un siglo de vida”, lademajagua.co.cu, 15/06/2010)
ETYM: winch
guingham
n, m, clothes A cotton cloth that often is marked with a pattern of colored squares. (cf.
MWD)
~ 251 ~
La Época: piques, linins, y guinghams en calidades magníficas.” “Silka en bellísimos dibujos.”

ETYM: gingham
guiquingo
n, m, obsol. A small bus, attached to larger one to carry more passengers. (DMC)
ETYM: Wikingo (trademark)
güito
n, m, body Whitish or yellowish spots on the skin.
También otro hombre, del Central Carmita, asegura que el güito —pitiriasis versicolar— es
causado por unas yerbas minúsculas que viven en la piel, y que crecen cuando les da el Sol.
(“Los ungüentos de Ricardo Riverón Rojas”, cubaliteraria.cu, 03/11/2008)
ETYM: white
gungadín
n, m Someone who is mulatto. (DMC)
ETYM: Gunga Din (film made in 1939 in which the lead character was a mulatto)
hall [xól]
n, m, house The area inside the entrance of a building.
Me llegué hasta el Instituto para ver si la veía, pues me confesó que a veces visitaba el Instituto.
"Por añoranza", explicó ella. "Querencia", pensé yo. Pero aunque pasé lento por el hall anterior
a la escalera y miré hacia la sala de estar, vi algunas muchachas pero ninguna era esa mujer,
Virginia viva. (La Habana para un infante difunto, Guillermo Cabrera Infante, 1986: 199)
SYN: rellano (Cu.)
ETYM: hall
hamburger [xambérgue]
n, m, food A flat, usually round cake of finely chopped beef that is cooked and served
usually in a roll or bun. (cf. MWD)
~ 252 ~
Annexes
¿Asi que la gente no puede pagar comida saludable? Un bistec de pollo a la plancha es mas
barato que un hamburger, en esos lugares se puede comprar ensaladas por el mismo precio que
un hamburger. (Comment Post, “Cuba anuncia ofertas gastronómicas para los "flotilleros" de la
Florida”, yohandry.com, 14/11/2011)
SYN: hamburguesa (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: hamburger
handball [hanbol]
n, m, sport A team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outfield players and
a goalkeeper) pass a ball to throw it into the goal of the other team.
Jose Alfredo fue realmente Campeon Nacional en singles y dobles de handball a finales de los
70’s y principios de los 80’s. Su saque con la mano, parecia mas bien expelido con una pala,
fue realmente excepcional. (Comment Post, “El más cubano de los deportes”,
penultimosdias.com, 02/01/2009)
SYN: balonmano (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: handball
hermano
n, m, vulg. Used as an informal way of addressing a man.
Pero, cuál sería su sorpresa cuando, después de colocar su auto particular en el parqueo del
Coloso del Cerro, fue abordado por un parqueador que le exigió el pago de 5.00 CUP por
adelantado sin entregarle el ticket. (“Deme lo que usted quiera, mi hermano”, granma.cu,
03/02/2014)
SYN: consorte, asere, monina, brother (Cu.)
ETYM: brother
Obs.: It is frequently used with possessive adjective “mi” as in mi hermano.
high
v. ph. (ser de la ) To belong to the upper socioeconomic class.
ETYM: high class
highball
n, m A drink of alcoholic liquor mixed with water or another liquid and served in a tall
glass. (cf. MWD)
Dictador de Garvey: Para tomar solo o en highball. (Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.3)
ETYM: highball
high life
n, f, colloq. Group of upper-class people.
~ 253 ~
Y ellos creían que, como ellos eran los que habían podido ir a las universidades, como ellos
eran los de la “high life”, como ellos eran los que sabían jugar “póker” y sabían jugar “bridge”,
y usaban perfumes de París y veían revistas extranjeras y sabían de modas y sabían de todas
esas ridiculeces. (Fidel Castro’s speech on Garzon Avenue in Santiago de Cuba, 30/11/1959)
ETYM: high life
hit
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a hit that allows a batter to reach a base safely.
Ibrahím Fuentes (Granma, 17 al 22-1-1989) conecta 14 hits de manera consecutiva. Un récord
poco valorado por la prensa y casi imposible de romper. (“Hazañas del Béisbol cubano”,
n, m 2 An important event.
En próximas correspondencias ofreceremos interesantísimos detalles sobre el bohío Bellamar,
el hit de esta temporada veraniega de 1947. (Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.14)
SYN: jit, línea (Cu.)
ETYM: hit
hit parade
n, m 1 A group or listing of the most popular or noteworthy items of a particular kind (as
popular songs).
Hit parade de Radio Rebelde con las piezas musicales más difundidas en la semana y los
autores e intérpretes más radiados del 23 al 29 de Agosto de 2014. (“Hit Parade Radio Rebelde
(Del 23 al 29 de Agosto de 2014)”, radiorebelde.cu, 04/09/2014)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (estar en el ) To be popular.
ETYM: hit parade
home
n, m, sport → home plate
(…) los nombres de Armando Capiró, Agustín Marquetti y Pedro Medina siempre estuvieron
relacionados en los equipos capitalinos con la responsabilidad de remolcar compañeros hacia el
home, y algo similar sucedía con Fernando Sánchez. (“Los «valientes» de la proa”,
juventudrebelde.cu, 19/09/2015)
SYN: jon (Cu.)
ETYM: home plate
home plate [homplei]

n, m, sport In baseball, the base that a runner must touch in order to score.
Ante el batazo de Beltrán, el jardinero central de Cuba, Carlos Tabares, pifió por un momento
la pelota a lo que Rodríguez emprendió su vuelta por la tercera base camino al home plate.
(Clásico Mundial de bésbol 2006, baseballdecuba.com, 15/03/2006)
SYN: goma (Cu.)
ETYM: home plate
~ 254 ~
Annexes
home run
n, m, sport → jonrón
No se si fue un error del anunciador local del estido Calixto Garcia pero el dia que debuto Jose
Emilio Lamarque con el equipo de Holguin, conecto un home run en su primera vez al bate.
(Comment Post, “Se acabó la discusión”, juventudrebelde.cu, 03/10/2005)
ETYM: home-run
hospital de día
n, m A psychiatric facility that offers a therapeutic program during daytime hours for
patients.
Durante esos años el camino recorrido nos obliga citar la sectorización de algunos hospitales
psiquiátricos en Cuba de acuerdo a los postulados de Sivadon en Francia, la apertura de
servicios de Psiquiatria en los hospitales generales y pediátricos, organizados en comunidades
terapéuticas, la creación de hospitales de día. (Psiquiatría Comunitaria en Cuba: 15 años
después, Power Point research presentation by Dr. Alexis Alonso, 26-29 /03/2013)
ETYM: day hospital
hot cake
n, m, food A thin pancake made from a mixture of flour, sugar, milk, and vanilla; it is fried
and served hot (usually accompanied with syrup).
SYN: tortitas (Sp.)
ETYM: hot cake
hot dog
n, m, food A small cooked sausage, served in a long roll. (LHCLH)
Mientras algunos reservan en exclusivos sitios con comida gourmet, otros se conforman con
productos del mercado racionado o con un hot dog: la "proteína" más barata del mercado en
pesos convertibles. (“Navidades en Cuba, ¿pavo o 'hot dog'?”, 14ymedio.com, 24/12/2015)
SYN: perrito (Sp.), perro caliente (Cu.)
ETYM: hot dog
humectante
adj. 1 Adding moisture to someone’s skin. (crema )
Crema humectante Nivea y Dove de 1 litro a 18$ (Ad. Post, cuba.porlalivre.com)
n, m, tech. 2 A moisturizer used for cosmetics.
El objetivo de este trabajo es desarrollar una crema regeneradora con quitina para después del
bronceado con la calidad requerida, a partir de realizar dos diseños F1 y F2 en los que se
utilizaron humectantes diferentes, glicerina y propilenglicol respectivamente. (“Diseño de una
~ 255 ~
crema regeneradora con quitina para después del bronceado”, Revista Cubana de Farmacia,
2013)
SYN: hidratante (Sp.)
ETYM: moisturizing
iluminaciones
n, f, pl, body Some hair color standing out of the rest.
Me contó que para la celebración de sus anhelados 15, se aplicó una decoloración y se hizo
iluminaciones, mas "todo el mundo me decía que me veía pálida", luego me pinté de castaño
con las iluminaciones y tampoco gustaba... (“Ay juventud, divino tesoro”,
cubafamilia.blogspot.com, 17/12/2015)
SYN: mechas (Sp.)
ETYM: highlights
impromptu
adv., form. In an improvised manner.
En honor de Noel Coward: La hermosa sede de la embajada abrió sus puertas para un buffet
impromptu. (Diario de la Marina. 14 /12/1955, p.5)
SYN: de improviso (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: impromptu
infield [infíl]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the part of a baseball field that includes the area within and
around the three bases and home plate. (cf. MWD)
Hay muchos donde los outfielders no pueden fildear una pelota, en el infield los peloteros no se
pueden desarrollar, y en el box el pitcher no puede lanzar con comodidad. (“García
Lupiáñez:“La pelota cubana necesita jugar y jugar”, cubadebate.cu, 29/05/2013)
SYN: cuadro
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, the player who is positioned in the infield.
¿Cuántas veces en la serie los jardineros devuelven la pelota sin fuerza al infield? ¿Cuántas
veces los lanzadores buscan el centro del plato con dos strikes en la cuenta del bateador?
(“Béisbol cubano: ¿amor por la incertidumbre?”, cubasi.cu, 04/02/2014)
ETYM: infield
infielder
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who plays in the infield.
~ 256 ~
Annexes
Jugó como infielder en la pelota invernal cubana entre 1916 y 1927, desempeñándose con los
clubes, Habana, Almendares y Marianao, también lo hace en las Ligas negras de Estados
Unidos. (Bartolo Portuondo: Biographical Summary, ecured.cu)
ETYM: infielder
inicialista
n, m, sport In baseball, the player that bats first for a baseball team in (an inning).
El jardinero Urmari Guerra y el inicialista William Saavedra acompañarán a los seleccionados
en sus los topes previos con Estados Unidos y el Festival de las América, también en suelo
norteamericano. (“Integran equipo Cuba de béisbol para juegos panamericanos”, 12/06/2015,
granma.cu)
ETYM: lead-off
inning [ínin]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, one of the usually nine parts of a game.
Muy polémicas resultaron en el partido la sustitución de Lorenzo Quintana por Orbe Luis Peña
en el noveno inning, así como la estrategia de Víctor Mesa de lanzarle a Roel Santos con la
primera desocupada y hombre en segunda en el noveno inning. (“Abrazo rojo y verde en final
de la pelota cubana”, trabajadores.cu, 12/04/2014)
v. ph. 2 (complicarse el ) Referring to a situation that gets twisted.
ETYM: inning
inside [ínsai]
n, m 1 The background of an issue.
v. ph. 2 (estar en el ) To understand what is going on.
ETYM: inside
introducir
v. trans. To make (someone) known to someone else by name.
El cónsul cubano Guillermo Espinosa: después de los saludos de cortesía, se introdujo Espinosa
en el brindis con estas palabras que fueron ovacionadas por los comensales. (Diario de la
Marina. 08/07/1958, p.12)
SYN: presentarse (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: to introduce
irse en blanco
v. ph., sport 1 In baseball, not to hit the ball during the game.
Leslie Anderson se fue en blanco de 3-0 con 2 ponches y 1 base por bolas y fue sustituido por
un corredor emergente. (“Todo listo para tope bilateral de béisbol Cuba-Nicaragua”,
~ 257 ~
v.ph., colloq. 2 Not to meet a goal.

ETYM: to go hitless
jab [yáb]
n, m, sport In boxing, a short straight punch delivered with the leading hand.
Un rictus de contrariedad y un gesto de satisfacción convergen en el rostro de Rolando Acebal,
mas el primero casi noquea al segundo cuando viene a cuento el rendimiento de los peleadores
cubanos en Almaty, la ciudad donde se disputó el último Campeonato Mundial de Boxeo.(“Un
jab vísperas de la Serie Mundial”, cubadebate.com, 15/11/2013)
SYN: directo (Cu.)
ETYM: jab
jaba
n, f 1 A strapped bag used for carrying things.
Un cubano que ande por la calle desprovisto de una jabita es como un soldado sin fusil en
medio del campo de batalla. Ella, la jaba, ha de ir con nosotros con mayor obligatoriedad que
nuestra propia sombra, acompañándonos de noche y de día, a la salida del sol y en el ocaso de
la tarde. (“Con la jaba a cuestas”, cubanet.org)
n, f 2 ( de nailon) A carrier bag, made of nylon, used for going shopping.
Pero esas jabas de nailon no eran comunes, precisamente porque para los cubanos comprar en
estas tiendas estaba prohibido. (“La jaba, el pomo y el pozuelo”, 14ymedio.com, 15/02/2015)
SYN: bolsa de plástico (Sp.)
ETYM: handbag
Obs.: Its diminutive form is chiefly used: jabita
jabear [yabéar]
v. intrans., sport In boxing, to strike with a short straight blow.
ETYM: to jab
jacket [yáqui]
n, m, clothes A garment for the upper body usually having a front opening, collar, lapels,
sleeves, and pockets.
El vestuario debe ser ligero, sobre todo en el verano, lleva tejidos de algodón, franelas, shorts, y
de calzado sandalias preferentemente; para el invierno un jacket ligero o un sweater de lana
fina puede ser suficiente, fundamentalmente para las noches. (“Consejos útiles”, dtcuba.com)
~ 258 ~
Annexes
ETYM: jacket
jack pot
n, m, obsol. A usually large amount of money won in a game of chance.
Los éxitos de Tropicana: a las nueve, se jugó el popular Bingo de la fortuna, con los
importantes premios, entre los que se cuenta el jack pot de 10 mil pesos. (Diario de la Marina.
08/07/1958, p.17)
ETYM: jackpot
jai
n, f → high life
Obs: usually used with definite article “la” as in la jai.
ETYM: high life
jaibol
n, m → highball
En un vaso alto de jaibol: 1/2 cucharada de azúcar 1/4 onza de jugo de limón Diluir bien.
(“Cócteles cubanos: Los hijos pródigos del ron cubano”, hicuba.com, 12/07/2012)
ETYM: highball
jaibolear
v. trans. To mix alcoholic liquor with water or another liquid and serve in a tall glass.
Balcón Habanero: por eso nos reunimos con nuestros amigos y nos jaiboleamos bien con un
whisky Ancestor o con un White Label ligado con agua La Cotorra. (Diario de la Marina. 27
December. 1958, p.18)
ETYM: highball
jama
n, m, food, colloq. Food for humans.
Los tres Plenos Provinciales del Partido Comunista de Cuba (PCC), celebrados durante el mes
de diciembre en Matanzas, Holguín y Las Tunas, se centraron en la falta de alimentos y la poca
respuesta de las empresas del Ministerio de la Agricultura (MINAGRI) al respecto.
(“Problemas de “jama” y marabú”, cubanet.org, Dec. 25)
ETYM: Prob. from ham.
jamar
v. trans., food, colloq. To eat something.
Cuando hubo el tremendo desabastecimiento de productos agrícolas que sufrió esta capital, los
comentarios críticos llovieron casi con la misma fuerza que las aguas de los huracanes que nos
~ 259 ~
golpearon. Sin embargo, ahora que las tarimas andan mucho mejor, el silencio inunda la
Red.(¿Se jama o no se jama en Cuba?, yohandry.wordpress.com, 16/12/2009)
ETYM: Prob. from ham.
jan
n, m, vulg. A coin or a bill worthing one peso. (DEC)
ETYM: Prob. from one.
japi
v. ph., colloq. (tener un ) To feel excitement over something. (DMC)
ETYM: happy
jardinero
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who is in the field while the opposing team is batting.
El jardinero Urmari Guerra y el inicialista William Saavedra acompañarán a los seleccionados
en sus los topes previos con Estados Unidos y el Festival de las América, también en suelo
norteamericano. (“Integran equipo Cuba de béisbol para juegos panamericanos”, 12/06/2015,
granma.cu)
SYN: fielder (Cu.)
ETYM: fielder
jardinero central
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who is in the center field while the opposing team is
batting.
Aquí pesó la condición de anfitrión de Yang, pues el jardinero central cubano Cé-sar
Her-nández bateó para superior average. (“Un cubano en el Todos Estrellas”, 03/08/2015,
granma.cu)
SYN: center field / center fielder (Cu.)
ETYM: center field
jardinero derecho
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who is in the right field while the opposing team is batting.
El jardinero derecho santiaguero regresó con mucha fuerza a los Capitales de Québec, luego de
una ausencia por presentar molestia en una de sus piernas. (“Regresó Bell, capitales a la cima”,
17/06/2015, granma.cu)
SYN: right field / right fielder (Cu.)
ETYM: right field
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Annexes
jardinero izquierdo
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who is in the left field while the opposing team is batting.
Alfredo Despaigne Rodríguez. Pelotero cubano, jardinero izquierdo (LF) de las selecciones
Granma y nacional; representando al país en el Clásico Mundial de Béisbol 2009. (“Alfredo
Despaigne”, ecured.cu)
SYN: left field / left fielder (Cu.)
ETYM: left field
jeep [yípe]
n, m, transp. A small general-purpose motor vehicle, with military purposes at first, and
currently used, among other things, for carrying passengers and freight.
Walter tiene sus dudas. Vacila entre comprar un jeep Willy estadounidense de los 50, con
motor diésel de Toyota, frenos de aire alemanes, recién pintado y restaurado, por 32 mil pesos
convertibles (casi 35 mil dólares) o esperar a 2014, a ver si el Estado pone a la venta un jeep a
menor precio. (“El nuevo sueño de los cubanos: comprar un auto”, infobae.com, 02/01/2014)
SYN: yipe, yipecito (Cu.)
ETYM: Jeep (trademark)
jersey [yérsi]
n, m, clothes A soft knitted cloth.
Casa Harris: juegos de jersey (camisa y pantalón). (Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina.
29/04/1930, p.8)
ETYM: jersey
jingle [yíngle]
n, m, obsol. A catchy, brief and easy-to-remember melody, especially used for
commercials. (DEC)
A Eduardo Saborit, se le llamó en los años 50, el Rey del jingle y junto a el, una larga relación
de nombres prestigiosos en la composición e instrumentación de la talla de Mario Orlando
Romeu y Adolfo Guzmán, por solo citar algunos ejemplos. (“Una huella cultural latente”,
tvcubana.icrt.cu, 10/09/2011)
ETYM: jingle
jit
n, m, sport → hit
La selección cubana de béisbol debutó este miércoles con derrota de 2-0, sin conectar
imparables, en el primer desafío del tope de béisbol ante la escuadra nacional universitaria de
Estados Unidos. (“Cae Cuba ante Estados Unidos con cero jit cero carreras”, acn.cu,
02/07/2015)
ETYM: hit
~ 261 ~
joker [yóki]
n, m An extra card used in some card games usually as a wild card. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: joker
jon
n, m, sport → home plate
ETYM: home plate
jonrón
n, m, sport In baseball, a hit that allows the batter to go around all the bases and score a
run.
El cubano Yulieski Gourriel Castillo conectó hoy su primer cuadrangular en la Liga de Béisbol
Profesional de Japón (Nippon Professional Baseball, NPB), durante la derrota del Yokohama
DeNA BayStars frente al Orix Buffaloes. (“Primer jonrón en la liga profesional en Japón”,
baseballencuba.com)
SYN: home-run, cuadrangular (Cu.)
ETYM: home run
jonronear
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to hit a homerun.
Así se convirtió en el único cubano en dar jonrones en postemporadas en ambas ligas
(Americana, Oakland-Nacional, Mets) y el primer jugador de los Mets en jonronear
consecutivamente (Juego 2 y 3) en postemporada desde John Olerud en 1999. (“¿Qué cubanos
están deslumbrando en MLB y ligas invernales?”, oncubamagazine.com, 17/10/2015)
ETYM: home-run
jonronero
n, m, sport In baseball, someone who hits home-runs consecutively.
Más que el apasionante juego de béisbol en sí mismo, pareciera que el verdadero deporte
nacional de los cubanos es el poco saludable –y por otro lado, sempiterno- hábito de comparar
épocas, de asumir a ultranza que en materia de bolas y strikes cualquier tiempo pasado fue
mejor.(“¿Quién es quién entre los jonroneros cubanos?”, miesquinacaliente.wordpress.com,
25/02/2014)
ETYM: home-run (hitter)
jornal
n, m, form. A daily newspaper. (LHCLH)
SYN: periódico, diario (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: journal
~ 262 ~
Annexes
juego de living
n, m, house A set of living-room furniture (usually a sofa, two armchairs, and a coffee
table).
Juego de living, otro de cuarto de cedro con cama camera, juego de comedor de cuatro sillas y
mesa circular y anaquel de madera para la cocina. Dirigirse a calle Aricochea número 183 altos,
entre 8va y 9na. (Ad. Post, @hora, 22/07/2014)
SYN: juego de sala (Cu.)
ETYM: living-room set
jugador de banco
n, m, sport In baseball, a team player who steps into the starting lineup as a replacement.
En el Habana continúa como jugador de banco, con promedio de 250. En 1925-1926, conecta
cuatro hits en 26 veces al bate para promedio de 142, mientras que batea para 261 en Estados
Unidos. (“Pelayo Chacón: Biographical Notes”, ecured.cu)
ETYM: bench player
jugador regular
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who constitutes the permanent lineup of a team.
¿Quién iba a pensar que este jugador, que abandonó la isla en el verano del año pasado iba a
comenzar como un jugador regular más en un equipo de las Grandes Ligas tan rápido como en
esta misma primavera? (“Lo de Alexei no tiene nombre”, cubaencuentro.com, 06/09/2008)
ETYM: regular player
jumper [yómpi]
n, m, clothes A sleeveless one-piece dress worn usually with a blouse. (cf. MWD)
El jumper de cuadros y la blusa blanca que llevo puestos me los hicieron mis tías paternas,
modistas de profesión. Los zapatos de charol, las medias blancas, la carterita y los lazos en el
pelo estaban al alcance de cualquiera, por muy modesto que fuera su nivel de vida. (“La
elegancia de La Habana”, taniaquintero.blogspot.com, 12/02/2012)
ETYM: jumper
junior
n, m, obsol. Nickname given to an offspring, whose name coincides with his father’s.
Ofelia André, linda esposa del doctor Enrique Anglada, junior, a cuyas amigas diré que no
recibe. (Diario de la Marina. 02/04/1930, p.5)
ETYM: junior
~ 263 ~
keke
n, m, food A round pastry, made of flour, sugar and peppermint.
ETYM: cake
keno
n, m A game resembling bingo.
Summer Casino: bacara, keno, y otros nuevos entretenimientos (…) magnífico show (…)
comida y baile en el roof todas las noches. (Diario de la Marina. 30/04/1930, p.2)
ETYM: keno
kerosén
n, m → kerosene
Desde Victoria de Las Tunas Lisván Sánchez Peña comunicó que varios consumidores se
concentraron frente a sus respectivas bodegas, donde deben comprar las magras raciones que le
asigna el Estado, para manifestarse por la falta de kerosén (luz brillante). (“Abastecen a los
militares en espera de Isaac”, cubanet.org, 04/09/2012)
ETYM: kerosene
kerosene
n, m A flammable hydrocarbon oil usually obtained by distillation of petroleum and used
as a fuel, solvent, and thinner. (cf. MWD)
La cocina ya no huele a kerosene ni las paredes están negras por el hollín ni se necesita alcohol
para “calentar” el reverbero. (“Del kerosene a la electricidad”, penultimosdias.com,
03/09/2012)
SYN: keroseno (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: kerosene
kid chocolate
n, m, vulg. A black person. (DMC)
ETYM: Kid Chocolate (A famous Cuban boxer whose nickname was owing to his dark
complexion)
kilowatt
n, m, tech. A unit of electrical power equal to 1,000 watts.
En 1958, la Compañía Cubana de Electricidad —yo creo que el pueblo la conocía por K-listo
Kilowatts, o algo parecido— generó, en los dos sistemas eléctricos existentes, 1 760 000
~ 264 ~
Annexes
megawatts/hora —esta es otra medida: kilowatt/hora y megawatt/hora; cada megawatt tiene 1

000, pero para no andar dando cifras de muchos millones pues se dice en megawatts. (Fidel
Castro’s speech on the opening of a new power plant in Mariel, 15/02/1978)
SYN: kilovatio (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: kilowatt
kinder
n, m → kindergarten
Bueno, si en Cuba toman muy en cuenta a Piaget (y eso antes del kinder) sus teorías ayudan
mucho en el desarrollo fisico (no solo mental) del individuo, los niños se desarrollan mas y con
mas comodidad. (Comment Post, “El sano orgullo de sentirse útil”, granma.cu, 17/07/2014)
SYN: círculo infantil, creche (Cu.)
ETYM: kindergarten
kindergarten
n, m, obsol. A place where young children are cared for during the day while their parents
are working. (cf. MWD)
La creche “Berta Machado” cuenta ya con 42 niños, todos de la localidad: (….) dicho creche
tiene capacidad para cincuenta niños, y se encuentran ya 42, pertenecientes todos a esta
localidad, que son atendidos admirablemente, y los de edad escolar son llevados al
kindergarten. (Diario de la Marina. 02/04/1930, p.15)
SYN: círculo infantil (Cu.), guardería (Sp.)
ETYM: kindergarten
kitchen shower
n, m, obsol. An event, especially before a wedding, in which guests bring home appliances
as presents.
Despedida de soltera: procedió a dicha merienda un kitchen shower. (Diario de la Marina.
20/02/1947, p.11)
ETYM: kitchen shower
knockout [nókau] var. knock-out

n, m, sport 1 In boxing, a blow that knocks out an opponent.
Y es que de lobos e inocentes caperuzas está lleno el bosque de los deportes. Resulta que desde
ya un buen knock-out resolverá para la AIBA todos sus problemas. (“Boxeo sin cabecera: ¿Ahí
viene el lobo?”, soycuba.cu, 07/12/2013)
v. ph. 2 (ser alguien un/una ) To be really good-looking. (DMC)
ETYM: knockout
~ 265 ~
knuckleball
n, m, sport In baseball, a pitch that is thrown with very little spin by holding the ball with
the knuckles or fingertips. (cf. MWD)
“Los periodistas y la gente decían que tenía 10 lanzamientos y por supuesto que les seguía la
rima. Pero no era así, tiraba recta, curva, slider, una bola que me entraba, una especie de sinker
que cada vez que la lanzaba me daban por el cuadro, además de la knuckleball y lanzamientos
por el lado del brazo que se me movían. Todo eso lo combinaba, la cuestión está en poner la
bola donde haga daño”. (“Las huellas de Yosvany Gallego”, beisbolencuba.com, 04/12/2015)
ETYM: knuckleball
KO
n, m, sport → knockout
El boxeador cubano Erislandy Lara gana por KO a Jan Zaveck demostrando una gran fuerza en
el ring. (“Boxeador cubano Erislandy Lara gana por KO a Jan Zaveck”, cubaenmiami.com,
27/11/2015)
ETYM: knockout
Obs.: Acronym of knock-out.
láguer [láger]
n, m, vulg. Beer
Pero, de todas, la pregunta más recurrente siempre cae – ¿Cuándo nos tomamos unos lagers? –
Claro que tiene que ser aquí, porque mis planes de viajar en vacaciones, o porque me da la
gana, son puras fantasías. (calmapueblo.wordpress.com)
SYN: cerveza (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: lager
lámpara de luz fría

n, f, house Luminous tubing lamps, commonly used for neon lights.
El acuario está iluminado con una lámpara de luz fría de 20 Watts, del tipo Daylight. Una vez a
la semana realizo cambios parciales del 25% del agua. (“Experiencia con el Microgeophagus
Ramirezi”, elacuarista.com)
ETYM: cold (cathode) light lamp
lanzarse de barriga
v. ph., sport 1 To slide onto the base to try to be safe or to score.
v. ph., colloq. 2 To try to accomplish a task desperately.
~ 266 ~
Annexes
Felicidades para Urquiola, a favor del cual hoy, con la mesa ya servida, Julita Osendi se lanzó
de barriga (con 10 años de atraso) para nombrarlo manager oficial del equipo Cuba. (Comment
Post, “Festejan los pinareños el triunfo de su equipo de béisbol”, cubadebate.cu, 03/05/2011)
ETYM: to slide onto base
laptop
n, m, comp. A small computer that is designed to be easily carried and folded.
No, editamos en mi casa, que ya habíamos usado como locación, en una laptop que nos prestó
Claudia Calviño, de Producciones 5ta Avenida; y lo que sí hicimos en la Escuela fue el resto de
la pos, todo el trabajo de sonido y también la corrección de luces. (“Los retos del cine
independiente en Cuba: Conversaciones con Enrique Álvarez y Miguel Coyula”, asaeca.org)
SYN: portátil (Sp.)
ETYM: laptop
latón
n, m, house → latón de basura
Molesta ver cómo se habla de lavarse las manos y de la indisciplina social porque algún que
otro vecino tire la basura fuera del latón cuando estos están desbordados de basura porque el
carro no la recoge. ¿a quién le vas a llamar la atención? (Comment Post, “La higiene continúa
siendo la clave”, cubadebate.cu, 17/08/2014)
ETYM: (trash) can
latón de basura
n, m, house A small cointainer for trash collection.
En un latón de basura, al que se le pusieron un motor de camión fuera de borda, un grupo de
balseros cubanos hizo la travesía desde Cuba hasta Key Biscayne. (“En un latón de basura
llegan nueve balseros”, cubanet.org, 24/09/2014)
SYN: lata de basura (Cu.), cubo de basura (Sp.)
ETYM: trash can
leader
n A person who leads.
Recibo elegante: Lila Hidalgo de Conill, figura prominente de nuestra más encumbrada
sociedad y una de sus leaders recibía con esa sencillez y amabilidad que le es característica.
SYN: líder (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: leader
left field
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the part of a baseball outfield that is to the left when you are
looking out from home plate.
~ 267 ~
Su capacidad es para 30 000 espectadores, al tiempo que presenta dimensiones como casi todos
los estadios cubanos, con 325 pies por el right y el left field, y 400 por el mismo centro.
(“Estadio 5 de septiembre”, beisbolencuba.com)
SYN: jardín central
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, the player defending the left field.
SYN: jardinero izquierdo
ETYM: left field
leonard
n, m Someone who is ignored intentionally. (convertir a alguien en )
ETYM: Leonard (fridge trademark)
leotard [leotár]
n, m, clothes A piece of clothing that fits tightly and covers the body except for the legs
and sometimes the arms. (cf. MWD)
Se vende un leotard negro con su sayita por solo 10 CUC. Si solo deseas el leotard, o solo la
sayita te lo lo vendo por separado. Tengo otros leotáres y tallas si necesitas alguno en
específico. Llámame que puedo ayudarte. (Ad. Post, revolico.com, 11/09/2014)
SYN: leotardo (Sp.)
ETYM: leotard
leotáres
n, m, pl., clothes → leotard
ETYM: leotard
licencia
n, f 1 A permission granted to an employee to be absent from work, usually for a longish
period of time.
Cuando el trabajador disfruta de licencia no retribuida no devenga salario, por tanto, no le
asiste el derecho al subsidio, principio de la Ley actual, que se mantiene vigente en el
anteproyecto. (“Preguntas y respuestas sobre el anteproyecto de Nueva Ley de Seguridad
Social”, radiorebelde.cu, 13/08/2013)
SYN: permiso (Sp.)
ETYM: licence
Obs.: Also used as administrative terminology in Sp.
n, f, transp. 2 A permit granted to allow adults to drive.
ETYM: (driver’s) licence
~ 268 ~
Annexes
licra
n, f, clothes A pair of leggings made of lycra.
Una muchachita se puede poner una licra, una jovencita se, puede andar con un topecito, puede
andar con un shorcito bien cortico y todo se ve lindo en ella, aunque repito, para mí no es
ninguna moda lo que estamos llevando, pero bueno, se ve bonita como quiera que se vista, pero
una persona mayor, a mi criterio se ve ridícula cuando se viste como si, como si quisiera tener
quince años. (MLCLH, p. 118)
SYN: leggings (Sp.)
ETYM: lycra
ligero
n, m, sport → light welter
En la siguiente velada de hoy la Isla presentará al mosca Yosbany Veitía, al ligero Lázaro
Álvarez, al welter Roniel Iglesias y al semicompleto Julio César La Cruz. (“Púgiles cubanos
aseguran bronce en Mundial de Boxeo”, granma.cu, 10/10/2015)
ETYM: lightwelter or welterweight
ligero welter
n, m, sport → light welter
El minimosca Yoahnys Argilagos, el ligero welter Yasnier Toledo, el mediano Arlen López y
el crucero Erislandy Savón aseguraron premios con sólidas presentaciones en velada que
resultó adversa para el pluma Andy Cruz, precisa la AIN. (“Púgiles cubanos aseguran bronce
en Mundial de Boxeo”, granma.cu, 10/10/2015)
ETYM: lightwelter or welterwweight
light weight [láiwéi]

n, m, sport, obsol. In boxing, a fighter who is in a class of boxers weighing from 125 to
132 pounds (57 to 60 kilograms).
Lightweight (60 kg): 1-. Lázaro Álvarez (Domadores de Cuba, 2-0, 298 ptos) / 2-. Robson
Conceicao (Dolce and Gabbana Italia Thunder, 2-0, 297 ptos). (“Cuba domina el Ranking
individual de la Serie Mundial de Boxeo”, cnctv.icrt.cu, 17/01/2014)
SYN: peso pluma (Cu.)
ETYM: lightweight
línea
n, f, sport 1 In baseball, a hit batted in an usually straight line. (meter/conectar una )
Pero varios días después, con el árbitro en la inicial de nuevo, el bateador metió una línea que
pasó sobre la cabeza del leftfielder y se extendió a lo profundo del amplio outfield del parque
Cervecería La Tropical. (“Aquella liga cubana”, conexioncubana.net)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (meter una ) To tell a lie.
SYN: meter un tupe (Cu.)
ETYM: line
~ 269 ~
línea de foul
n, f, sport → foul line
El libro de reglas del béisbol al referirse al terreno de juego solo determina las distancias
mínimas para ubicar las cercas en los estadios construidos a partir del 1ro. de junio de 1958. O
sea, 325 pies desde el plato hasta las cercas sobre las líneas de foul por las bandas derecha e
izquierda. (“Los estadio calientes de Cuba”, juventurebelde.cu, 12/09/2015)
SYN: foul line (Cu.)
ETYM: foul line
lineamiento
n, m, sport In baseball, a list of the players who are playing in a game.
ETYM: lineup
lineup
n, m, sport In baseball, a list of the players who are playing in a game.
Alfonso Urquiola no quiso saltarse el libreto ganador de las últimas fechas y no hizo apuestas
de riesgo en su line up, mas Víctor Mesa optó por llevar a Yariel Duque a la inicial y colocarlo
como sexto madero, por encima de Lázaro Herrera. (“El cocodrilo prendió la breva”,
cubadebate, 01/08/2014)
SYN: lineamiento (Cu.)
ETYM: lineup
linin
n, m, clothes A type of fabric, made from flax, used for making sheets.
ETYM: linen
linolán
n, m, clothes A type of material that is produced in thin sheets, has a shiny surface, and is
used to cover floors and counters. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: linoleum
living [lívin]
n, m → juego de living
~ 270 ~
Annexes
ETYM: living room

Obs.: Less frequent shortened form of juego de living.
lobby
n, m A large open area inside and near the entrance of a hotel.
A cualquier hora del día, el lobby del Hotel Nacional de Cuba suele ser un hervidero de turistas
extranjeros, hombres de negocios, empleados que van y vienen o visitantes atraídos por alguno
de los muchos eventos que se celebran en el establecimiento. (“El Hotel Nacional de Cuba
cuenta a diario su historia de 83 años”, cubacontemporanea.com, 12/07/2013)
SYN: hall, recepción (Sp.)
ETYM: lobby
locación
n, f, tech. In film-making, the arrangement of cameras in a specific place while filming.
No, editamos en mi casa, que ya habíamos usado como locación, en una laptop que nos prestó
Claudia Calviño, de Producciones 5ta Avenida; y lo que sí hicimos en la Escuela fue el resto de
la pos, todo el trabajo de sonido y también la corrección de luces. (“Los retos del cine
independiente en Cuba: Conversaciones con Enrique Álvarez y Miguel Coyula”, asaeca.org)
ETYM: location
lolipop
v. ph. (faltarle el ) To be a fool. (DMC)
ETYM: lollipop
lonchera
n, f A container used for carrying someone’s snack or lunch, especially school children.
Cuba Bella (2002): Artículos de talabartería. Recrea de manera armónica las obras de nuestros
artistas en productos como mochilas, bolsos, carteras, portafolios, maletines y loncheras. (“¿El
tesoro escondido?”, juventudrebelde.cu, 01/08/2015)
ETYM: lunch (box)
lonchero, -a
n, m, occup. Someone who works in a cafeteria and is responsible for preparing
sandwiches and snacks. (DEC)
ETYM: lunch
longplaying var. longplay

n, m 1 A phonograph record designed to be played at 331/3 revolutions per minute. (cf.
MWD)
~ 271 ~
Es entonces que el venezolano Gumersindo Castro, dueño de la disquera Velvet comprende su

talento y le graba dos Long Playing (Luis Bravo y Tus Canciones) y once SP de 45 rpm con
dos y cuatro canciones cada uno. (“Luisito Bravo, el idolo olvidado de Palma Soriano”,
caosycosasdecuba.blogspot.com, 13/05/2013)
SYN: LP (Cu., Sp.), vinilo (Sp.)
n, m 2 A snitch.
SYN: chivito (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: long-playing
Lord Cheo
n, m Someone who is both refined and vulgar. (DMC)
ETYM: Lord + cheo; the latter word is used in Cuban Spanish to call someone with bad
taste.
Lord Peo
n, m Someone who is a show-off. (DMC)
ETYM: Lord Cheo
Obs.: This combination might stem from the Cuban saying tirarse el peo más alto, which
colloquially denotes a show-off.
luna
n, f, med. The whitish mark at the base of a fingernail. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: Prob. from lunula or half-moon.
lunch [lánch]
n, m, obsol. A snack taken between meals.
Una bolera: (…) se han asociado al señor Guillermo Pedreira para dotar de Matanzas de algo
tan añorado como un night club, en nuestra playa, han comenzado también esos señores la
edificación de una bolera, restaurant, café, bar y lunch. (Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.14)
ETYM: lunch
lunchero, -a
n, m → lonchero
ETYM: lunch
~ 272 ~
Annexes
macadam
n, m, tech. A road surface made with a dark material that contains small broken stones. (cf.
MWD)
SYN: macadán (Cu.)
ETYM: John MacAdam, a British engineer who died in 1836.
macadán
n, m, tech. → macadam
Muy a principio del siglo XIX se intentó resolver esta situación y se comenzaron a utilizar los
adoquines, cuyo uso no se extendió, sin embargo, hasta las inmediaciones del siglo XX, cundo
también algunos sitemas de calles se construyeron con macadán. (Cosas de la vieja Cuba,
Lillian Llanes et al, p.166)
ETYM: John MacAdam, a British engineer who died in 1836.
MacArthur [makártur]
n, m Someone who is old but still strong enough to work. (DMC)
ETYM: MacArthur was an American General, who fought in The Philippines, during the
Second World War, and was known for being in the frontline until he was elderly.
machear
v. intrans. 1 To have something coinciding with another one in color, shape or size. (DEC)
Seamos sinceros: Frank Abel no pega en Lucas, es demasiado artificioso. Magnífica voz, algo
engolada, pero buena; mas él y Luis Silva “no machean”, como se dice en la radio.. (Forum
Post, “Los directores de videoclip de hoy son casi estrellas”, caimanbarbudo.cu, 07/10/2011)
v. trans. 2 To cause something to coincide with another one in color, shape or size.
SYN: pegar (Cu.), combinar (Sp.)
ETYM: to match
maid of honor
n, f, obsol. A bride's principal unmarried wedding attendant.
Procedíala en su camino en calidad de maid of honor la señorita Elsa Soro.” “(…) en el reparto
de Miramar, sirviéndose allí un espléndido buffet. (Diario de la Marina. 10/11/1952, p.9)
SYN: bride maid, dama de honor (Cu.)
ETYM: maid of honor
Maine [máine]
~ 273 ~
v. ph., colloq. (volar el ) To cause trouble/hassle.

ETYM: Maine was an American ship, which triggered the American intervention in Cuba
in 1898.
malta
n, f, food A dark-colored refreshment made with toasted barley.
Es posible encontrar cualquiera de esos ingredientes en los mercados mexicanos. Es muy
común el plátano macho, como fácil de hallar es el boniato, aunque siempre preguntando por
camote, y no es difícil tropezarse en algún estante con tres o cuatro pedazos de yuca que nadie
sabe para qué se usan ni cómo se cocinan. Lo que sí no aparece, ni en los centros espirituales,
es la malta. (“Mi reino por una malta”, habanamemorias.blogspot.com, 12/06/2009)
ETYM: Prob. from malt
maltera
n, f, food A type of cafeteria in which malt is sold.
Me encantaba tomar malta sobre todo los días de mucho calor. Alla en el barrio teniamos la
suerte de tener dos "malteras" bien cerca, la de la calle 27 y la del "Alamo". (“La malta”,
halocubano.blogspot.com, 27/06/2011)
ETYM: malt
man
n, m, vulg. Used as a term of address.
Pero el caco no se inmuta y riposta: "Oye man, estamos en América (EE.UU.), aquí con un
buen abogado y dinero estás en la calle". (“Los rehenes del sistema”, Granma Internacional,
04/1997, núm. 15, CREA)
SYN: brother, asere (Cu.)
ETYM: man
mánacher de manigua
n, m Someone who bluffs or talks things he doesn’t know well. (DMC)
ETYM: manager; manigua is a Cuban word referring to the countryside.
manager
n 1 Someone who is in charge of a business, department, etc.
SYN: gerente (Cu., Sp.)
n, sport 2 Someone who directs the training and performance of a sports team, especially
in baseball.
Después, de cerradas las cortinas de la 50 serie nacional de beisbol, solo oígo hablar, a
nuestros, capacitados comentaristas deportivos, que el mejor manager de la pelota cubana
~ 274 ~
Annexes
actual, es Alfonso Urquiola. (“El mejor manager del béisbol cubano actual”,
beisbolencuba.com, 10/05/2011)
ETYM: manager
mani
n, m, vulg. → money
SYN: baro (Cu.)
ETYM: money
manigüiti
n, f, vulg. The act or result of stealing something. (hacer el )
Robar en Cuba parce un mal endémico después que los muchachos de Birán se
adueñaran de toda la Isla. La manigüiti ha infectado a la nación con furor de epidemia. (“El
blog de Vázquez Portal”, tintainfelizmierdaflorida.blogspot.com, 13/12/2011)
SYN: robo (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from a blending of money and another etymologically unknown word.
manubrio
n, m A handle that is used to steer a bicycle.
La historia de la urbe recoge la aparición de este transporte en 1913, cuando el comerciante
Galileo Fernández recorrió las calles en un hermoso ciclo, compuesto por un sillín alto, llantas
niqueladas con los soportes de muelles en las ruedas y manubrios adaptables. (“Bicicletas en la
preferencia de muchos cubanos”, ain.cu, 10/08/2014)
SYN: manillar (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from manubrium
marshmallow [mársmelou]
n, m, food A soft, white, sweet food made of sugar, eggs and jelly.
He descubierto que los marshmallows tienen un sinfín de nombres en español: Malvaviscos,
Nubes, Bombón, Esponjitas y Sustancia. (“Jell-O & Marshmallows”,
mycubantraumas.blogspot.com, 03/04/2009)
SYN: nube (Sp.)
ETYM: marshmallow
Mary Poppins
v. ph. (hacer como ) To disappear without prior notice. (DMC)
ETYM: Mary Poppins
~ 275 ~
mate [máte]
n, m, colloq. The act of kissing and petting each other, especially before sexual intercourse.
(darse un )
SYN: apretadera (Cu.), darse el lote (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from to mate (to copulate)
maybelline [méibeyín]
v. ph., colloq. (ser una ) To wear lots of make-up.
ETYM: maybelline (trademark)
mayor
n, m, obsol. The head of the government in a city or town.
Los estudiantes de medicina se quejan al mayor: Expusieron los estudiantes al alcalde su
disgusto por el desenlace fatal de su compañero señor Raúl Moreno. (Diario de la Marina.
01/04/1930, p.9)
SYN: alcalde (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: mayor
Mayores
n, f, pl., sport → Grandes Ligas
A mediados del octubre de 1971, el equipo VEGUEROS, de Pinar del Río, fue convocado al
cine Pionero, de la capital vueltabajera, para recibir la disertación de un afamado manager,
coach y scout de las Mayores: el cubano Pedro Preston Gómez. (“Mike Cuellar: el Cy Young
cubano”, 20/08/2015, guerrillero.cu)
ETYM: Major League
megawatt
n, m, tech. A unit of electrical power equal to 1,000 000 watts.
En 1958, la Compañía Cubana de Electricidad —yo creo que el pueblo la conocía por K-listo
Kilowatts, o algo parecido— generó, en los dos sistemas eléctricos existentes, 1 760 000
megawatts/hora —esta es otra medida: kilowatt/hora y megawatt/hora; cada megawatt tiene 1
000, pero para no andar dando cifras de muchos millones pues se dice en megawatts. (Fidel
Castro’s speech on the opening of a new power plant in Mariel, 15/02/1978)
SYN: megavatio (Sp.)
ETYM: megawatt
mesa sueca
n, f, food A kind of buffet in a restaurant, in which a table is arranged with all kinds of
dishes, and guests are supposed to collect the food by themselves.
~ 276 ~
Annexes
Y las exquisitas mesas de muchas casas de huéspedes de la Habana Vieja, donde por el precio
de 50 centavos podías comer todo lo que quisieras de los platos más deliciosos, anticipando el
hoy famoso "todo incluido", "sírvase usted mismo" o "mesa buffet o mesa sueca", como
quieran llamarlo. (“Restaurantes cubanos”, memoriascubano.blogspot.com.es, 05/04/2014)
ETYM: Swedish table
metro
n, m, tech. An instrument for measuring the time or amount of something. ( del agua;
contador)
Las sucesivas roturas de los metro contadores han obligado a la empresa de Aguas de La
Habana a cobrar el servicio a partir de un consumo promedio, lo cual estimula el despilfarro y
el descontrol. La situación se extiende por toda la Isla. (“Cuba fabricará sus propios metro
contadores de agua”, 14ymedio.com, 06/07/2015)
SYN: contador (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: meter
mezzanine
n, m, house A small floor that is between two main levels of a building and that is usually
in the form of a balcony.
Mezzanine moderno con un dormitorio: Un apartamento de la familia Neo Colonial en Centro
Habana construida en 1915 con impresionantes vistas a la calle y el mar desde la distancia. El
suelo original. (Real Estate Ad, cubahomesdirect.com, 13/11/2014)
SYN: entresuelo (Sp.)
ETYM: mezzanine
microwave [microwéi]
n, m, house An oven in which food is cooked or heated quickly by very short waves of
electromagnetic energy.
Está prohibida la importación por parte de los Viajeros de: Hornos eléctricos, de cualquier tipo,
modelo y capacidad, incluyendo los llamados "microwave". (“Información general: Aduana de
Cuba”, dtcuba.com)
SYN: microondas (Sp.)
ETYM: microwave (oven)
middleweight
n, m, sport In boxing, a boxer who is heavier than a lightweight and lighter than a
heavyweight.
Middleweight (75 kg): 1-. Sergiy Derevyachenko (Astana Arlans Kazakhstan, 2-0, 2300 ptos) /
2-. Artem Chebotarev (Russian Boxing Team, 2-0, 285 ptos). (“Cuba domina el Ranking
individual de la Serie Mundial de Boxeo”, cnctv.icrt.cu, 17/01/2014)
ETYM: middleweight
~ 277 ~
milla
n, m, obsol. A unit of measurement equal to about 1,6 km.
A las ocho de la noche estábamos a menos de cinco millas. Su enorme, oscuro, escarpado
cuerpo surgía del mar como una isla. Ilusión óptica o miedo, pero me daba la impresión de que
tenía más de una milla de largo. (La Habana para un infante difunto, Guillermo Cabrera
Infante, 1986: 501, CREA)
ETYM: mile
Obs.: Rarely found in modern Cuban Spanish, but its original meaning strongly lingers in
expressions such as a 90 millas (in USA), estar a mil millas (to be distracted or aloof), and
baseball pitching speed average.
minimax
n, m A convenience store.
Tanto como el disgusto de ver como una zona residencial tan bonita y alegre como lo fue fue
mi barrio, ha devinido en un lugar en que desbarataron el cine, el minimax, el centro
comercial,el parque, la canastilla, ahora me dicen que arreglaron el estadio Cardona. (Comment
Post, “Fuera del aire por humedad”, cartasdesdecuba.com, 28711/2015)
ETYM: Minimax (trademark)
mínimum
adv., obsol. (al ) The least of a quantity.
Fin de Siglo: Todos estos precios del nuevo plan están fijados al mínimum. Cambric inglés.
Longcloth (Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina. 30/04/1930, p.5)
SYN: mínimo (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: minimum
Míster One Cent

v. ph., (tener mentalidad de ) To possess little intelligence. (DMC)
ETYM: Míster One Cent (origin unknown)
mitin
n, m, colloq. 1 A recrimination speech in which some else is being criticized by his/her
acts, especially with regard to someone’s political ideas. (dar un )
El pasado 4 de noviembre en horas de la tarde la policía política aglutinó frente a su casa unas
500 personas para darle un mitin de repudio y además pintar la fachada para eliminar los
carteles. (“Foto-reportaje sobre mitin de repudio a Ivis Rodríguez González en Cruz Verde
No.11 entre Corral Falso y Máximo Gómez, Municipio de Guanabacoa, La Habana”,
pinceladasdesdecuba.com, 11/14/2011)
n, m 2 An informal and brief gathering at work to read or tell some information.
~ 278 ~
Annexes
Tu padre también tenía un viaje proyectado a la Isla Grande, al puerto de Fajardo, me parece,
donde los nacionalistas iban a celebrar un mitin. Él no era muy amigo de asistir a mítines, pero
corrían rumores de que iban a matar al jefe de todos ellos. (El capitán de los dormidos, Mayra
Montero, 2002: 171, CREA)
n, m 3 A cultural or sport event.
Anteriormente a la cita francesa, el atleta había logrado los 8,40 metros en el mitin en sala
techada de Gantes, Bélgica. (“Pedroso ¡8,60! en Francia”, Granma Internacional, 02/1997, n. 7,
CREA )
SYN: encuentro deportivo (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: meeting
miting
n, m, obsol. → mitin
Gran Miting: Siendo las ocho y media de la noche, toda la concurrencia se dirigió al parque
local y frente a la casa rectoral se realizó el miting, que fue amenizado por la banda de Torrens.
ETYM: meeting
money [máni]
n, m, colloq. Cash money used to pay for things or services.
SYN: pasta (Sp.), guano, guaniquiqui (Cu.)
ETYM: money
monitor, -a
n A student appointed to assist a teacher, usually as a reward for having high marks and
good behavior.
En mi escuela, por ejemplo, el día del monitor es el pionero quien imparte las clases. Otros días
visitan las aulas con los profesores, y ven cómo se preparan las clases. (“La vocación para ser
maestro, tema del Congreso Pioneril”, juventudrebelde.cu, 03/10/2006)
ETYM: monitor
montículo
n, m, sport In baseball, the slightly elevated ground on which a baseball pitcher stands.
Su marca de más de mil partidos jugados en el béisbol cubano es la más grande en Cuba y una
de las más extensas en el ámbito internacional. Por su parte, los serpentineros Carlos Yanes y
Gervasio Miguel Govín, determinaron el rumbo de la nave insular con la magnificencia de sus
acciones sobre el montículo. (“Equipo Isla de la Juventud”, beisbolencuba.com)
SYN: lomita (Cu.)
ETYM: mound
~ 279 ~
monticulista
n, m, sport In baseball, the player that throws the ball to the batter.
Le llamaban Mondongo. Era pitcher y lo conocí en unos de esos tantos torneos de barrio que se
efectuaban cada fin de semana en el terreno de béisbol de Parcelación Moderna, en el
municipio capitalino de Arroyo Naranjo. (“Mondongo, un monticulista de 100 millas”,
primaveradigital.org, 25/08/2011)
SYN: pitcher, lanzador (Cu.)
ETYM: mound
motorista
n, m, transp., occup., obsol. A professional driver that used to drive public vehicles,
especially street cars.
ETYM: motorist
mouse [máus]
n, m, comp. A small device that is connected to a computer and that you move with your
hand to control the movement of a pointer on the computer screen. (cf. MWD)
Trabajar con una computadora no solo puede ayudarnos en múltiples tareas, sino también
enfermarnos por su uso incorrecto. (“Los peligros del mouse”, cubaperiodistas.cu)
SYN: ratón (Sp.)
ETYM: mouse
music hall
n, m A type of entertainment that was performed in a theater with popular entertainers.
Ahora los actores y actrices tienen el capricho de hacer papeles de mujer o de hombre -comentó
Dorr- pero entonces podían hacerlo solamente a través del cabaret o del music hall. "Musmé
vivió desde pequeño la vida de otros, con una voz excepcional, de soprano, pero los prejuicios
le impidieron llegar". (Confesiones teatrales del verano, Granma Internacional, 26/7/2000)
ETYM: music hall
nailon
n, m A strong material that is made from a chemical process and that is used for making
clothes, ropes, and other products. (cf. MWD)
~ 280 ~
Annexes
Prestos a traer cuantos artículos sean útiles a la población, incorporan ahora en su oferta las
capas y ponchos de nailon para protegerse de la lluvia. (“SERPRO desarrolla carpeta
comercial”, opciones.cu, 12/06/2013)
SYN: plástico (Sp.)
ETYM: nylon
nickel
n, m, obsol. → níquel
Mariquitas, boniatos fritos, frituras de bacalao y chicharrones de viento o tripitas, también en el
puesto de chinos. Y majúa frita, por un medio o un "nickel" el cartuchito (Antes de 1959 en
Cuba circulaban monedas americanas de 5, 10 y 25 centavos. (“¿Salimos a comer algo?”,
martinoticias.com)
SYN: medio (Cu.)
ETYM: nickel
niple
n, m, tech. 1 A pipe coupling consisting of a short piece of threaded tubing.
Lo más complicado fue lograr el acople del motor Mitsubishi con el sistema hidráulico de la
retroexcavadora, por la precisión que exigía el trabajo y la necesidad de fabricar algunos
componentes de ajuste, como platinas (empleé seis de diferentes medidas), un entredós con su
sello y un niple de encaje del eje de mando con el volante". (“El ingenio empírico de Alfredo”,
granma.cu, 26/01/2014)
SYN: boquilla roscada (Sp.)
n, m, colloq. 2 Home-made explosives.
(...) y en La Habana viví escenas, eran todos jovencitos como ustedes y nunca vi que tuvieran
miedo a nada pese a que podían ser asaltados en una casa llena de armas, niples y bonos del 26
de Julio. (“Una nota a toda costa, y costo”, Forum Post, juventudrebelde.cu, 20/07/2013)
ETYM: nipple
níquel
n, m, obsol. A five-cent coin.
SYN: medio (Cu.)
ETYM: nickel
níquelodium
n, f, obsol. A jukebox. (DMC)
SYN: vitrola (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: nickel, which was a five-cent coin used to have the jukebox play.
~ 281 ~
nocaut
n, m, sport, obsol. → knockout
El boxeador cubano Luis King Kong Ortiz propino un espectacular nocaut a su rival Jenning
para mantenerlo invicto. Aqui les dejamos las imagenes del nocaut del boxeador cubano Luis
King Kong Ortiz. (“Espectacular Nocaut del boxeador cubano Luis King Kong Ortiz a
Jenning”, cubaenmiami.com, 20/12/2015)
ETYM: knockout
noqueado, -a
adj. 1 Characterized by being defeated, or severely hurt.
Pero orden. Volver, bien, a este capítulo. Cintio Vitier ha dicho: No simules que vas a creer en
mi simulación. No hagamos otro mundo de mentiras. Así que me he caído de una bicicleta.
Estoy casi noqueado. Veo estrellitas, como en los comics. (Los años de Orígenes, Lorenzo
García Vega, 1978: 164, CREA)
adj. 2 Characterized by being drunk and by behaving improperly.
ETYM: knockout
noquear
v. trans., sport 1 In boxing, to defeat the opponent by a knockout.
El cubano Guillermo "El Chacal" Rigondeaux, de 33 años, retuvo hoy el título unificado
AMB/OMB) del peso superpluma, tras vencer por k.o. en el primer asalto al aspirante, el
tailandés Sod Kokietgym. (“Cubano Rigondeaux noqueó al tailandés Kokietgym”,
beisbolencuba.com, 19/07/2014)
v. trans., sport 2 In baseball, to cause (an opposing pitcher) to be removed from a baseball
game by a batting rally. (cf. MWD)
En un choque de todo o nada Cuba solo necesitó siete entradas para despachar por la Regla de
la misericordia a Canadá. (“Cuba noqueó a Canadá y discutirá el título del Panamericano Sub
18 contra Estados Unidos”, cubanosporelmundo.com, 14/09/2014)
v. trans, colloq. 3 To hit someone hastily.
(...) lo que ha demostrado, de paso -y haciendo otra alusión olímpica-, que nuestro país como
boxeador tiene un cuello duro, duro, duro, que es imposible de noquear. (“Fidel Castro’s
speech”, Granma Internacional, 05/1996, núm. 3, CREA)
ETYM: knockout
noquelbol
n, m, sport 1 → knuckleball
v. ph. 2 (tirar alguien un ) To play tricks on someone. (DMC)
ETYM: knuckleball
~ 282 ~
Annexes
novela jabonera
n, f, colloq., pej. obsol. A serial drama performed originally on a daytime radio program
and chiefly characterized by tangled interpersonal situations and melodramatic or
sentimental treatment.
Pero hay más ¿Están dispuestos a sacar de los archivos la Tremenda Corte, A reírse rápido,
alguna novela jabonera, los programas de CMQ…? (“Generalidades de la música cubana. La
bola del “destape aperturista” musical cubano”, conexioncubana.net)
SYN: culebrón (Sp.)
ETYM: soap opera
nuclear
v. trans. To gather people in a certain place. (DEC)
ETYM: to nucleate
nylon
n, m, clothes → nailon
La época: bufandas de nylon. Pañuelos de sport (Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina.
20/02/1947, p.3)
ETYM: nylon
ofensiva
n, f, sport In baseball, the role played by batters in relation to they way they try to score.
Mientras, la ofensiva cubana una vez más con poca productividad, lograba marcar las carreras
necesarias para el triunfo final. (“Cuba campeón continental por duodécima vez”,
baseballdecuba.com, 2007)
ETYM: offensive
off the record

adv. ph. Given or made in confidence and not for publication. (cf. MWD)
Mi intención primera no era volver a la ciudad de Kazajstán. Es esta la tercera ocasión en menos de
cuatro semanas que conversamos y tratamos los temas (algunos off the record, que respeto
escrupulosamente) con total sinceridad. (“Un jab vísperas de la Serie Mundial”, cubadebate.cu,
15/11/2013)
SYN: extraoficialmente (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: off the record
~ 283 ~
off side
adv. or adj., sport In football, in a position on the opponent's part of the field where you
are not allowed to be.
SYN: fuera de juego, posición adelantada (Sp.)
ETYM: offside
oficial del floor

n, m, sport In basketball, the referee who makes sure that players are following the rules of
the game.
ETYM: floor’s official
ojo de pescado
n, m, med., body A plantar small wart.
Hace 7 años presentó los llamados vulgarmente "ojos de pescado" causado por las cepas 2 y 7
del Papiloma Virus Humano y me gustaría saber como sería el remedio a partir de la yaya o si
existe alguno que conozcan. (“Las maravillas de la Yaya”, Forum Post, radiorebelde.cu,
02/05/2010)
ETYM: fish eye
ok [okéi] var. [oká]

interj. or adj. Fairly good.
La proximidad de los records de los hombres hace pensar a algunos que no está lejos el día en
que ambos sexos puedan medirse de tú por tú. "Eso siempre va a ser una polémica. Yo pienso
sencillamente en superarme. Si eso me acerca a ellos, ok, pero es difícil, porque hombres como
'Pipín' y Pelizzari son muy fuertes y están muy bien preparados". (“Déborah soñó con ser reina
y ya tiene su corona”, Granma Internacional, 07/1996, núm. 6, CREA)
SYN: vale (Sp.), está bien, dale (Cu.)
ETYM: ok
oká
interj. → ok
SYN: all right, está bien (Cu.)
ETYM: ok
ómnibus
n, m, transp. A usually automotive public vehicle designed to carry a large number of
passengers. (cf. MWD)
~ 284 ~
Annexes
Tras una jornada de pánico y una madrugada de actos violentos aislados, 43 mil policías
militarizados y detectives fueron desplegados hoy en esta ciudad y municipios vecinos, para
garantizar el retorno de la tranquilidad. Por lo menos 13 ómnibus fueron incendiados durante la
última noche por presuntos bandidos a sueldo del narcotráfico (...). (“Tras madrugada violenta,
43,000 policías vigilan Río de Janeiro”, granma.cu, 01/10/2002, CREA)
SYN: autobus, bus (Cu., Sp.), guagua (Cu., in some regional Sp.)
ETYM: omnibus
orange
adj., obsol. A color between red and yellow.
SYN: naranja, anaranjado (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: orange
orden
n, f, food A selection of dishes, usually taken from a printed menu, to be served in a
restaurant or a cafeteria.
De la hermosa playa al restaurante "Arena Real" sólo unos pasos; de la cocina a su mesa, sólo
su orden. (“Arena Real: Cocina Internacional”, Ad Post, cayocococubahotel.com, 2012)
SYN: comanda (Sp.)
ETYM: order
organdí
n, m, clothes A very fine transparent muslin with a stiff finish.
Almacenes Inclán: Bieses de organdí rematan y adornan la blusa. (Clothing Shop Ad, Diario de
la Marina. 16/01/1947, p.7)
ETYM: organdy
orlon
n, m, clothes A type of acrylic fiber.
Cuando era niña, los suéters más usados eran de orlon, fibra sintética producida por la empresa
estadounidense Du Pont durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Tanto el orlon como el corduroy
eran ideales para los suaves inviernos cubanos. (“Retro-nostalgia”, desdelahabana.net,
19/09/2010)
ETYM: Orlon (trademark)
osteraiser
v. ph., hum. (tener un ) To move the hips and buttocks really sensually while dancing.
(DMC)
~ 285 ~
SYN: menear (Cu.)

ETYM: Osterizer (trade mark)
out [áu]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the act of causing a player to be out or the situation that exists
when a player has been put out. (cf. MWD)
Y todos ustedes saben que en un juego en el último inning, que está cinco a uno, a favor de un
equipo que exhibe una moral altísima y el pitcher dominando, en su momento más alto, en su
mejor momento psicológico, cuando cae el out veinticinco no hay la menor esperanza para el
adversario. (“Fidel Castro’s speech”, CREA)
v. ph., colloq. (ser por regla) To be in danger of losing a job, money, life partners, etc.
ETYM: out
outfield
n, m, sport In baseball, the part of the field that includes the area beyond the infield and
between the foul lines. (cf. MWD)
También aparece en ese trío el santiaguero Francisco Martínez, otro zurdo que juega primera
base y el outfield, aunque es confeso admirador del ilustre intermedista Antonio Pacheco, uno
de sus instructores previos. (“Cuba ante Hong Kong”, beisbolcubano, 16/08/2012)
SYN: cuadro exterior (Cu.)
ETYM: outfield
outfielder
n, m, sport In baseball, the player who is positioned in the outfield.
El short y la segunda base le transmitían las señas a los outfielders. Ellos jugaban así. ¿Cómo es
posible que la mayoría de los equipos actualmente no jueguen de esta forma? (García Lupiáñez:
“La pelota cubana necesita jugar y jugar, cubadebate.cu, 29/05/2013)
ETYM: outfielder
out por regla

adj. ph., sport 1 Referring to the act of getting a player out of the game for breaking
baseball rules.
A pesar de encontrar dos corredores en bases, el cuadrangular solo sirvió para dos carreras,
porque Peraza sobrepasó a Borrero, quien fue declarado out por regla. (“Jonrón de Peraza salva
el invicto de Cuba en Mundial de béisbol”, cubadebate.cu, 12/09/2009)
adj. ph., colloq. 2 Referring to someone who has lost (or might lose) an important position
(company, family, social event, etc.).
Sufro una enfermedad incurable, el despiste. No soy una mata, como algunos piensan, sino todo
un bosque. Soy capaz de confundir a un coterráneo con un extranjero y a un artista con el
guardaparques. (“Out por regla”, juventudrebelde.cu, 08/11/2013)
ETYM: out
~ 286 ~
Annexes
overjol
n, m, med. A complicated surgery. (DMC)
A Miguel le extirparon el cáncer, pero también le hicieron un overjol y lo han dejado como
nuevo. (DMC, p. 500)
ETYM: overhaul, which refers to a major repair done to cars and vehicles.
overtain
v. ph., hum. (hacer dinero con el del sudor de sus caderas) To be a prostitute. (DMC)
ETYM: overtime
paca
n, f, form. A large amount of sheets of paper. (LHCLH)
Orlando Infante es uno de esos vendedores que camina cada día por las calles de La Habana
con su paca de periódicos. Gracias a los contactos que ha ido estableciendo en estanquillos de
La Habana Vieja y Centro Habana, casi siempre consigue doscientos ejemplares de cada diario.
(“Y por fin, ¿cuánto vale un periódico?”, cubahora.cu, 12/05/2015)
SYN: paquete (Sp., Cu.), block (Cu.)
ETYM: pack
paco
n, m, colloq. A bunch of things (or money).
SYN: taco, fajo (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from pack
pai
n, m, food → pie var. pay
Uno de los postres o “dulces” más representativos de la cocina cubana es el pie (pay) de
guayaba, que ya con queso llega a conquistar, si no el cielo, al menos el paraíso tan particular
del paladar cubano. (“Pie rústico de guayaba y queso: remembranza del postre cubano”,
traslareceta.wordpress.com, 21/09/2014)
ETYM: pie
~ 287 ~
paddock
n, m, form. The fence surrounding an enclosed area. (LHCLH)
SYN: cerca (Cu., Sp.), redil (Cu.)
ETYM: paddock
palanca
n, f, colloq. A powerful person, used to achieved a desired result. (DRAE)
El tiempo empleado en solventar un asunto de manera respetuosa, sin aprovecharse de
“cañonas”, sociolismo o palanca, no le importa al que desatiende al público; mientras su
favorecido —apuntalado por la mano que le tendió el amiguísimo— repara mucho menos en el
daño causado a los demás. (“La palanca”, granma.cu, 12/06/2014)
SYN: enchufe (Sp.)
ETYM: leverage
palmolive
n, m, colloq. A low quality and high alcohol-proof beverage. (DEC)
Deja el trago para que no te vuelvan a gritar: "Borrachin, Borrachin de Palmolive y Mata Rata"
.Me dijeron que unos muchachos te iban gritando miestras tu dabas tumbos hasta que te
agarraste un poste eléctrico. (Comment Post, “El amo de los monos”, cubaencuentro.com,
23/12/2015)
ETYM: palmolive (trademark)
palmolivero, -a
adj., pej., colloq, Referring to someone who drinks alcohol on daily basis. (DEC)
Barry Tatica era un palmolivero, y carterista. Vivía en 2 entre 3 y 5 Vedado. Me acuerdo
cuando asaltaban a los yumas en el Centro Vasco junto a Caramelo y Reinaldo. Pero el cabrón
caía bien. (“Falleció Barry Tatica”, zoevaldes.net, 25/04/2010)
ETYM: palmolive (trademark)
pancake [pánkei]
n, m A thin, round cake that is made by cooking batter on a frying pan.
Esta es la receta de “Pancakes o Hotcakes” tal y como aparece en el libro “Cocina al minuto”
por Nitza Villapol y Martha Martínez editado en 1956 en La Habana, Cuba. (“Pancakes o
Hotcakes”, guije.com)
SYN: arepa (Cu.), tortita (Sp.)
ETYM: pancake
panel
n, m, transp. 1 A small, enclosed van used for carrying freight or passengers. (DEC)
Entre las categorías que comprende se encuentra la de autos, camiones, motos, jeeps, bicicletas,
cuñas, microbús, arrastre, camionetas, paneles, ómnibus, piezas y accesorios, alquiler de
~ 288 ~
Annexes
vehículos, autoescuela y reparación de vehículos. (“Abren nuevo sitio web para facilitar la
compra y venta de transporte terrestre”, cubadebate.cu, 24/01/2014)
SYN: furgoneta (Sp.)
ETYM: panel truck
Obs.: chiefly found in the diminutive form panelito.
n, m 2 A group of people with special knowledge, skill, or experience who give advice or
make decisions, usually as jurors. (cf. MWD)
Genetistas poblacionales y estadísticos como Bernard Devlin, Neil Risch y Kathryn Roeder, de
la Universidad de Yale, opinaron que las conclusiones del informe reflejaban las posiciones de
Lewontin y Hartl. Otros, hasta el propio Lewontin, hallaron arbitrario que se fijara un 5 por 100
o un 10 por 100, como si los expertos miembros del panel que diseñaron la propuesta se
hubieran sacado los números de la manga. (Genes en tela de juicio, Alina Quevedo, 1996: 223,
CREA)
ETYM: panel
panqué
n, m, food → pancake
Grandioso festival: Abierto todo el día el restaurant, se venderán a los precios corrientes,
tamales, bocaditos, arroz con pollo, lechón tostado, sandwichs, dulces, helados, panqués, etc.
ETYM: pancake
panquelero, -a
n, occup. Someone who sells pancakes in the street.
ETYM: pancake
pantrista
n, occup. In a public canteen or institution, someone who is in charge of combining the
dishes of a meal to make up the corresponding menu.
ETYM: pantry
pantry
n, m, house A room or closet used for storage (as of provisions) or from which food is
brought to the table.
Ahora con 49 habitaciones, un restaurante con capacidad para 90 comensales, bar, piscina,
pantry, sala polivalente, gimnasio y sauna, entre otras facilidades, la instalación hotelera es una
gran opción para el turismo de estancia, interesado en conocer los dones de esta ciudad marina.
(“Brilla más hotel cienfueguero tras restauración”, granma.cu, 25/05/2004, CREA)
ETYM: pantry
~ 289 ~
paper [péiper]
n, m, form. A formal written composition designed for publication.
SYN: artículo científico
ETYM: paper
par
n, m, tech. In a telephone connection, the cable having two paired wires. (DEC)
ETYM: paired cable
paramaun
v. ph., obsol. (tener la en acción) To surveil someone or someone. (DMC)
ETYM: Paramount (trade mark).
Obs.: Apparently, there was brief news before films started under the motto: ‘ojos y oídos
del mundo’ [eyes and ears of the world], which might have been associated to the film-
making company Paramount Pictures.
parque de diversiones
n, m A place that has many games and rides for entertainment.
El parque de diversiones 26 de Julio, uno de los sitios más visitados de la provincia de Santiago
de Cuba durante el período vacacional, alista sus equipos y áreas recreativas para recibir el
inicio oficial del verano 2013, el próximo día 6. (“El parque de diversiones de Santiago de
Cuba se suma al verano”, trabajadores.cu, 28/06/2013)
SYN: parque de atracciones (Sp.)
ETYM: amusement park
party
n, m, obsol. A refined social event in which upper social class members meet for
entertainment.
Jueves de Tropicana: Otra brillante fiesta de la espléndida temporada que viene ofreciendo este
teatro-restaurant. En su poética terraza al aire libre un precioso marco de fiesta, se multiplicarán
desde las nueve los parties elegantes. (Diario de la Marina. 16/01/1947, p.9)
SYN: fiesta de gala (Cu., Sp.)
n, f, colloq. 2 An informal gathering of people in which music, food and drink are
provided.
ETYM: party
patear la lata
v. ph., colloq. To pass away. (DEC)
ETYM: to kick the bucket
~ 290 ~
Annexes
parque
n, m, sport In baseball, a baseball park or stadium.
Pero en la cuarta entrada le conectaron tres hits y el novato Calzadilla le sacó la pelota del
parque. (“Se acabó la discusión”, juventudrebelde.cu, 03/10/2015)
SYN: terreno (Cu.)
ETYM: ballpark
parqueado
v. ph. (estar ) To remain in a place for a long time.
ETYM: to park
parqueador, -a
n, transp., occup. Someone who is responsible for leaving vehicles in a car park.
En lugar de parquímetros, lo que hemos comenzado a ver aquí desde hace varios años es su
sucedáneo en carne y hueso: el parqueador. (“Del parquímetro al parqueador: eficiencia
socialista”, desdecuba.com, 01/04/2009)
ETYM: park
parquear
v. trans., transp To leave a car, truck, motorcycle, etc., in a particular place.
pero los veo en las calles, veo las calles, las cuadras con, con bastante carros parqueados,
muchos lugares y, bueno, el transporte público ha mejorado un tanto, ha mejorado bastante, no
solamente tenemos las rutas tradicionales, nuevas rutas han surgido en la ciudad de La Habana
que es la que más necesita. (MLCLH, p.159)
SYN: aparcar (Sp.)
ETYM: park
parqueo
n, m, transp. 1 The act of leaving a vehicle (car, truck, motorcycle, bicycle) in a particular
place.
La comisión provincial de seguridad vial de La Habana informa a la población y a los
conductores de vehículos, que con motivo de la realización de la II Cumbre de la CELAC se
aplicarán medidas operativas de cierres, desvíos y prohibición de parqueo en las vías que se
utilizarán en el desarrollo del evento, según las necesidades de las diferentes actividades.
(“Cierres, desvíos y prohibición de parqueo durante la CELAC”, juventudrebelde.cu,
23/01/2014)
n, m, transp. 2 A place for parking.
Hugo Hodelín Santana escribe una poesía que bebe en la realidad diaria, pero que de igual
modo recoge la palpitación existencial y las pulsaciones más inquietantes del vivir. (“Desde la
soledad de un parqueo”, cubaencuentro.com, 14/12/2012)
SYN: parking, aparcamiento (Sp.)
~ 291 ~
ETYM: car park
pasaje
n, m, form. A long, narrow space that connects one place to another, which might have
small businesses on both sides. (LHCLH)
SYN: boulevard (Cu.)
ETYM: passageway
passed ball [pásbol]

n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a baseball pitch not hit by the batter that passes the catcher when
it should have been caught and allows a base runner to advance. (cf. MWD)
El emergente Danny Espinosa inició la parte alta del 11mo episodio con una base por bolas,
avanzó a la segunda base en un passed ball de Cameron Rupp. (“Cubanos en grandes ligas”,
15/09/2015, beisbolencuba.com)
v. ph. 2 (cometer un ) To make a mistake.
ETYM: passed ball
patril
adv., vulg. Backwards.
ETYM: A combination of Cuban form ‘pa’trás’ (backwards) and anglicized sound.
patrón de prueba
n, m A fixed picture broadcast by a television station to assist viewers in adjusting their
receivers. (cf. MWD)
Desde el día siguiente, sin previo aviso a la prensa, tuvimos que transmitirla todos los días con
el audio de Unión Radio y con Felo Ramírez en la narración. Hasta ese momento solo salía al
aire el patrón de prueba de la televisora. (“Cuba, 1950: las primeras imágenes de béisbol en la
televisión iberoamericana”, tvcubana.icrt.cu)
SYN: carta de ajuste (Sp.)
ETYM: test pattern
patrullero
n, m, transp. A police vehicle, chiefly cars.
Sin respetar que eran dos mujeres y, una de ellas muy anciana, las maltrató de palabra, les
manoteó y les gritó que se largaran o mandaría a buscar un patrullero de la policía para que se
las llevara detenidas. (Contra toda esperanza, Armando Valladares, 1985: 400, CREA)
ETYM: patrol
~ 292 ~
Annexes
payama
n, m, clothes Clothing that people wear in bed or while relaxing at home.
Bostezando, me pongo la payama.
El sueño calladito cerca pasa.
Y empiezan a pesarme las pestañas.
(La Calabacita, Children’s song)
SYN: pijamas (Sp.)
ETYM: pajamas
peliculey
n, m, vulg. A film.
ETYM: Spanish word ‘película’ (film), to which an anglicized suffixed is attached.
pelota
n, f, sport, colloq. → béisbol
Debían reevaluarse las actitudes de los que participaron en esa elección, y digo seriamente
hasta por el PCC y las autoridades del INDER, deja mucho que desear y mucho que pensar de
las mentes decisoras para con nuestro deporte nacional. Desvirtuan los logros de los equipos y
provincias, atentan con el aun tabaleante renacer de la pelota cubana. (Comment Post,
“Domada la bestia”, juventudrebelde.cu, 11/11/2015)
ETYM: baseball
Obs.: Usually preceeded by article la.
pent-house
n, m, house An apartment on the top floor of a building.
Maravillosa vista al mar desde este Penthouse en Miramar - Alquiler de Casa en Miramar - 4
Habitaciones. (Ad Post, detrásdelafachada.com)
SYN: ático (Sp.)
ETYM: penthouse
peplum
n, m, clothes A short section, or pleat, attached to the waistline of a garment (blouse,
jacket, or dress)
Vendo vestido negro con peplum, es una talla media muy versátil. (Ad Post,
habana.porlalivre.com, 11/09/2014)
ETYM: peplum
pepsi-cola
v. ph., colloq. (ser generoso como la ) To be really generous.
ETYM: Pepsi-Cola (trademark).
~ 293 ~
Obs.: The origin dates as back as pre-Revolutionary advertisements, in which Pepsi-cola

publicized that for five cents, you would get two bottles for the price of one. (DMC)
perro caliente
n, m, food → hot dog
ETYM: hot dog
perro de la RCA Victor

n, m, obsol. Someone who talks too much.
Ese es el perro de la RCA Victor. No para de hablar. (DMC, p. 543)
ETYM: RCA Victor (trademark). It has a dog on the longplays’ label.
peso pluma
n, m, sport In boxing, a fighter who is in a class of boxers weighing from 125 to 132
pounds (57 to 60 kilograms)
El peso pluma cubano Javier Ibáñez venció este viernes al indio Karthik Kumar, quien compite
bajo la bandera de la AIBA, durante la quinta jornada del Campeonato Mundial Juvenil de
Boxeo. (“Cuarta victoria cubana en Mundial de Boxeo”, trabajadores.cu, 18/04/2014)
SYN: lightweight (Cu.)
ETYM: featherweight
péter
n, m, food A milk chocolate bar.
Me lo pasaba en grande, aunque básicamente íbamos a hacer colas: colas para comprar los
tiques y subir a las atracciones, para comer un perrito caliente, un "peter", unas africanas…
(“Vámonos al parque Lenin”, janetguerra.blogspot.com)
SYN: chocolatina (Sp.)
ETYM: Peter Paul (trade mark)
pick-up
n, m, transp. A small-size truck havings an open back with low sides.
SYN: pisicorre (Cu.), ranchera (Sp.)
ETYM: pickup
pico
adj. 1 Characterized by being the time of the day in which the highest number of people
or traffic is attested. (hora )
~ 294 ~
Annexes
Durante determinados períodos como en el de tarde en la noche, los arribos no son frecuentes,
por lo que λl es pequeño. En el caso de las horas picos, este parámetro es alto. (“Una
herramienta para simular y analizar el flujo de tráfico en un cruce regulado por semáforos con
tiempos de ciclos variables”, Revista Cubana de Ciencias Informáticas, dic. 2014)
SYN: hora punta (Sp.)
n, m 2 Time of the year or season in which a given activity is most developed, i.e.
agricultural crop.
ETYM: peak
pie [pái]
n, m, food 1 A baked dessert consisting of a filling (as of fruit or custard) in a pastry shell.
Aquí les dejamos con otra receta de pie, esta vez con sabor mango. Fácil en su elaboración y
tiempo medio de cocción, bien merece la pena. (“Pie de mango”, glotoncubano.com)
SYN: pastel (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: pie
n, m 2 [pié] A unit of measurement equal to 0.3048 meter.
Motores Diesel y Tractores: Concreteras de 4 a 13 pies. (Spare Parts Ad, Diario de la Marina.
20/02/1947, p.26)
ETYM: foot
pig
n, m, clothes Leather made from the skin of a pig.
ETYM: pigskin
pío tain
v. ph., obsol. To ask for a break. (DMC)
ETYM: time.
Obs.: This verb phrase is commonly used among children when they stop playing and ask
the other team for a break.
pin
n, m, clothes The small piece in a buckle that is used to fasten a belt or a strap. (DMC)
ETYM: pin
pinkigüey
n, m The action of piercing a cigarrette. (DMC)
ETYM: pinking and way.
~ 295 ~
pipa
n, f, transp. A vehicle (mostly trucks) for transporting liquids or gases in bulk.
El agua tuvo que ser suministrada en pipa a muchas ciudades a un alto costo, y a esta sequía
que hizo daño en las producciones agrícolas en todas partes del país se sumó el huracán con
estos daños que he explicado. (Fidel Castro’s Speech on the Fifth Anniversary of CDRs,
CREA)
SYN: camión cisterna (Sp.)
ETYM: pipe
Obs.: The headword makes reference to constituent pipes transporting these liquids and
gases safely.
pipero, -a
n, transp., occup. Someone who is responsible for driving a tanker truck.
Un operativo policial realizado el pasado martes, con el propósito de chequear las pipas de
cerveza a granel, en un área recreativa de esta ciudad, detectó que la bebida había sido alterada
con agua contaminada. (“Cayeron los piperos”, cubanet.org, 26/08/2011)
ETYM: pipe
pipi-room [pìpirúm]
n, m, colloq., house Any place in the house where there is a toilet. (DEC)
ETYM: A blending of pipi (wee-wee) and room.
pique
n, m, clothes 1 A knit or woven fabric patterns of fine ribbing.
La Casa Sánchez: Un amplísimo surtido en sobrecamas de pique, crash, enguatadas, mallas, tul,
etc. (Bedding Shop Ad, Diario de la Marina. 26/05/1947, p.11)
v. intran., colloq. 2 (coger un ) To get angry.
ETYM: pique
piqui
adj. Insistent and hard to please. (DMC)
ETYM: picky
piquipiqui
adj. → piqui
Ese alumno es muy piquipiqui en sus cosas. (DMC, p. 557)
ETYM: picky
~ 296 ~
Annexes
piquera [pikéra]
n, f, trans. Taxi stand or rank.
En la piquera de autos particulares de alquiler ubicada a un costado del Parque de la
Fraternidad, frente al hotel Saratoga, en la Habana Vieja, una pandilla de delincuentes decide
qué carros cargan o no pasajeros hacia Alamar, al este de la capital. (cubadebate,14-02-2014)
SYN: parada (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: to pick up
piratear
v. trans. In reference to a company, to attract employees from another company with better
working conditions.
ETYM: to pirate
pitchear
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to throw the ball to a batter.
Le prometo que solo me di un trago. No quería, casi me obligaron, ¿qué puede hacerme un
trago para pitchear? (“Sexo, bebidas, béisbol y mentiras”, guerrillero.cu, 21/07/2014)
SYN: lanzar (Cu.)
ETYM: to pitch
pitcheo
n, m, sport In baseball, the act of throwing the ball to a batter.
En el pitcheo también sobresalió el equipo norteño con 0.7 carreras limpias por juego de nueve
entradas, seguido por los caribeños con 1.9 y Panamá (3.3). (“Cuba y Estados Unidos,
campeones en Panamericano juvenil de béisbol”, granma.cu, 15/09/2014)
SYN: lanzamiento (Cu.)
ETYM: pitch
pitcher
n, m, sport In baseball, the player who pitches in a game of baseball.
En tiempo récord para la campaña, dos horas y cinco minutos concluyó ese partido, en el cual
el pitcher de la selección nacional, Jonder Martínez, sufrió la primera derrota. (Sport section,
trabajadores.cu, 19/12/2003, CREA)
SYN: lanzador (Cu.)
ETYM: pitcher
piyama
n, f, clothes → payama
~ 297 ~
Alrededor de las 8:00 p.m. ya eran cuatro niñas. La noche, ni fría ni calurosa, incitaba a planear
un encuentro inolvidable en casa de Rebeca. Cada una trajo en su mochila su cepillo de dientes,
una sábana, unas «chucherías» y su piyama. (“Aventura en piyama”, juventudrebelde.cu,
15/0172011)
ETYM: pajamas
placer
n, m A vacant lot, usually used for would-be housing or harvesting.
SYN: descampado (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from place.
planta eléctrica
n, f, tech. A power station that produces electricity for a large area.
Existían, además, casi 60 sistemas aislados, generalmente pequeños, que eran servidos por
plantas eléctricas locales, algunas de ellas en centrales azucareros. (“Electrificación de la
industria azucarera”, cubasolar.cu)
ETYM: power plant
plataforma
n, f, transp. A flat area next to railroad tracks or bus lanes, where people wait to get on.
Sintiendo alguna actividad cerca de las 2:15 am, laboriosamente me levanté del piso y me
presenté en la sala de equipaje, donde, entregando los formularios de solicitud, recuperé mi
equipaje y me dirigí a la plataforma para estar entre los primeros en la cola que ya se estaba
formando. (“Un viaje en tren de Santiago de Cuba a La Habana”, havanatimes.org, 28/04/2014)
SYN: andén (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: platform
plátano Johnson
n, m, food A variety of banana, characterized by its large size.
Desde la deliciosa y pulposa guayaba roja (en otros países son amarillas y terrosas), las
exquisitas y digestivas frutabombas (papaya o lechosa en otros países), las exquisitas piñas, los
desaparecidos y añorados plátanos manzanos y los riquísimos plátanos Johnson, los casi
extintos canistel, caimito blanco o morado, las ciruelas y sobre todo la fruta y el batido que
todo cubano añora: el mamey. (“Frutas cubanas”, carlosbua.com)
ETYM: unknown
plato
n, m, sport In baseball, the base on which the batter stands and that a runner must touch in
order to score.
Suzuki bateó una línea al bosque derecho, y el patrullero Urrutia lanzó un dardo al plato.
(“Japoneses Campeones - I Clásico Mundial de Béisbol”, radiorebelde.cu)
~ 298 ~
Annexes
SYN: goma, jon (Cu.)

ETYM: home plate
plato opresor del cloche

n, m, tech. A plate-shaped lever pressuring the clutch when the engine is on.
ETYM: clutch pressure plate
play-off [pléiof]
n, m, sport 1 A series of games that is played after the end of the regular season in order to
decide which player or team is the champion. (cf. MWD)
los cuatro mejores, puede ser que clasifique uno del grupo A y tres del grupo B, o inversa, o
dos y dos, ¿entiende?, y lo mismo para la parte oriental, y después ya, juegan entre esos cuatro,
hacen un play off, un play off, lo que se llama play off y sale uno por aquí y uno por el otro
lado, discuten entre ellos y ya, y se define el campeón de la Serie. (MHCLH, p.63)
n, m, sport 2 A game or series of games that is played to decide the winner when people or
teams are tied. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: play off
plomería
n, f, tech. A system of pipes that carries water through a building. (cf. MWD)
Cayó el precio oficial de alrededor de una veintena de artículos de plomería y otros materiales
para la construcción que se comercializan en los mercados de artículos industriales y de
servicios. (“Rebajas a artículos de plomería”, juventudrebelde.cu, 07/02/2014)
SYN: fontanería (Sp.)
ETYM: plumbing
plomero
n, m, occup. Someone whose job is to repair water piping, fittings, and fixtures.
A los pocos días de haber llegado empezaron a hacer preguntas. Que quién era plomero, quién
albañil, quién carpintero... Yo inmediatamente me brindé. (Gallego, Miguel Barnet, 1981: 195,
CREA)
SYN: fontanero (Sp.)
ETYM: plumber
plug [plo]
n, m, tech. 1 Device that is connected into an electrical outlet.
v. ph. 2 (sacar el ) To interrupt an activity that requires full concentration, to take a
break.
SYN: sacar el pie (Cu.)
ETYM: plug
~ 299 ~
plywood [pléigud]
n, m, house A strong board that is made by gluing together thin sheets of wood.
Vendo 2 puertas de madera dura y plywood marino. (Ad Post, revolico.com, 02/10/2013)
ETYM: plywood
polo acuático
n, m, sport A goal game similar to soccer that is played by teams of swimmer, who use a
ball (resembling a soccer ball).
Antes se celebraron los de levantamiento de pesas, ciclismo, remo, taekwondo, boxeo,
gimnasia, polo acuático, hockey sobre césped, pentatlón moderno y esgrima. (“Exitoso curso
continental de triatlón”, granma.cu, 01/10/2002, CREA)
ETYM: water polo
polo-shirt
n, m, clothes A shirt with a collar and a few buttons at the neck that you put on by pulling
over your head. (cf. MWD)
La Filosofía: moss crepe y foulard, polo-shirt estilo italiano. (Department Store Ad, Diario de
la Marina. 14/12/1955, p.11)
SYN: pulóver de cuello (Cu.), polo (Sp.)
ETYM: polo-shirt
ponchador
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a pitcher who leads to a number of strike-outs.
Figura como el líder en juegos ganados en Series Nacionales, con 257 y el segundo máximo
ponchador en la historia de estos torneos, con 2426. (“Los 10 mejores deportistas cubanos de la
historia”, martinoticias.com, 08/04/2014)
n, m, occup. 2 Someone whose job is to fix flat tyres.
ETYM: punch
ponchadora
n, f A device or machine for cutting holes or notches (as in paper or cardboard). (cf.
MWD)
Vendo ponchadora profesional de 3 orificios para encuadernar folletos, libros, etc. (Ad Post,
SYN: perforadora (Sp.)
ETYM: punch
~ 300 ~
Annexes
ponchar [ponchár]
v. trans., sport 1 To cause a batter to fail at hitting the ball in a baseball game.
El cubano ponchó a 187 bateadores en 172.2 innings, regaló 58 boletos, fue el líder en menos
hits permitidos (5.8) y ponches por entradas lanzadas (9.7). (El Nuevo Herald, 01-01-2014)
v. ph. 2 ( un ojo) To punch (or get punched) in the eye. (DEC)
v. trans. vulg. 3 To fail an exam.
No ponché más porque los milagros existen, pero siempre tuve claro que la que yo di era una
Matemática absolutamente escandalosa, malediciente, en fin, totalmente indiscreta.
(“Matemática discreta”, juventudrebelde.cu, 03/05/2014)
SYN: suspender (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: punch-out
poncharse [ponshárse]
v. intrans., transp. 1 To have a flat tyre.
SYN: pinchar (Sp.)
v. intrans. 2 To fail at hitting the ball in a baseball game.
Un equipo de mi región iba para Güinía de Miranda y no llegaba el primera base Gilberto Ruiz,
de Condado, le piden permiso a mi papá, él me mira con mucho respeto y asiente con la cabeza,
ya por raticos yo jugaba pelota, fui e hice de todo, jugué primera, bateé, me ponché, cometí
errores, pero di jonrones. (www.beisbolencuba.com)
ETYM: to punch
ponche [pónshe]
n, m 1 A flat tyre. (tener un )
El sábado 22 de diciembre fui al "servicentro", si se le puede llamar así, que está en 23 y 12, al
lado del cine del mismo nombre, y me dirigí a un local que hay contiguo donde se echa aire,
con el propósito de cogerles ponches a dos gomas (Granma, 04-02-2011)
SYN: pinchazo (Sp.)
ETYM: punch-out
n, m, sport 2 The result of striking out three times in a row, in a baseball game.
Fue uno de los tres lanzadores en la Serie Nacional de Béisbol que ha logrado la marca de
2.000 ponches en la carrera deportiva. (Faustino Corrales, síntesis bibliográfica. ecured.cu)
n, m, colloq. 3 A failing mark at school.
Para cerrar el tema del vocabulario, recuerdo que, desde la infancia, quienes suspendían un
examen recibían un “ponche”. (“La pelota, el fenómeno cultural de mayor arraigo en Cuba”,
SYN: suspenso (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: punch
ponchera [ponshéra]
n, f, transp. Place in which cars or tyres are repaired.
~ 301 ~
Las agencias también tendrán la posibilidad de arrendar locales para brindar servicios
vinculados al transporte como es el caso de ponchera, fregado, reparaciones mecánicas, entre
otros. (granma.cu, 08-01-2014)
ETYM: punch
poplín
n, m, clothes A strong cotton cloth.
El Encanto: camisas de sport de manga corta, de excelente poplin blanco, pulover de algodón,
de listas horizontales, shorts de sports, de excelente gabardina de algodón. (Department Store
Ad, Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.16)
ETYM: poplin
popsicle
n, m, food 1 A small flavored water frozen on a stick.
Es verano, hace calor y qué es mejor para refrescarnos que un rico popsicle? Ahora, a escoger
de que sabor hacerlo, de Mamey! (“La Hora de los Mameyes? Mamey Popsicles”,
mycubantraumas.blogspot.com, 21/07/2010)
SYN: durofrío (Cu.), polo (Sp.)
n, m A very thin person.
ETYM: popsicle
porch
n, m, house → car porch
ETYM: car porch
posta médica
n, f, med. A rural station whose main task is to provide medical assistance.
Al lado de mi vivienda hay ubicada una posta médica. Dicha posta casi se pasa el año sin
brindar servicio y ahora para colmo la cisterna que está en la parte delantera de la posta tiene
una rotura. (“Posta médica atenta contra la salud publica”, pinceladasdecuba.blogspot.com,
19/11/2010)
ETYM: (medical) post
pote
n, m, house, food A plastic container used chiefly for domestic purposes (keeping food or
mixing). Especially used for an ice-cream container, which is more likely loaned from
“French pot” ice-cream.
La medida de un pote, que es lo que venden en las tiendas recaudadora de divisas, es de un
cuarto de litro y cuesta un peso cincuenta centavos. (“En busca del helado perdido”,
cubanet.org)
ETYM: pot
~ 302 ~
Annexes
Obs.: DRAE states that pote is a loanword from catalan pot. MWD traces the origin of pot
as early back as Old English form pott. The question is whether pote (Cu.) was loaned and
assimilated from Catalan influence or American English.
power
n, m, colloq. The ability of controlling people or organizations, or possessing a higher
social status. (tener )
De verdad que tiene power ese Trio, suena estelar, tremendo concepto. Es bien dificil florear
así con las congas y cantar con swing, mis respetos! (“Tres X Dos Cuban Music Power Trio”,
Forum Post, youtube.com)
SYN: punch (Cu.)
ETYM: power
precinto
n, m, obsol. A police station.
Cuando el capitán de policía del precinto 84 le pasaron la llmamada de emergencias, tomó
todas las precauciones de lugar, él mismo llamó al capitán de bomberos para hacerle partícipe
del inminente peligro. (La Lupe: Reina poseída, Isabel matos, p.124)
ETYM: precinct
preservante
n, m, tech., food A chemical that is added to food to keep it fresh longer. (cf. MWD)
Ferrical: Combinación de hidrolizado de proteínas de origen equino, miel de abejas, hierro
hemínico, proteínas, vitaminas y minerales que actúa como preservante. (“Productos
Naturales”, labiofamcuba.com)
SYN: conservante (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: preservative
presión arterial
n, f, med. The force with which blood moves through a person's body.
El riñón también regula la presión arterial y los niveles de glóbulos rojos en la sangre entre sus
muchas funciones. (“Nefritis”, Granma Internacional, 14/10/2002)
SYN: tensión arterial (Sp.)
ETYM: blood pressure
privet
n, m A bush with green leaves that is often used for hedges.
Una boda muy lúcida tuvo lugar el domingo en la capilla La Salle: los muros de privet, sobre
los cuales se dispusieron de trecho en trecho unos finísimos bunches de gladiolos amarillos.
~ 303 ~
ETYM: privet
promedio
n, m, sport → average
Los tres taipeianos miembros del equipo fueron el inicialista Ping-En Wu, 520 y puntero en
carreras impulsadas, 14; Hao-Yu Lee, tercera base, 500 de promedio y líder en dobles. (“Un
cubano en el Todos Estrellas”, 03/08/2015, granma.cu)
ETYM: average
provisorio, -a
adj. Referring to something that exists or is accepted for the present time but likely to be
changed.
El año que termina fue pródigo en acontecimientos que dejaron profundas huellas en el sistema
internacional. (“2013: un balance provisorio”, cubadebate.cu, 31/12/2013)
SYN: provisional (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: provisory
puchindrún
v. ph. (estar ) To be absent-minded. (DEC)
Para mí que la sangre de toro lo tenía "puchindrún." Que puercada eso de tomar sangre.
(Comment Post, “El escolta de Fidel Castro”, cubaencuentro.com, 13/04/2012)
ETYM: punch and drunk
pudín
n, m, food Dessert made of stale bread, sugar, milk, almonds and vanilla.
Como regalo de 2015, hemos querido traerles las distintas formas propuestas por la reconocida
Nitza Villapol en su libro Cocina al minuto, para preparar el pudín, un postre casero muy
gustado por las familias cubanas. (“Variedades para un pudín”, cubahora.cu, 07/01/2015)
ETYM: pudding
pulguero
n, m, clothes A shop in which second-hand clothes are sold.
Ese tipo de tiendas, al igual que los rastrillos o pulgueros, existen en muchos países, Suiza
incluida, y la gente acude a ellos sin ningún tipo de complejos, en busca de antigüedades y
rarezas. (“Shopi-trapos”, taniaquintero.blogspot.com, 20/07/2009)
ETYM: flea (market)
pulóver
n, m, clothes A piece of buttonless clothing worn as a top.
~ 304 ~
Annexes
Entre sus pertenencias le fueron ocupadas la mochila, la gorra, el short y el pulóver que, según
las declaraciones de los testigos, portaba en el momento de realizar las acciones. (“Detenido
mercenario autor confeso de explosiones en centros ...”, Granma Internacional, 09/1997, núm.
36, CREA)
SYN: camiseta (Sp.)
ETYM: pullover
pump
n, m, clothes A shoe that grips the foot chiefly at the toe and heel. (cf. MWD)
Ultra: nuevo pump abierto en charol. Nueva sandalia T-strap (Department Store Ad, Diario de
la Marina. 14/12/1955, p.6)
ETYM: pump
pun [pun]
n, m A type of spiky hairdo resembling punk rock musicians.
ETYM: punk
punch [pánch]
n, m, sport 1 In boxing, the force possessed by boxers when hitting.
EI imponente y demoledor punch de Stevenson, con ambas manos, contribuyeron también a
que los rivales le profesaran gran respeto dentro de las doce cuerdas y se cuidaran mucho de
intercambiar golpes con él. (“Escuela cubana de boxeo”, ecured.cu)
n, m, colloq. 2 Connections or influence allowing someone to escalate socially and
financially. (tener )
Él tiene un gran punch en el gobierno. (DMC, p. 578)
ETYM: punch
punch-drunk
adj., colloq. Unable to think or act normally because you are very tired, excited, etc. (DEC)
ETYM: punch-drunk
punching bag
n, m, sport In boxing, a very heavy bag that usually hanging from the ceiling and that is
punched for training.
En realidad acaso no necesitas otra cosa,
porque como seguramente pensarás,
ya tiene tu lugar.
Es bueno, al fin y al cabo,
hallar un punching bag.
~ 305 ~
ETYM: punching bag
puncho
n, m, clothes Male underwear that goes from the waist to the the upper knees. (DEC)
ETYM: Punch (trademark)
quáker
n, m, food → cuáquer
SYN: cereal (Sp.)
ETYM: quaker
quechear
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to play as a catcher.
“Yo en ese momento escuché que nos habíamos quedado sin receptor, me acerqué al manager y
le dije voy a quechear porque lo mío es ayudar al equipo”, reveló Duarte Hernández. (“Yo
sabía que me iba a tirar recta, dijo Madera”, zonadestrike.wordpress.com, 04/04/2014)
ETYM: catcher
quecheo
n, m, sport → cacheo
Felicitaciones al equipo de Villa Clara. Esperemos que en la próxima serie se reconozca el
trabajo de Michel Pérez Bello, uno de los mejores entrenadores de quecheo de Villa Clara.
(Comment Post, “Ciego de Ávila derrota a los pineros y toma ventaja en Play-Off cubano”,
SYN: recepción (Cu.)
ETYM: catcher
Queen Mary
n, m A type of rose characterized by being having large petals.
Mario Almagro y Hernández: muy lindo el ramo, todo de rosas Queen Mary, tejido para ella en
el favorito jardín Milagros entre Prado y Colón. (Diario de la Marina. 20/02/1947, p.5)
ETYM: Queen Mary’s Gardens
~ 306 ~
Annexes
quemar
v. trans., comp. ( CDs or DVDs) To copy.
Aunque existen muy buenos programas con interfaces gráficas para grabar o borrar CDs o
DVDs en Linux, como Brasero, K3b o Xfburn, siempre resulta interesante dominar aquellas
variantes que ofrece la todopoderosa línea de comandos. A continuación encontrarán un
pequeño resumen con algunos comandos y ejemplos de su uso para estos menesteres.
(“Quemar, borrar datos y crear imágenes de CD/DVD desde la consola Linux”,
alexdecuba.wordpress.es)
SYN: copiar (Sp.)
ETYM: to burn
querosene
n, m → kerosene
Especialistas médicos confirmaron a JR que tras la introducción masiva, en los años 90, del gas
licuado en la ciudad de Santiago de Cuba disminuyó sobremanera la ingestión de querosene,
uno de los accidentes infantiles más frecuentes en el hogar. (“Eliminan antiguos fogones
Píker”, juventudrebelde.cu, 13/03/2007)
SYN: luzbrillante (Cu.)
ETYM: kerosene
queso crema
n, m, food A soft white cheese made from milk and cream.
Otero: cualquiera que sea el dulce, la combinación perfecta es con queso crema Otero. (Cream
Cheese Ad, Diario de la Marina. 10 April. 1952, p.9)
SYN: queso filadelfia (Sp.)
ETYM: cream cheese
quieto en base
adj. ph., sport 1 In baseball, that is safe on base, not being put out.
Otra vez, ante carreras y quietos en base, los días del Coloso del Cerro son agitados. Como en
cada Serie Nacional, de Béisbol se llena el aire. (“Al final del segundo inning”,
adj. ph., colloq. 2 characterized by staying put or silent.
SYN: safe (Cu.)
ETYM: remain on base
quíntuple
n One of five babies that are born at the same time to the same mother.
Así, algunos autores plantean que su incidencia está en 1 por cada 80 embarazos en el doble o
gemelar, 1 por 6 000 en los triples o trillizos, 1 por cada 500 000 en los cuádruples
(cuatrillizos) y 1 por cada 40 960 000 en los quíntuples (quintillizos). (“Embarazo múltiple”,
Medical Report bvs.sld.cu)
~ 307 ~
SYN: quintillizo (Cu., Sp.)

ETYM: quintuplet
quiropedia
n, f, med. The medical branch in which human feet disorders are treated.
Todas las comodidades, aire acondicionado, TV, agua fría y caliente, también se ofrecen otros
servicios, como el de lavandería, planchado, masajes, transporte y recogidas, quiropedia, etc.
(Ad Post, casasderentaencuba.com)
SYN: podólogía (Sp.)
ETYM: chiropody
quiropedista
n, occup., med. A medical specialist of human feet.
Mi bisabuelo, don Gabriel José Aniceto, fue el primer quiropedista titular establecido en la
capital cubana. (“Podólogo, periodista y cuerdo”, granma.cu, 27/04/2007)
SYN: podólogo, -a (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: chiropodist
rabo de caballo
n, m, body A hairdo, which implies gathering it together at the back of the head and letting
it hang down freely. (LHCLH)
SYN: moño (Cu., Sp.), rabo de mula (Cu.)
ETYM: ponytail
rabo de mula
n, m, body → rabo de caballo
Yo que había entrado a la Iglesia con aquel señor tan sencillo como tú y yo o cualquier otro del
pueblo, con su rabo de mula por el pelo largo, un pulover de rayas, iba saludando a todos los
que se encontraba en su camino. (“La conección cubana”, fragua.org, 09/1995)
SYN: moño (Cu., Sp.), rabo de caballo (Cu.)
ETYM: ponytail
rabo de nube
n, m An extension of the air flowing into the updraft and wall cloud, resembling tornadoes.
~ 308 ~
Annexes
En Cuba el estudio de los también llamados Mangas de Viento o Rabo de Nube comenzó hace
relativamente pocos años y desde entonces los especialistas analizan frecuencia e
interioridades. (“Rabo de nube”, tribuna.co.cu, 21/07/2012)
SYN: tornado (Sp.)
ETYM: tail cloud
Obs.: This is an uncommon mis-translated calque, whose Spanish version would be, in a
more literal and strict sense: nube con rabo.
rafles
n, m A cunning thief.
Mi marido es el rafles del amor. (DMC, p. 587)
ETYM: A. J. Raffles was a famous thief character, created by E. W. Hornung, who became
widely known in Cuba through a radio soap opera.
ráquet
n, m, obsol. An illegal business. (DEC)
SYN: bisne (Cu.)
ETYM: Prob. from racket store
rally
n, m, sport In baseball, an occurrence in which a team or player that has been behind or
playing badly begins to play well. (cf. MWD)
Valdés remolcó una anotación en la cuarta entrada con sencillo al jardín izquierdo, y dos
capítulos más tarde, en el sexto, coronó un rally de cinco carreras, con enorme cuadrangular
con las bases llenas, a lo profundo de la pradera izquierda. (“Pinar del Río, campeón de la 53
Serie Nacional del béisbol cubano”, cubasi.cu, 16/04/2014)
ETYM: rally
ranqueado, -a
adj., colloq. 1 Referring to a knowledgeable person.
adj. 2 Referring to someone who has a favorable position in a scale of efficiency,
especially sportspeople.
Marco había llegado a ser bien ranqueado en el mundillo del circo por su habilidad en el
manejo de las armas blancas, en especial puñales y látigos. (La eternidad por fin comienza un
lunes, Eliseo Diego, 1992: 117, CREA)
ETYM: rank
ranquear
v. trans. To place (someone or something) in a scale of efficiency and performance.
~ 309 ~
Lamentablemente numerosas bitácoras cubanas parecen no tener una adecuada sindicación en

Technorati, lo cual les resta puntos globales, con lo que no pueden ranquear por ahora.
(“Blogosfera cubana: ranking”, periodistadigital.com, 13/07/2007)
ETYM: rank
rápido
n, m, food A fast-food cafetería.
Aquí te va una lista de restaurantes y cafeterías en la pequeña ciudad de Varadero:el Rápido de
la calle 47... (“Restaurantes y cafeterías en Varadero”, turismoencuba.com)
ETYM: Prob. from fast-food
raque [ráke]
n, m, obsol. The act of illegal gathering as if with a rake, especially on the coast, to collect
items left after a wreckage. (DEP)
ETYM: rake
raquear
v. intrans., obsol. To gather items illegally, especially on daily basis.
En parte me lo explico, porque el jolongo, es el almacén del cubano, en él carga la ropa y la
ración, lo que le han dado y lo que ha podido raquear. (Diarlo del Teniente Coronel Eduardo
Rosell y Malpica (1897-18), Eduardo Rosell y Malpica, p. 21)
ETYM: rake
rash [ras]
n, m, med., body An eruption on the skin.
En estudios realizados en niños ha sido bien tolerado. La reacción adversa más común fue rash
y la dosis usada de 4-8 mg/kg de peso cada 12 h. (“Instituto de Medicina Tropical "Pedro
Kourí"”, Revista Cubana de Farmacia, v. 34, nº 3, 09/12/2000, CREA)
SYN: erupción (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: rash
Obs.: Often accompanied by the adjective cutáneo.
raspe
n, m, colloq. A rough and brusque reply. (dar un )
Durante sus estancias en Cuba, lo más probable es que nunca viera la televisión cubana. No lo
necesitaba: en su residencia habanera podía ver programas y noticieros de otros países. (“El
raspe del Gabo”, martinoticias.com, 20/04/2014)
ETYM: Prob. from rasp
~ 310 ~
Annexes
rating [réitin]
n, m, tech. Numbers that show how many people watch or listen to a particular television
or radio program.
El survey de Televisión publicado el 30 de Marzo de 1952, le dió el puesto 16, con 46.16
puntos de rating. (“Zarzuelas y operetas en la televisión cubana”, tvcubana.icrt.cu)
SYN. índice de audiencia (Sp.)
ETYM: the ratings
rayo
n, m One of the straight lines extending from the center of a bicycle wheel.
Lo llevaba en la parrilla de la bicicleta y descuidadamente metió el pie donde no debía. Por
poco no le deja rayo sano a la rueda de atrás, pero el pie le quedó intacto. Ni un arañazo.
(Comment Post, “La empedrada ruta del calzado ortopédico”, granma.cu, 26/02/2015)
ETYM: ray
ready [rédi]
adj., obsol. Referring to someone who is prepared to do something.
ETYM: ready
realización
n, f The act of selling goods at prices that are lower than usual. (DEC)
SYN: liquidación (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from realization
realizar
v. intrans. To sell goods at prices that lower than usual. (DEC)
SYN: liquidar (Sp.)
ETYM: to realize
rebound [ribáun]
v. ph. (no tener ) To refuse to get back together with someone after splitting up. (DMC)
ETYM: rebound
recapar
v. intrans., tech., transp. To cover the outer surface of a tire.
Cerca de cuatro millones y medio de dólares por concepto de sustitución de importaciones,
ahorró al país en el primer semestre del año la Empresa Nacional de la Goma, al recapar más de
77 000 neumáticos. (“Recape de neumáticos ahorra millones al país”, granma.cu, 01/07/2015)
~ 311 ~
ETYM: to recap
recape
n, m, tech., transp. The action of covering the outer surface of a tire.
La Habana, 1ro mar.- Al concluir el 2011 Cuba dispondrá de tres modernas plantas de recape
de gomas –una de ellas en Camagüey-, que permitirán ahorrar divisas, un imperativo para
paliar los efectos de la crisis financiera internacional. (“Dispondrá Cuba de modernas plantas
de recape de gomas”, cadenagramonte.cu, 28/02/2011)
ETYM: recap
recentín, -a
adj., tech. Referring to a cow that has just given birth. (DEC)
ETYM: Prob. from recent or recently
receptor
n, m, sport In baseball, the player standing behind the batter and catches the pitches thrown
by the pitcher.
Los espirituanos le pasaron la escoba a los yumurinos en el parque José Antonio Huelga, donde
Reinier Yero pegó su séptimo cuadrangular en ese cotejo y quedó como líder absoluto de los
toleteros, en tanto fue secundado por el también receptor Eriel Sánchez, con dos. (Sport
section,Trabajadores, 19/12/2003, CREA)
SYN: catcher (Cu.)
ETYM: catcher
receptoría
n, f, sport In baseball, the position played by the catcher.
Los asistentes al estadio Francisco I. Madero pudieron ver a un equipo que cambió su
alineación a partir del quinto turno, con Cañizares de bateador designado, Roberquis en el
jardín central, Joan Carlos Pedroso en el primer cojín, Roger Machado a cargo de la receptoría
y Yorelvis Charles custodiando la intermedia. (“Hoy: Ibar vs Dominicana”, granma.cu,
01/10/2002, CREA)
SYN: catcheo, quecheo (Cu.)
ETYM: catcher
recesar
v. intrans. To take a break for a short period of time.
Se exceptúan de recesar las labores relacionadas con la zafra azucarera y otros trabajos
agrícolas urgentes, industrias de procesos de producción continua, labores inaplazables de
carga y descarga. (“Anuncian regulaciones laborales y del proceso educativo en La Habana,
Holguín y Santiago de Cuba”, granma.cu, 15/09/2015)
ETYM: to recess
~ 312 ~
Annexes
receso
n, m A short period of time during the school day when children can play. (cf. MWD)
En cada receso me iba hasta la puerta de la dirección para ver si veía de nuevo a mi carne
descubierta, a la que tengo que llamar la muchacha a secas o la muchacha de los ojos negros
como espejos o la muchacha del cine "Radiocine" -porque ella no me había dicho su nombre.
(La Habana para un infante difunto, Guillermo Cabrera Infante, 1986: 129, CREA)
SYN: descanso (Sp.)
ETYM: recess
recordista
n Someone or something that has broken a record.
Los trabajadores del espirituano central Uruguay —recordista nacional azucarero—que
protagonizaron una verdadera hazaña laboral en la década de los años 80, archivan en sus
memorias las 236 000 toneladas de azúcar fabricadas entonces. (“El central Uruguay va por
más caña”, granma.cu, 25/10/2015)
ETYM: record
red butler
n, m Someone who is old-fashioned.
A los políticos cubanos les dicen red butler. (DMC, p. 592)
ETYM: Rhett Butler, the lead character in the film ‘Gone with the Wind’.
refacción
n, f, tech. A contract by means of which the landowner facilitates resources to farmers so
they can harvest the land more efficiently.
De esta fecha en adelante, el crédito de carácter hipotecario fue ocupando un lugar
principalísimo en el sistema productivo de la isla, a tal punto que para finales del setecientos, la
producción azucarera giraba en torno a la refacción y dependía practicamente de ella. (Diez
nuevas miradas de historia de Cuba, Jose A. Piqueras Arenas, 1998: 64)
ETYM: Prob. from refaction
referee
n, sport In boxing or tennis, the person who makes sure players are following the rules.
(DEC)
Suiza se convirtió en el primer equipo en ser eliminado sin recibir tantos en contra; y el
argentino Horacio Elizondo entró en los libros como el único referee que ha actuado en los
desafíos inaugural y último de la misma edición mundialista. (“XVIII Copa: Alemania”,
cubahora.cu, 09/06/2014)
ETYM: referee
~ 313 ~
referí
n, m, sport → referee
ETYM: referee
refrigerador
n, m, house A device used to keep things (such as food and drinks) cold.
Como todos los muebles estaban a su nombre, les quitaron el televisor, el refrigerador y el
tocadiscos, pues estos artículos escaseaban en el país. También confiscaron la cuenta de
ahorros que la familia tenía en el Banco. (Contra toda esperanza, Armando Valladares, 1985,
CREA)
SYN: frigidaire (Cu.), nevera (Sp.)
ETYM: refrigerator
relay
n, m, tech. An electromagnetic device for remote or automatic control that is actuated by
variation in conditions of an electric circuit and that operates in turn other devices (as
switches) in the same or a different circuit. (cf. MWD)
Vendo relays de 5 patas con su soque, todo nuevo, tengo 25 a $3 cuc cada uno. (Classified
Post, revolico.com, 22/12/2015)
ETYM: relay
relé
n, m, tech. → relay
ETYM: relé
relevista
n, m, sport In baseball, a pitcher who replaces a wild pitcher.
Entre los tantos «pelados» que ha hecho en su vida como lanzador, el «barbero de Guanajay»,
José Ángel García, logró convertirse este martes en el primer relevista que logra mil cortes,
digo, mil ponches, en series nacionales cubanas. (“Jose Angel García. Mil ponches como
relevista en béisbol cubano”, cubava.cu, 05/03/2015)
ETYM: relief pitcher
remarcable
adj. Referring to a significant event.
Lo remarcable es que el tabaco se conoce en Inglaterra, llevado por contrabandistas y piratas o
por pacíficos marinos de la primera época, antes de que los ingleses establezcan colonias en el
Nuevo Mundo. (El bello habano. Biografía íntima del tabaco, Reinaldo González, 1998: 67,
CREA)
~ 314 ~
Annexes
SYN: importante, transcendental (Cu., Sp.)

ETYM: remarkable
removedor
n, m Liquid used to remove nail polish.
SYN: quitaesmalte (Sp.)
ETYM: (nail polish) remover
remover
v. trans. To move (something or someone) from a prior position.
El hígado es capaz de remover del plasma los componentes responsables de un estado de
hipercoagulabilidad, tales como los factores activados de la coagulación a través de un sistema
de macrófagos. (“Inhibidores fisiológicos de la coagulación”, Revista Cubana Invest Bioméd
v.16 n.2 Ciudad de la Habana, 1997)
SYN: quitar (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: to remove
rentacar
n, m, transp. A hire car, especially rented by tourists.
SYN: coche de alquiler (Sp.), carro de alquiler (Cu.)
ETYM: rent-a-car
rentar
v. trans. To pay money in return for using something (house, car, etc.)
Hasta la promulgación el pasado 15 de mayo del nuevo decreto-ley sobre el arrendamiento de
viviendas, habitaciones o espacios, la Ley General de la Vivienda de 1988 permitía a los
propietarios de casas rentar hasta dos habitaciones, sin que se contemplara ningún gravamen
por ello. (“Promulgan decreto-ley sobre arrendamiento de viviendas, habitaciones o espacios y
procedimiento para el pago de impuesto”, Granma Internacional, 06/1997, núm. 22)
SYN: alquilar, arrendar (Sp.)
ETYM: to rent
reportar
v. trans. To give an account of a piece of news in the media.
A las dos horas, se había quedado de nuevo sin nada que hacer. Entonces tuvo una idea que se
le antojó genial: se impondría la misión de reportar en un cuaderno las incidencias de aquella
travesía. (La eternidad por fin comienza un lunes, Alberto Eliseo, 1992: 208, CREA)
SYN: informar (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: to report
~ 315 ~
reporter
n, m, occup. A person who writes/tells news stories for a newspaper, magazine, radio or
television program, etc.
Un bautizo: eterna felicidad al cristianito y a sus padres desea el que suscribe, particularmente a
su padre, reporter gráfico de Diario de la Marina. (Diario de la Marina. 02/04/1930, p.15)
SYN: reportero (Cu.), corresponsal (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: reporter
reportero, -a
n, occup. → reporter
ETYM: reporter
reservación
n, f An arrangement to have something (such as a room, table, or seat) held for your use at
a later time. (cf. MWD)
Pregunté por mi reservación y ella me respondió con una vocecita aguda, en un inglés pintado,
poco común en esta isla. Luego me entregó un folleto con un plano de la ciudad. (El capitán de
los dormidos, Mayra Montero, 2002: 11, CREA)
SYN: reserva (Sp.)
ETYM: reservation
right field [ráifíl]

n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the part of a baseball outfield that is to the right when you are
looking out from home plate.
Los cubanos son: Yasiel Puig (Dodgers de Los Angeles), right field de la Liga Nacional,
Yoenis Céspedes (Atléticos de Oakland), el torpedero Alexei Ramírez (Medias Blancas de
Chicago), el espectacular novato José Dariel Abreu (Medias Blancas de Chicago) y el pitcher
Aroldis Chapman (Rojos de Cincinnati). (“5 cubanos en el juego de las estrellas”,
cubared.com, 07/07/2014)
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, the position of the player defending right-field.
No nos pueden culpar en absoluto, porque ese es un umpire al que le van para arriba, sobre la
base donde tiene que trabajar. No fue en la primera, ni en la tercera, ni en la línea del right field
o del left field, fue en el centro del cuadro. Esa es la historia. (Fidel Castro’s speech on the
welcoming ceremony of the Cuban delegation participating in a sport event in Baltimore,
CREA)
SYN: jardín derecho (Cu.)
ETYM: right field
ring
n, m, sport In boxing, the square enclosure in which the fight takes place.
~ 316 ~
Annexes
Pero si uno se pone el traje de boxeador, si uno le habla al acusado de tú por tú y si uno celebra
el juicio en un ring, entonces no te lo agradecen. (El ring, Virgilio Piñera, 1990, CREA)
SYN: cuadrilátero (Cu.)
ETYM: ring
ring boy
n, m, obsol. A boy who is responsible for carrying the rings in a wedding.
Marina. 16 January. 1947, p.7)
SYN: damito (Cu.)
ETYM: ring boy
ripiado(a) [ripiádo]
adj. Characterized by being old or ragged.
Superficialmente parece que hay mucha diferencia entre que un opulento vista ropa "ripiada" y
que lo haga alguien que no tiene otra cosa. Tal vez el superficial sea yo, pero no lo tengo claro.
(genealogiadelnictalope.blogspot.com)
ETYM: ripped
ripiar [ripíar]
v. trans. 1 To tear or split something in smaller parts.
Echar todo en un gran plato y dejarlo enfriar, ripiar bien la carne, en un gran sartén, calentar el
aceite, añadir un poquito de ajo picado, cebollas picadas, , la pimienta y dejar cocinar durante
10 minutos removiendo todo que no se pegue. (rentincuba.fr)
v. trans., vulg. 2 To attack someone violently, especially by using a sharp object.
En un principio esta introducción iba a llevar el siguiente subtítulo: “Te voy a ripiar en diez
trozos, dice Juanito (serial killer a quien el rumor callejero ha puesto de sobrenombre El
Carnicero de La Habana) y alza el machete encima del cadáver de Mr. Prólogo”. Pero era
excesivamente largo. (“Diez negritos apuntes desde la isla”, isliada.org )
ETYM: to rip
ripio
n, m, tech. 1 A damaged tobacco leaf, which is subsequently chopped or minced.
n, m, colloq. 2 Someone or something characterized by being ragged or in a dreadful state.
Ella no me contestó ni pío. Se quedó mirándome fijamente. Yo era un ripio. Le pedí que me
hablara, pero ella muda. (Gallego, Miguel Barnet, 1981: 31, CREA)
ETYM: rip
~ 317 ~
riposta
n, m 1 A quick and clever reply.
Y, como si no bastara, entonces la situación toma un sesgo inusitado cuando la mafia desde
Nueva York presta riposta. Y lo hace con desusada nitidez: sencillamente deja filtrar en la
prensa norteamericana sus planes para asesinar al mayor general Fulgencio Batista, para lo cual
ha dispuesto la asignación presupuestaria de unos $5 millones. (“El "malentendido" Lansky-
Batista”, Granma Internacional, 11/1997, núm. 46 , CREA)
n, m, sport 2 In boxing, the act of returning punches.
Onofre, los hermanos Bayolo, Ortiz, el Pacífico, Perdomo, esgrimiendo los palos de trapear se
batían con los guardias, que acostumbrados a golpear sin riposta, no comprendían aquella
reacción nuestra. (Contra toda esperanza, Armando Valladares, 1985, CREA)
ETYM: riposte
ripostar
v. intrans., colloq. 1 To reply in a quick and clever manner.
Pero el caco no se inmuta y riposta: "Oye man, estamos en América (EE.UU.), aquí con un
buen abogado y dinero estás en la calle". (“Los rehenes del sistema”, Granma Internacional,
04/1997, núm. 15, CREA)
v. intrans, sport 2 In boxing, to return punches back.
"Traté de evitar su mano de golpear fuerte, y ripostar", aclaró. "El ambiente en el equipo es
de victoria y de ayudar a la delegación a llegar lo más arriba que se pueda". (“¡Página épica del
boxeo cubano!”, granma.cu, 21/08/2008)
ETYM: riposte
river breeze
adj. A pale color between blue and gray.
Ultra: pantalones de tropical y river breeze verde. Camisas de sports, de manga larga, en
heatherspun a cuadros.(Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.7)
ETYM: river breeze
robador de base
n, m, sport In baseball, the player that reaches a base safely by running and usually
catching the opposing team off guard.
Grandes robadores de bases hubo siempre en el béisbol cubano. (“Robar, un arte
imprescindible en la pelota”, cubadebate.cu, 09/12/2010)
ETYM: base stealer
robar base
v. ph., sport In baseball, to reach (a base) safely solely by running and usually catching the
opposing team off guard.
~ 318 ~
Annexes
Hago una salvedad: se roba poco, y para colmo el arbitraje desestimula dicha práctica: bastante
vieja es su tendencia a cantar ‘out’ la inmensa mayoría de las situaciones apretadas en las
almohadillas. (“Robar, un arte imprescindible en la pelota”, cubadebate.cu, 09/12/2010)
ETYM: to steal a base
robo de base
n. ph., m, sport In baseball, the act of reaching (a base) safely solely by running and
usually catching the opposing team off guard.
Uno de los aspectos básicos del juego de pelota donde más se resiente la Serie Nacional -esto,
desde hace varios años ya- es la escasa utilización del robo de bases. (“Robar, un arte
imprescindible en la pelota”, cubadebate.cu, 09/12/2010)
ETYM: to steal a base
rocket
n, m A missile or projectile.
Creen ustedes que el mundo iba a enterarse del ataque a Cuba, creen ustedes que el mundo iba
a enterarse de lo ocurrido, creen ustedes o concibieron ustedes que fuese posible intentar apagar
en el mundo el eco de las bombas y los rockets criminales que tiraron ayer en nuestra patria?
(Fidel Castro’s speech, 16/03/1961)
ETYM: rocket
rojo
adj. Characterized by being angry and upset (at someone). (ponerse )
ETYM: red (in tooth and claw)
rolata
n, m, sport → roletazo
La otra anotación llegó en la baja del octavo por error del camarero Raúl González, un
lanzamiento wild del relevista zurdo Liván Moinelo, que permitió que llegara hasta tercera base
el corredor, y una rolata por el cuadro. (“No hit no run para Cuba en tope de béisbol con
EE.UU”, cubasi.cu, 01/07/2015)
ETYM: roll-out
role var. roli

n, m, sport → roletazo
A este selecto y brillante club con dualidad de roles se une ahora el capitalino Javier Méndez,
designado para conducir las Estrellas del oeste y a partir de este momento ocupante del décimo
tercer escaño en ese listado. (“Interesantes destellos”, juventudrebelde.cu, 12/12/2015)
ETYM: roll-out
~ 319 ~
roletazo
n, m, sport In baseball, a slowly rolling ground ball hit by the batter.
Es considerado dentro del béisbol profesional cubano como el mejor fildeador de roletazos
lentos por la media luna, en toda la historia de la pelota cubana. (Manuel Hidalgo, ecured.cu)
ETYM: roller
roletear
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to hit a slowly rolling ground ball.
El relevista Carlos Sierra obligó a Peraza a roletear para doble play cuando Pinar del Río
amenazaba en la novena entrada y de esa forma Sancti Spíritus venció a los vueltabajeros. (“53
SNB: cuatro en contra y muchos en base”, guerrillero.cu, 12/11/2013)
ETYM: roll-out
roli
v. ph., colloq. (salir de ) To turn out well.
Ese examen me salió de roli. (DMC)
ETYM: roller or roll-out
rolling
n, m, sport In baseball, a slowly rolling ground ball hit by the batter.
(...) y detrás el anuncio: ¡Se acabó el juego!, que nuestros narradores deportivos anuncian,
incluso, unos cuantos segundos antes de que la pelota de rolling fácil o fly elevado llegue a
manos del shortstop, la segunda base o el fielder. (Fidel Castro’s speech on the welcoming
ceremony of the Cuban delegation participating in a sport event in Baltimore, CREA)
ETYM: roller or roll-out, in which suffix –ing is attached to the base roll-
rolo
n, m Cylindrical devices used to add curls and volume to women’s hair.
Aquí en Cuba un poco la moda es lo que tú tienes y te los pones y que te quede bien y entonces
con estas limitaciones uno trata de que le quede bien, sin ser tan osado, ¿no?, yo creo que tú no
saldrías con los rolos y sin pañuelo, ¿no?, y sin embargo si vives en Italia a lo mejor la moda es
salir con dos rolitos puestos. (MLCLH, p.72)
SYN: bigudí (Sp.)
ETYM: hair rollers
rompequijá
n, m, food 1 A type of hard candy.
Cualquier cubano que tenga más de veinticinco años, seguro que en su infancia se deleitaba con
los caramelos “rompequijá”. Esta palabra se refería a que casi nos rompíamos las mandíbulas
intentando masticarlos hasta el final. (“Rompequijá”, bodegacubana.wordpress.com)
n, m, food 2 Any kind of uncooked, hard food.
~ 320 ~
Annexes
ETYM: jawbreaker (‘quijá’ is a shortened form of ‘quijada’, jaw)
ron collins [roncóli]

n, m, food A drink that is a mix of rum and ginger ale.
ETYM: rum collins
roof
n, m The top of a building, especially a hotel, restaurant, etc.
En el roof del Hotel Inglaterra se efectuará el Baile de Primavera. (Diario de la Marina.
29/04/1930, p.9)
ETYM: roof
roof garden
n, m 1 A place on the top of a building used for social gatherings.
El baile de los cadetes: urge la construcción de un roof garden en la escuela de cadetes del
Morro. (Diario de la Marina. 02/04/1930, p.11)
v. ph., colloq. (tener ocupado el ) To ponder.
No le molestes que tiene ocupado el roof garden. (DMC)
ETYM: roof garden
róster
n, m, sport In baseball, a list that shows the order in which pitchers and batters play.
En el róster de lanzadores están, junto a Sierra y Velázquez, Carlos Alberto Santiesteban,
Walnier Osorio, Wilson Paredes, Ernesto Hernández, Rodolfo Soris (zurdo), Máikel Sainz,
Roilan Ramírez y Yunier Suárez. (“Holguín para LIV Serie Nacional de Béisbol”, ahora.cu,
10/09/2014)
ETYM: roster
round [ráun]
n, m, sport In boxing, a time interval in a tournament.
Perdió Edwards por haberle propinado un mordisco en la espalda a Arthur en el round 25,
cuando éste lanza un grito. (“Histroria del boxeo en Cuba”, ecured.cu)
ETYM: round
royal
n, m, food 1 A leaveing chemical, a mixture of a carbonate or bicarbonate and a weak acid,
used as a baking powder.
SYN: levadura en polvo (Sp.)
~ 321 ~
v. ph., colloq. 2 (dar a algo ) To exaggerate something.

ETYM: royal (trademark)
ruche
n, m, clothes A pleated, fluted, or gathered strip of fabric used for trimming. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: ruche
run [rán]
n, m, sport In baseball, a score made by stepping on the home plate.
La selección cubana de béisbol recibió cero hit cero carrera ante el plantel universitario de
EE.UU. en el inicio este miércoles del IV tope bilateral entre ambas escuadras. (“No hit no run
para Cuba en tope de béisbol con EE.UU”, cubasi.cu, 01/07/2015)
SYN: carrera (Cu.)
ETYM: run
run down [ran daun]

n, m, sport In baseball, a play in which a runner is chased by two or more opposing
players who throw the ball to each other in an attempt to tag the runner out. (cf. MWD)
La velocidad dio una de las once carreras. paret anotó desde segunda con el run down de
Michel. (Photo caption, 25/08/2006, granma.cu)
ETYM: run down
sábanas contour
n, pl., clothes Bedding, having elastic edges, made to fit the mattress.
Juego de sábanas con fundas y contour, de cama imperial. (Ad. Post, revolico.com, 24/03/2011)
SYN: sábanas bajeras (Sp.)
ETYM: contour sheets
sachet [sáche]
n, m A small bag containing perfume, used to give a pleasant smell to clothes, sheets, etc.
En Habana 1791 también puede comprar perfumes personalizados, piezas de orfebrería,
productos naturales o sachets de la marca Tesoro de Oriente y jabones que la casa elabora con
el aroma de su preferencia y en las cantidades deseadas. (“Masajes con aromaterapia, nuevo
servicio en la Perfumería 1791”, habaguanex.ohc.cu)
~ 322 ~
Annexes
ETYM: Prob. from sachet
sacrificarse
v. intrans., sport In baseball, to hit a bunt that allows a runner to advance one base while
the batter is put out.
Sin embargo, otra vez el toque socorrió a un pitcher en apuros cuando Osniel Madera recibió la
orden de sacrificarse. (“Final del béisbol cubano: la lluvia ganó el segundo juego”, rcm.icrt.cu,
09/04/2014)
ETYM: sacrifice hit
safari
n, m, clothes A suit made up of a short-sleeved jacket with matching pants.
Después del recorrido de Fidel Castro por países africanos, en 1972, los safaris tomaron
protagonismo en los hombres. Nada que ver con los usados para ir de cacería. Estos safaris
consistían en pantalón y chaqueta de gabardina, de colores feos y aburridos. (“Del verde olivo a
la guayabera”, desdelahabana.net, 05/11/2010)
ETYM: safari suits
safe [séif]
interj., sport Characterized by reaching bases safely, without having been put out by
infielders.
Alfredo, tras muchas jornadas sin pitchear por una superada lesión, abrió el séptimo con base y
el piloto antillano, Armando Johnson le sacó, enviando a la loma por segunda jornada
consecutiva a Jorge Hernández, quien aceptó par de conexiones “safe” por el jardín derecho
que añadieron la última raya venezolana. (“Logra Cuba importante triunfo ante Venezuela”,
beisbolcubano.cu, 28/09/2009)
ETYM: safe
sala blanca
n, f A room in a laboratory, kept extremely clean, and used for biological experimentation.
ETYM: white room
satín
n, m, clothes A type of cloth, characterized by being shiny and smooth.
Quienes hemos vivido en pueblos y ciudades del interior de la Isla recordamos cómo en las
décadas del cuarenta y cincuenta hasta las mujeres más pobres podían disponer de unos metros
de crepé, satín y hasta de terciopelo, o telas que imitaban el astracán. (“¿El cubano viste a la
moda?”, cubanet.org, 17/05/2001)
ETYM: satin
~ 323 ~
score [escór]
n, m, sport In baseball, the number of runs that each player or team has in a game.
Después vino la reacción de los norteños y el segundo bate Jason Nix le despachó la pelota a
Pedro Luis Lazo y produjo un nuevo abrazo en el score. (“Cuba en Beijing 2008”, acn.cu)
SYN: marcador (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: score
scotch tape [escortéi]

n, m, tech. Tape coated on one side with an adhesive mixture.
“Realicé la compra –dice- y cuando llegué a mi casa, me doy cuenta que al paquete le faltaba la
mitad del producto; tenía un hueco tapado con un pedazo de scotch tape.” (“Sucesos narrados
por el comunicador comunitario Ricardo Armas Valiente”, redcubanacc.blogspot.com,
03/08/2009)
SYN: celo (Sp.)
ETYM: Scotch tape (trademark)
v. ph., colloq. 2 (no ser ni ) To be lazy.
Ese hombre no hace nada en todo el día; no puede ser ni ‘escotch teip’. (DMC)
ETYM: Scotch tape (trademark). In Cuban Spanish, ‘pegar’ (to glue) means ‘to work’,
which explains the use of scotch tape in this type of context.
screwball [escrúbol]
n, m, sport In baseball, a pitch that is thrown with spin so that the ball curves in a direction
that is opposite to the direction of a curveball. (cf. MWD)
"En cuanto a lanzamientos, me basé en bolas de rompimiento, tiré también rectas, pero no para
dominar, lancé curva y screwball a los zurdos. ¿Y el garabato? Esa fue el arma
secreta".(“Vicyiohandry y su screwball, honor a quien honor merece”, 05/02/2014,
cadenagramonte.cu)
SYN: bola de tornillo (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: screwball
second
n, m, sport In boxing, one that assists or supports the boxer. (DEC)
Otro que mencionó en su artículo fue a Luis Felipe “Pincho” Gutiérrez, periodista, entrenador y
mar del célebre Kid Chocolate. En 1931 la prensa neoyorquina lo catalogó como el mejor
second del mundo. (“Melchor Rodríguez, una cátedra del boxeo cubano”,
cubanuestraeu9.wordpress.com)
ETYM: second
self-service
n, m, food The serving of oneself in a restaurant with goods to be paid for at a cashier's
desk. (restaurantes )
~ 324 ~
Annexes
Las pequeñas tiendas, las artesanías, los bares y los restaurantes tradicionales han sido
sustituidos por tiendas todas iguales en el mundo, con productos de Hong Kong, por bares y
restaurantes self-service de productos preempaquetados. (“Alerta desde el cariño”,
SYN: autoservicio, sírvase usted (Cu.)
ETYM: self-service
serox
v. ph., colloq. (ser el perfecto) To be utterly perfect.
Esa novela tuya sobre Cuba es el serox perfecto. (DMC)
ETYM: xerox (trade mark)
Obs.: Presumably, it makes reference to the perfect copycat of documents by using a xerox
machine.
serpentinero
n, m, sport In baseball, the pitcher in a game.
El lanzador Freddy Álvarez lanzó pelota de 7 incogibles en siete episodios y Rusney Castillo y
José Abreu pegaron sendos cuadrangulares, para conducir a Cuba a un triunfo sobre Italia, 5
carreras por 1, manteniéndose invicto en cinco partidos en el mundial de béisbol que se celebra
en Panamá. (“El serpentinero Álvarez brinda a Cuba quinto triunfo en mundial de béisbol”,
cubaencuentro.com)
ETYM: pitcher.
Obs.: The word comes from ‘serpentina’ (streamer), which describes the twisted forms of
ball-throwing.
servicentro
n, m, transp. A place where fuel for vehicles is sold, and drivers have their vehicles
serviced
Un incendio de grandes proporciones se produjo este martes en un servicentro en Santiago de
Cuba y provocó 32 lesionados, de ellos 26 están reportados de gravedad. (“Reportan lesionados
graves en incendio de servicentro en Santiago de Cuba”, juventudrebelde.cu, 29/08/2012)
SYN: gasolinera (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from service
serviciar
v. trans., transp. To repair or fix a vehicle, or to provide maintenance.
Batería Para Carro Sin Serviciar 88 Amp New 0 Km Dinamix (Ad Post, revolico.com,
28/03/2014)
ETYM: service
~ 325 ~
sesión
n, f A school period in which students have classes.
Especialistas indican que otros cambios como el profesor al frente de grupos de 15 o 20
estudiantes, la doble sesión y la merienda escolar, que ayuda a mantener a los alumnos en los
centros de forma ininterrumpida, mejoran el aprendizaje. (“Cuba recoge los primeros
resultados de los cambios en la educación”, Trabajadores digital, 19/12/2003, CREA)
ETYM: session
seven up [sébenop]
n, m, body The buttocks. (DEC)
ETYM: siete (seven in English) is the buttocks in a popular gambling charade in Cuba.
shadow boxing
n, m, sport In boxing, an exercise used in the training of boxers.
Es bueno, al fin y al cabo,
hallar un punching bag,
eliminar la grasa bajo el sol,
saltar,
sudar,
nadar,
y de la suiza al shadow boxing,
de la ducha al comedor,
salir pulido, fino, fuerte,
como un bastón recién labrado
con agresividades de black jack.
ETYM: shadow boxing
sharkskin
n, m, clothes A smooth crisp fabric.
El Encanto: en sharkskin con botones finos de nácar. (Department Store Ad, Diario de la
Marina. 16/01/1947, p.3)
ETYM: sharkskin
shopi-trapo
n, m, colloq., clothes A shop in which second-hand clothes are sold.
En algunas provincias cubanas les dicen "shopping-trapos", pero desde que hace unos diez años
surgieron las tiendas para vender ropa reciclada, los habaneros prefirieron llamarlas shopi-
trapos. Casi todas son estatales, pero también las hay particulares, como la de la foto, y online.
(“Shopi-trapo”, taniaquintero.blogspot.com, 20/07/2009)
SYN: rastrillo (Sp.), pulguero (Cu.)
ETYM: shop
~ 326 ~
Annexes
shopping [chópin] var. shoping

n, f A retailer store selling goods in foreign currency.
No te asustes, yo pago. Luego vamos hasta la shoping, que te voy a ayudar a comprar algunos
mandados. (Naufragios, Antonio Alvarez Gil, 2002, CREA)
SYN: tienda (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: shop
shorpan [shorpán]
n, m, clothes Beach short pants, characterized by being baggy and colorful, especially worn
in the 90s.
ETYM: short pants
short
n, m, sport → shortstop
ETYM: shortstop
short bounce [chor bauns]

n, m, sport In baseball, a hit striking on the ground and not rebounding.
El triple play en Vertientes fue a los Metros y lo curioso es que no fue fildeado de aire por
Ayala, la pelota picó, la aceptó de short bounce y tocó a RCRamírez quee iba pa 3ra.
(“Alexander Ayala”, forum post, 18/01/2012, juventudrebelde.cu).
ETYM: short bounce
shorts [shorts] var. short

n, m, pl., clothes Short pants.
De la única forma en que un compatriota se atreve a ir a un baile cubano con un “short y un t-
shirt” es que sea una fiesta de Hallowen y la gente suponga que “va disfrazado de
norteamericano”. (zoevaldes.net, 24-01-2011)
SYN: pantalones cortos (Sp.)
ETYM: shorts
Obs.: Also found in singular form: short.
shortstop
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the player who defends the area between second and third base.
¡Se acabó el juego!, que nuestros narradores deportivos anuncian, incluso, unos cuantos
segundos antes de que la pelota de rolling fácil o fly elevado llegue a manos del shortstop, la
segunda base o el fielder. (Fidel Castro’s speech, CREA)
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, the area between second and third base.
SYN: sior, siol, paracortos (Cu.)
~ 327 ~
ETYM: shortstop
show
n, m, colloq. 1 Rude recrimination, in which someone is criticized for having said
something damaging. (meter, armar, formar un )
Aquí los hay que cuando la visita del Papa y la presencia de ciento diez cadenas de televisión y
tres mil periodistas extranjeros, los hay o los hubo, buscaron periodistas, llevaron a sus mujeres
a un cuarto de alquiler y esperaron abajo, todo un show montado, para que allá se publicara
sobre la terrible situación de este país. (Fidel Catsro’s speech on the 40th Anniversary of the
Cuban Police Force, CREA)
n, m, colloq. 2 Someone that is characterized by being funny, extravagant or eccentric. (ser
un )
ETYM: show
siforé
n, m A soft stone used for cleaning floor tiles.
Una vez tapiaron la vista a 70 y 19 con unos ladrillos prefabricados. Se metieron casi un mes
para lograr su mierdera murallita de siforé. Al día siguiente contrataron otra brigada vanguardia
demoledora. (“Si muero, entierren mi corazón en el Becerra”,
orlandoluispardolazo.blogspot.com.es)
n, f, food (piedra de ) An old, stale food.
Dónde quedó el pan macizo, que al comer una rodaja uno se sentía lleno, que se podía mojar
con los frijoles negros y embadurnar de mantequilla, sin el temor que se partiera en pedazos
como le ocurre a esta “piedra de siforé” que acabo de comprar. (“La receta del pan”, 14ymedio,
12/07/2007)
ETYM: Prob. from siporex
silka
n, m, clothes, obsol. A smooth, soft, and shiny cloth that is made from thread produced by
silkworms. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: silk
sinker
n, m, sport In baseball, a fast pitch that drops lower as it reaches home plate. (cf. MWD)
Los japoneses emplean todos los lanzamientos de rompimiento: tenedor, sinker, slider, curva,
cambio, te tiran una recta para que la veas y tratan de engañarte, pero vuelven con algún
rompimiento. (“Con Cuba quiero volver a planos dorados”, 16/10/2014, baseballdecuba.com)
SYN: bola en caída (Cu.)
ETYM: sinker
~ 328 ~
Annexes
single [síngel]
adj., sport Characterized by being played by one just one player.
Jose Alfredo fue realmente Campeon Nacional en singles y dobles de handball a finales de los
70’s y principios de los 80’s. Su saque con la mano, parecia mas bien expelido con una pala,
fue realmente excepcional. (Comment Post, “El más cubano de los deportes”,
penultimosdias.com, 02/01/2009)
ETYM: single
sior var. siol

n, m, sport → shortstop2
Jugué mucho siol en los equipos Arroceros, porque en Azucareros no se podía, estaba Pedro
Jova, pero desde que llegué al equipo de Sancti Spíritus en el año 1977, en aquella Serie
Especial cuando quedamos campeones, entré en segunda porque Chopi era el torpedero. (“La
combinación perfecta”, laesquinadeelsa.wordpress.com)
ETYM: shortstop
sírvase usted
n, m, food → self-service
Después del triunfo de la Revolución, el inmueble fue sede en 1963 de la Junta de
Coordinación, Ejecución e Inspección Municipal (JUCEI). Recuerdo que allí estuvo, también,
una unidad gastronómica en la década de '80 con una oferta muy variada. Le llamábamos el
Sírvase usted. (“El Ariete”, invasor.cu, 21/09/2015)
SYN: autoservicio (Cu.)
ETYM: self-service
skating rink
n, m, obsol. A place where people go skating for fun.
Con un skating rink, entre otros muchos alicientes, podrán contar los muchachos. (Diario de la
Marina. 30/04/1930, p.11)
ETYM: skating rink
slack [eslák]
n, m, clothes Women’s trousers, characterized by being long and baggy. (DEC)
El Encanto: una gran temporada de slacks. Slack de rayón gris o beige con zipper a un lado.
ETYM: slack
~ 329 ~
slide [eslái]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, the act of falling or diving feetfirst or headfirst when approaching
a base.
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, a thin pad worn underneath the uniform to protect players while
sliding.
ETYM: slide
slider [esláider]
n, m, sport In baseball, a fast pitch that curves slightly in the air. (cf. MWD)
Los japoneses emplean todos los lanzamientos de rompimiento: tenedor, sinker, slider, curva,
cambio, te tiran una recta para que la veas y tratan de engañarte, pero vuelven con algún
rompimiento. (“Con Cuba quiero volver a planos dorados”, 16/10/2014, baseballdecuba.com)
SYN: bola de cortelazo (Cu.)
ETYM: slider
slugger [esláguer]
n, m, sport In baseball, a batter who hits many home runs. (cf. MWD)
Asimismo, el slugger Alfredo Despaigne (GRA) recibió el voto como el bateador designado
más sobresaliente, y además como el Jugador Más Valioso de toda la campaña. (“La nueva
constelación”, 17/04/2015, juventudrebelde.cu)
SYN: jonronero (Cu.)
ETYM: slugger
slugging
n, m, sport In baseball, the ratio (as a rate per thousand) of the total number of bases
reached on base hits to official times at bat for a baseball player.
Los titulares del evento colocaron en el Todos Estrellas a dos jardineros, Jack Ryan (545, con 3
jonrones y 13 impulsadas, líder en slugging, 1091 y colíder en anotadas. (“Un cubano en el
Todos Estrellas”, 03/08/2015, granma.cu)
ETYM: slugging
slump [eslám]
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a period of time when a team or player is doing poorly. (cf.
MWD)
La nota de un equipo con tradición beisbolera enrolado en un “letargo” ofensivo, podría causar
cierta preocupación. (“¿Azules en slump?”, cubadebate.cu, 15/01/2010)
v. ph. 2 (estar en un ) To decrease work productivity.
ETYM: slump
~ 330 ~
Annexes
slung [eslán]
n, m, sport In baseball, a player who has a poor performance.
Nadie puede pensar que los peloteros son máquinas, hay días que están en excelente forma
competitiva y en otras pasan por slung, eso es humano, lo que no es lógico, ni correcto es que
los que dirigen los equipos los pongan a jugar sabiendo como se encuentra cada uno de sus
peloteros. (“Partido de Cuba contra Estados Unidos en mundial de béisbol”, forum post,
25/09/2009, juventudrebelde.cu)
ETYM: slung
snack
n, m, food A small amount of food eaten between meals. (cf. MWD)
Disponemos además de otras opciones si lo prefiere: snacks, pizzas, pastas, platos combinados,
ensaladas. ¡Ud. elije! (Restaurant Ad Post, laperladelahabana.com)
SYN: merienda (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: snack
snack bar
n, m, food, form. A fast-food cafeteria. (LHCLH)
SYN: cafeteria (Cu., Sp.), soda, rápido (Cu.)
ETYM: snack bar
snorkel [esnórkel]
n, m A special tube that makes it possible to breathe while you are swimming with your
head underwater. (cf. MWD)
SYN: tubo respiratorio (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: snorkel
socket [sóke]
n, m, house A piece of electrical equipment into which a lightbulb fits.
Esas regletas poseen un socket principal y tomacorrientes secundarios conectados en serie con
este. (“Recomiendan uso de regleta eléctrica”, juventudrebelde.cu, 14/04/2009)
SYN: enchufe (Sp.)
ETYM: socket
soda
n, f, food 1 A fizzy drink made of soda water and flavoring.
Refrescos y bocaditos: El lugar más concurrido e ideal para merendar o refrescar, es la fuente
de soda del gran almacén de víveres. (Shop Ad, Diario de la Marina. 30/04/1930, p.5)
SYN: refresco de cola (Cu.), coca-cola (Sp.)
n, f, food, obsol. 2 A fast-food cafeteria. (LHCLH)
~ 331 ~
ETYM: soda
soldier blue
adj. A dark blue color.
ETYM: soldier blue
solón
adv. ph., obsol. Farewell.
ETYM: so long
sondy
n, m, food Ice cream topped with crushed fruit, syrup, nuts, or whipped cream.
Los helados son de sabores afrutados; pueden pedir un helado jimagua, un sondy o un tropicana
y degustarlo como si estuviera en la heladería Copelia en La Habana. (Ad Post, “Restaurante
Aché Paladar Cubano”)
ETYM: sundae
soque
n, m, house → socket
Vendo relays de 5 patas con su soque, todo nuevo, tengo 25 a $3 cuc cada uno. (Classified
Post, revolico.com, 22/12/2015)
ETYM: socket
sótano
n, m, sport In baseball, last position in a championship.
Cuba u Holanda, una de las dos novenas se quedará sola en el sótano de la ronda preliminar de
la V Copa del Mundo de Béisbol para damas. (“V Copa del Mundo de Béisbol (F): Cuba busca
saltar del sótano”, tribuna.co.cu, 17/08/2012)
ETYM: basement
soya
n, f, food Soybeans and the food products that are made from soybeans. (cf. MWD)
El 50 % del nuevo equipamiento arribará al puerto santiaguero en la actual semana, y el resto
será recibido a inicios de enero próximo. (“Inician modernización de la planta procesadora de
soya”, granma.cu, 18/12/2014)
SYN: soja (Sp.)
ETYM: soybeans
~ 332 ~
Annexes
spam [espán]
n, m , food Used for a type of canned meat.
A la semana -un 19 de agosto- nos comunicaron que terminaban los caldos y el puré, y de
nuevo a comer macarrones hervidos y spam. Este alimento era el "manjar" del presidio: los
presos lo habían bautizado con el nombre de "vómito de perro". (Contra toda esperanza,
Armando Valladares, 1985, CREA)
ETYM: Spam (trademark)
speaker [espíker]
n, m, house A device that is used to make sound louder.
SYN: altavoz (Sp.), baffle (Cu.)
ETYM: speaker
spike [espái]
n, m, clothes 1 Sport shoes having pointed irons to stop players from slipping.
La selección cubana de softbol femenino perdió este viernes ante el conjunto de la República
Checa, con pizarra final de 6-3. Este sábado, Cuba enfrentará a Nueva Zelanda. (“Los spikes
les quedaron chiquitos”, juventudrebelde.cu, 15/08/2014)
n. ph., colloq. 2 (ladilla con ) An annoying person.
Si repasas esas respuestas podrás llegar tú solito a la conclusion si Manzanares es o no es
oficialista. Cuando la coges con una cosa, eres peor que una ladilla con spikes. (Comment Post,
“Entretelones del Observatorio Crítico de Cuba”, observatoriocríticocubano.org, 13/12/2012)
ETYM: spike
sponge rusk
n, m, food A very light baked cake made with sugar, flour and eggs, which has crunchy
layers, similarly to buiscuits or cookies. (LHCLH)
Sponge Rusk, se traduce algo así como galleta esponjosa y no es más que el bizcocho tostado al
horno. Les juro que era adictivo, al menos para mí, y es para los cubanos es uno de esos
recuerdos que nos transporta a la infancia y nos llena de añoranza. Porque en Cuba, ya no los
hay... como tantas cosas. (“Bizcocho japonés tostado al horno”,
micocinaderevista.blogspot.com.es)
ETYM: sponge (cake) and rusk (a type of cookie)
sport [espór]
adj., clothes Characterized by being casual.
Vestidos de chiffon y georgette estampados, en estilos para sport y para calle. (Diario de la
Marina. 2 April. 1930, p.5)
SYN: de calle (Cu.), casual (Sp.)
ETYM: sport
~ 333 ~
sport ilustrado
v. ph. (ser alguien de ) To be well-built.
ETYM: Sports Illustrated, a renowned magazine on sports and sports people.
sportman
n, m, sport An amateur player of sports.
La superioridad del sportman, no solo física, sino intelectual, sobre el hombre común, es
definitivamente un concepto manipulado desde el punto de vista de las élites, pero que con la
expansión de la práctica del béisbol por diferentes sectores sociales pierde paulatinamente esta
esencia para tornarse popular. (“Pasión y patrimonio: los cubanos y la pelota”,
palabranueva.net)
SYN: amateur (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: sportsman
sportsmanship [espórmanchip]
n, m, sport The quality of any sportsperson to respect opponents, to show fair play and
polite behavior, etc.
¿Qué hubiera pasado si Joe Louis, Armstrong, Alí, Monzón, Durán, Chávez, Leonard o el
mismísimo Robinson se hubieran mantenido toda su vida atlética entre aficionados? Y, por
decencia, por honestidad y por sportsmanship, que es el resultado de todo lo anterior, deberían.
(“Una leyenda incompleta: Teófilo Stevenson”, conexioncubana.net)
ETYM: sportsmanship
spot [espót]
n, m, form. An advertisement on radio or televisión. ( televisivo; radial)
En la producción radial el spot o las menciones conocidas como cuñas en diversos países
constituyen códigos de reconocimiento y de éxito en la programación. En Cuba la
publicidad se caracteriza por los mensajes de bien público dirigidos a crear hábitos de
conductas para un mejor funcionamiento de la sociedad, dirigidos a educar y no a vender, como
ocurre en muchas partes del planeta. (“La radio, menciones y propaganda”, radiocubana.cu,
19/12/2011)
SYN: anuncio (Sp.), comercial (Cu.)
ETYM: spot
spotlight [espótlait]
n, m A lightbulb directing a narrow, bright beam of light on a small area. (DEC)
SYN: foco (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: spotlight
~ 334 ~
Annexes
spray [espréi]
n, m 1 A liquid sprayed on the hair to keep it in good shape after styling it.
n, m 2 The container used for perfume or deodorant in a spray format.
Bueno, chica, uno siempre trata de comprarle los mejores juguetes de acuerdo a las
posibilidades de uno, pero..., y le compran qué sé yo... tal muñeca que hace esto o más cual
muñeco que hace más cual cosa, y ella agarra un tubo de desodorante, un spray vacío, ese es el
pomo de leche. (MLCLH, p.148)
SYN: laca (Sp.)
ETYM: hairspray
squeeze play [eskwíspléi]

n, m, sport In baseball, a play in which a runner on third base starts for home plate as the
ball is being pitched and the batter attempts to bunt to give the runner a chance to score.
Un squeeze play en el quinto inning, con Dayron González al bate dio ventaja a los Elefantes
sureños ganadores 4-3. (“Cienfuegos hace regresar play off a su patio”, beisbolcubano.com,
01/06/2014)
ETYM: squeeze play
squiador, -a
n, obsol. A person who goes water skiing for fun.
Johnson V-50: es el motor que levanta al squiador. (Engine Ad, Diario de la Marina.
08/07/1958, p.27)
SYN: esquiador
ETYM: skiier
stand by [están bai]

n, m, colloq. A period of time in which someone is waiting for the right time to do
something. (en ) (DEC)
El tiempo sigue corriendo y en este deporte nos pasará lo mismo que con la lucha y las pesas
femeninas, disciplinas de reciente inclusión en el programa olímpico: cuando empecemos en
serio ya el mundo nos llevará kilómetros de ventaja. (“Rugby cubano sigue en stand by”,
guajiroarrepentio.blogspot.com, 15/08/2011)
ETYM: stand by
star bout [estár báu]

n, m, sport In boxing, an extraordinary match.
Su residencia la fijó casualmente a dos pasos donde otrora estuviera edificada la Arena Cristal,
aquella Arena levantada en el año 1933 en la calzada de Infanta entre Pedroso y Univesidad y
que tocara a “Tunero”, en un monumental programa diez años después el 20 de Noviembre de
1943 celebrar el último programa alli escenificado en un “Star Bout” principal frente a Joe
Legón. (“Kid Tunero: Una gloria del boxeo cubano”, boxeoveleno.blogspot.com, 24/12/2008)
~ 335 ~
SYN: pelea (Cu., Sp.)

ETYM: bout
stencil [esténsil]
n, m, tech. An impervious material (as a sheet of paper, thin wax, or woven fabric)
perforated with lettering or a design through which a substance (as ink, paint, or metallic
powder) is forced onto a surface to be printed. (cf. MWD)
En mi máquina de escribir tirábamos los stencil con los textos que iban a publicarse en Sierra
Maestra, Vanguardia Obrera o Revolución. (“El libro que le falta por escribir”, trabajadores.cu,
19/08/2012)
ETYM: stencil
steward, -ess
n, occup., obsol. A person who takes care of passenger on a plane.
Pan American World Airways: El steward o stewardess están a bordo para asegurar su
comodidad y conveniencia. (Airways Company Ad, Diario de la Marina. 20 February. 1947,
p.11)
SYN: aeromozo/aeromoza (Cu.), azafata/azafato (Sp.)
ETYM: steward (-ess)
straight [estrái]
adj. Referring to alcoholic drinks, not mixed with other ingredients.
Cuando se toma en straight llena rotundo el paladar y en un sabroso “cuba libre” resulta una
fiesta para los sentidos. (Ad Post, “Ron Varadero Añejo 5 Años”, elrinconcubano.es)
ETYM: straight
straple
adj. → strapless
ETYM: stapless
strapless
n, m, clothes Women’s dress or blouse having no straps.
Mientras tanto, Iriepa disfruta de los preparativos. “Voy a optar por un vestido strapless
(vestido sin tirantes), nada tradicional (…) Quiero que mi boda sea lo más sencilla posible”,
manifestó entusiasmada. (“Cuba tendrá la primera boda de una transexual”, sentidog.com,
17/07/2011)
SYN: palabra de honor (Sp.)
ETYM: strapless
~ 336 ~
Annexes
stretching
n, m, sport A type of exercise conceived to provide body elasticity.
De los métodos para el trabajo y desarrollo de la flexibilidad es el stretching, del cual podemos
decir que es poco desarrollado producto al desconocimiento que existe, por parte de algunos
entrenadores y profesores de Educación Física. (“Ejercicios para el desarrollo de la flexibilidad
en las atletas de gimnasia aeróbica deportiva de secundaria básica ‘José Dessy’”,
efdeportes.com)
SYN: estiramiento (Sp.)
ETYM: stretching
strike [estrái]
n, m, sport In baseball, when a batter swings at a pitch, but fails to hit it.
Para que la pelota pase por la zona de strike o domine al bateador hay diferentes lanzamientos
con los cuales dominarlo o para sacarlo out. (“Lanzamientos del béisbol”, zunzun.cu)
ETYM: strike
strikeout [estráikao]
n, m, sport In baseball, an out in baseball that occurs when a batter gets three strikes. (cf.
MWD)
Además de Mercer, Chapman ponchó a Michael Martínez y Matt Hague, subiendo su total de
strikeout a 83 durante su racha triunfal. (“Todo listo para tope Cuba vs Estados Unidos”, forum
post, 23/07/2013, cubadebate.cu)
SYN: ponche (Cu.)
ETYM: strikeout
suéter
n, m, clothes A garment that is put on by pulling it over your head.
No habían transcurrido todavía dos semanas desde mi detención cuando me llevaron a juicio.
La mañana era fría y Manolito Villanueva me prestó un suéter. (Contra toda esperanza,
Armando Valladares, 1985, CREA)
SYN: jersey (Sp.), enguatada (Cu.)
ETYM: sweater
suiza [suísa]
n, f A swiss rope. (saltar la )
La suiza, rescate de un juego tradicional para la enseñanza primaria. (article headline,
sfdeportes.com)
SYN: comba (Sp.)
ETYM: swiss rope
~ 337 ~
Super Heavyweight
n, m, sport In boxing, a boxer who weighs more than 91 kg.
Super Heavyweight (91+kg): 1-. Iegor Plevako (Ukranie Otomans, 2-0, 299 ptos) / 2-. Filip
Hrgovic (Astana Arlans Kazakhstan, 2-0, 296 ptos). (“Cuba domina el Ranking individual de la
Serie Mundial de Boxeo”, cnctv.icrt.cu, 17/01/2014)
ETYM: super heavyweight
survey
n, m, tech. An activity in which many people are asked a question or a series of questions
in order to gather information about what most people do or think about something.
El survey de Televisión publicado el 30 de Marzo de 1952, le dió el puesto 16, con 46.16
puntos de rating. (“Zarzuelas y operetas en la televisión cubana”, tvcubana.icrt.cu)
ETYM: survey
Obs.: Especially used in the marketing and television fields.
sustancial
adj., form. That is important or relevant.
Entre la nueva generación de Internet e Internet ii qué diferencias hay. No son tan sustanciales,
como ustedes vieron, por los objetivos, prácticamente, coincide una cosa con la otra, son
objetivos más bien técnicos, soportes técnicos. (MLCLH, p.85)
SYN: importante, relevante (Cu., Sp.9
ETYM: substantial
swanclerina [suánclerina]
n, f, clothes Female stockings, usually made of silk, wool or cotton. (DEC)
ETYM: Swanclerina (trademark)
sweet heart rose

n, f A variety of rose characterized by being single stem roses with relatively short stems.
Ante el ara: la monísima niña, Esperanza Silva y Pérez Cáceres, que hizo de flower girl,
portaba un delicado ramito colonial de sweet heart roses. (Diario de la Marina. 26/05/1948,
p.11)
ETYM: sweetheart rose
sweet pea
n, m A climbing plant with flowers that have a sweet smell. (cf. MWD)
Recibo elegante: por los jardines se hallaban distribuidas pequeñas mesitas donde se servían
ponches y refrescos de toda clase. Una caja de gladiolos y sweet peas de Marta y Carmen
Miranda (Diario de la Marina. 29/04/1930, p.12)
ETYM: sweet pea
~ 338 ~
Annexes
swing
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a stroke or blow delivered with a sweeping arm movement.
Exámenes que incluyen el corrido de las bases, aceleración del swing, potencia del brazo, y
luego, al final, juegos para ver las habilidades del infante, tanto defensivas, como a la hora de
llevar a cabo las jugadas técnico-tácticas. (“Santaclareño a equipo Cuba de béisbol infantil”,
cmhw.cu, 18/10/2013)
n, m, colloq. 2 An attitude characterized by dressing well and behaving calmly in strong
situations. (tener )
Hace unas semanas, entre un grupo de escritores, expresé que — a mi juicio— cualquier
posibilidad futura para el socialismo pasa antes por la obligación de tener “swing”. (“Somos
unos sobrevivientes”, lajiribilla.cu, 04/04/2008)
Obs.: Commonly used with adjective tremendo in preceding position.
v. ph. 3 (querer ) To want to have sex.
v. ph., colloq. 4 (hacer ) To pay close attention to something or someone.
ETYM: swing
switch [suích]
n, m, house A device that starts or stops the flow of electricity to an electrical appliance.
El interruptor o “switch” es el botón que enciende el sistema eléctrico del modelo naval
permitiendo el paso de la corriente eléctrica suministrada por la batería hasta el recibidor. (“El
interruptor en modelos navales RC”, modelismocubano.com, 09/01/2011)
SYN: interruptor (Sp.), encendedor (Cu.)
ETYM: switch
tándem
n, m, tech. 1 A series of mills, with three tenderizers each, which are designed extract the
sugar cane juice.
En cambio, durante la campaña del 2014-2015, el coloso de Jatibonico produjo 91 415
toneladas ya con un solo tándem, y acumuló el 71% de la norma potencial. (“El central
Uruguay va por más caña”, granma.cu, 25/10/2015)
n, m, tech. 2 Phone plant used to connect inter-province phone calls.
ETYM: tandem
tanguear [tangéar] or [tangíar]

v. intrans. To play dumb. (DEC)
~ 339 ~
SYN: tontear (Cu.)

ETYM: tango (lack of straightforwardness)
tanque
n, m, tech.1 The car’s container for fuel.
Sólo Uruguay y Argentina superan a Cuba en el precio del litro de gasolina en la región.
(“¿Cuántos salarios gasta un cubano para llenar el tanque de gasolina?”, cibercuba.com)
SYN: depósito (Sp.)
n, m, colloq. 2 A prison or enclosure used especially for receiving prisoners.
Aquí en el 'tanque' (cárcel) lo que vale es la fuerza, para que te respeten y obtener una serie de
beneficios que te hacen la vida más llevadera. Si mi vida es morir dentro de una prisión que así
sea. (“Ratas de prisión”, elmundo.es, 17/08/2010)
SYN: talego (Sp.)
ETYM: tank
tanque Sherman
n, m, pej., colloq. A really large person.
ETYM: Prob. from American-made Sherman tanks.
tanquero
n, m, transp. A ship designed to carry fuel.
Con una carga de 390 000 barriles de crudo partió camino a Cuba el Sandino, segunda
embarcación de la empresa mixta Transportes de la Alternativa Bolivariana para los Pueblos de
Nuestra América (TRANSALBA). (“El tanquero Sandino va camino a Cienfuegos”,
ETYM: tanker
tanqueta
n, f, house 1 A small container, made up of plastic or metal, used for storing liquids,
especially water.
n, f, hum. 2 A really large person.
ETYM: tank
tape [téipe]
n, m, tech. A long, narrow piece of material that is sticky on one side and that is used to
stick things together or to cover or repair something.
SYN: cinta aislante (Sp.)
ETYM: tape
~ 340 ~
Annexes
telex
n, m, form. A message sent by using teletypewriter, especially at night. (LHCLH)
SYN: telegrama de noche (Cu.)
ETYM: teletex
team [tím]
n, m, sport 1 In several sports (baseball, basketball, volleyball, etc.) the group of players
taking part in the competition.
SYN: equipo (Cu., Sp.)
n, m 2 A group of staff members who are responsible for the same goal.
Viene un team de pilotos y mecánicos cubanos que recibieron un curso de familiarización con
este tipo de aeronave. (Diario de la marina. 16/11/1954, p.6)
ETYM: team
team-work
n, m The work done by people who work together as a team to do something. (cf. MWD)
ETYM: teamwork
teen-age
adj., obsol. Related to people who are between 13 and 19 years old.
El Encanto: vestidos del salón joven y del departamento teen-age en prácticos y elegantes
estilos. (Department Store Ad, Diario de la Marina. 27/12/1958, p.20)
SYN: adolescente (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: teenage
teipe
n, m, tech. → tape
El resto de los materiales son optativos para la decoración, como las placas de rayos x (usadas,
claro) y el «teipe» para dar los toques finales. (“Lanza tu cohete de paz”, cubainformación.tv,
22/09/2010)
ETYM: tape
ten cent [tensén]

n, m A shop where goods were sold at reduced prices.
El lunes 28 de julio, tras dos años de inactividad por encontrarse en reparaciones, abrió sus
puertas el popular edificio del Ten Cent ubicado en la intersección de Galiano y San Rafael,
Ciudad Habana, esta vez con el nombre de Ferretería Transval. (“Reabierto el Ten Cent de
Galiano”, miscelaneasdecuba.net, 13/08/2008)
ETYM: Ten Cents (trademark)
~ 341 ~
tendiente
adj. That is inclined to do something.
Todo parece radicar, por tanto, en la pericia y el talento que guía los resultados, aunque siempre
hay que contar con las preferencias de espectadores más aferrados al apego extremo a las
fuentes o tendientes a las lecturas posmodernas e iconoclastas, o al menos tolerantes con ellas.
(“Clásicos, entre el purismo y la irreverencia”, juventudrebelde.cu, 14/11/2015)
ETYM: to tend
tender
v. intrans. To show an inclination or tendency towards something.
que uno cuando salga de la sala de conciertos uno se sienta que camina ligero, despejado ¿no?,
y me he vuelto más..., tiendo más a, a confeccionar programas de... de esa índole, con esa
tónica. [...] (MHCLH, p.111)
SYN: acostumbrar (Sp.)
ETYM: to tend
tenis
n, m, clothes A low shoe worn while playing sports.
si me refiero a la juventud, pero realmente eso no es ninguna moda, lo mismo andan con un
pitusa y una plataforma, que se meten en un cabaret, que se meten en una discoteca, que se
meten en cualquier lugar, que andan con un vestido brillante a punto de mediodía, un vestido de
brillo con un par de tenis, pero, bueno, realmente la juventud, te repetía ahorita, es tan linda que
como quiera que se vista está bien. (MLCLH, p. 118)
ETYM: tennis shoes
tenedor
n, m, sport In baseball, a baseball pitch in which the ball is gripped between the forked
index and middle fingers.
Yosvani Torres lanzó una gran pelota durante los dos primeros tercios, conteniendo a los
norteamericanos a los cuales les permitió solo cinco jits, uno de ellos cuadrangular del octavo
bate Patrick Kivlehan, con un solitario boleto, demostrando mucho control con su mejor
lanzamiento, el tenedor. (“Cuba este domingo por el bronce”, 18/07/2005, granma.cu)
SYN: bola de tenedor (Cu.)
ETYM: forkball
teque
n, m, colloq. A long and tedious chat. (DEC)
El Premio Nacional de Periodismo José Martí por la Obra de la Vida 2014 revela detalles sobre
las razones que lo llevaron a convertirse en uno de los grandes reporteros de Cuba. (“El
periodismo es contar historias pero sin teque”, juventudrebelde.cu, 06/03/2014)
SYN: muela (Cu.)
~ 342 ~
Annexes
ETYM: Prob. from talk.
tevé
n, f, house A piece of equipment receiving images and sounds.
SYN: tele (Sp.)
ETYM: T.V.
throwing
n, m, sport In baseball, the act of throwing the ball by the pitcher.
Sin embargo, la suerte estaba echada: el Habana logró con esa innovación gran ventaja, pues la
fuerza de su pitcher R. Mora, cuyo throwing era tan rápido y tanta la ligereza que su catcher
(mister Bellán del Mutual Club de Nueva York) apenas permitía al batmen matancero
distinguir la pelota. (“¿Cómo llegó el béisbol a Cuba?”, radiorebelde.cu)
SYN: lanzamiento (Cu.)
ETYM: throwing
tie break [táibrei]

n, m, sport Extra time that is used to decide a winner when a game, especially in
volleyball, has ended with a tied score.
Cuba se levantó de una tina helada después de perder ventaja de cinco carreras a un out del
triunfo en el noveno, y derrotó este jueves 8x7 a Puerto Rico en diez atractivos capítulos de
béisbol en el escenario del Premier 12 con sede en Taipei de China y Japón. (“Béisbol-
Premier12: Cuba tejió victoria ante Puerto Rico en tie break”, cuba.cu, 12/11/2015)
ETYM: tie break
tienda por departamentos

n, f A large store that has separate areas in which different kinds of products are sold. (cf.
MWD)
Además del negocio textil comienzan a crear departamentos dedicados a las distintas secciones
de la tienda configurándose desde principios del siglo XX como una “tienda por
departamentos” e introduciendo prácticas comerciales novedosas en la época como el control y
la inteligencia de negocio. (“El encanto, tienda por departamentos”, galeriaselencanto.com)
ETYM: department store
tifitear [tifitéar] or [tifitíar]

v. trans., colloq. To steal (CC).
ETYM: thief
~ 343 ~
tifitifi
n, m, colloq., obsol. A thief.
Cuidado con los bolsillos que él es tifitifi. (DMC, p. 655)
ETYM: Prob. reduplication from thief.
time [táin]
n, m, colloq. 1 Brief break at work or while doing an activity.
SYN: cinco (Cu.)
n, m, sport 2 In baseball, used by the umpire to stop the game.
ETYM: time
time keeper
n, m, sport In basketball, the person who controls or records official times during the
match. (cf. MWD)
Y los ¡fuácatas! Todas las frases posibles del Club. Los fanáticos de los stands. El trueno de
los aplausos y el Tiempo, en el reloj del timekeeper. (Recuerdos de la próxima olimpiada,
Pablo de la Torriente Brau, p. 46)
ETYM: time-keeper
tini grifi
n, f, hum. A very fat woman.
Era muy bella pero se deformó; se volvió tini grifi. (DMC, p. 658)
ETYM: Tini Grifi, an American actress.
tip
n, m, colloq. To provide someone with new information. (dar un )
Sabemos que te importa mucho cuidarlas, y que parte del cuidado es hacer que crezcan fuertes.
Para lograrlo, te quiero brindar unos tips infalibles. (“Tips para el cuidado de tus uñas”,
ETYM: tip
tipista
n, occup. Someone who supervises the printing machine. (DEC)
ETYM: typist
tirar curva
v. ph., sport 1 In baseball, to pitch a curveball (or a curve) to the batter.
~ 344 ~
Annexes
Es verdad que eso fue una cosa grande para mí. La gente decía que se me iba a partir el brazo
de tanto tirar curvas». (“Félix Núñez González: Retirarse a tiempo no es cobardía”,
v. ph., colloq. 2 To refuse to do something by telling excuses.
ETYM: to throw curve
Obs.: In English a curve also refers to deception and tricks.
Todos Estrellas
n. ph., pl., sport In baseball, a high-ranked game in which the best players are seen.
Aquí pesó la condición de anfitrión de Yang, pues el jardinero central cubano César Hernández
bateó para superior average. (“Un cubano en el Todos Estrellas”, 03/08/2015, granma.cu)
SYN: All Star (Cu.)
ETYM: All Star
tonsila
n, f, body, med. One of the soft parts on the inside of your throat. (LHCLH)
SYN: amígdala (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: tonsil
tope
n, m, clothes Women’s garment worn on the upper body, usually strapless.
Una muchachita se puede poner una licra, una jovencita se, puede andar con un topecito, puede
andar con un shorcito bien cortico y todo se ve lindo en ella, aunque repito, para mí no es
ninguna moda lo que estamos llevando, pero bueno, se ve bonita como quiera que se vista, pero
una persona mayor, a mi criterio se ve ridícula cuando se viste como si, como si quisiera tener
quince años. (MLCLH, p. 118)
SYN: bajichupa (Cu.)
ETYM: top
tópico
n, m, form. The main theme in a conversation, conference, etc.
Bueno ahora pasamos al tema dos, sobre la ciudad de La Habana. ¿Cuál es el mayor encanto
que tiene para usted la ciudad de La Habana? Por supuesto, sé que esta circunstancia suya de
ser, de vivir en la Habana Vieja, quizás marque todo el desarrollo de este tópico.
ETYM: topic
topless
n, m, clothes A woman’s bathing suit consisting only of the lower part. (LHCLH)
En 1964 el estilista RudiGenreich crea el topless o monokini, un verdadero escándalo que,
paradójicamente, gozó de gran aceptación. En principio era una sola pieza que dejaba al
descubierto el pecho de la mujer, hacia la parte superior contaba únicamente con dos tirantes
que se unían en la parte inferior. (“El más fashion”, almamater.cu, 07/08/2015)
~ 345 ~
SYN: monokini (Cu.)

ETYM: topless
tow motor [tormotor]

n, m, transp. A device used for lifting freight. (DEC)
ETYM: tow motor
town hall
n, m, obsol. A public place where the local (city or town) government is based.
Recital de Grace Costagnetta en el Town Hall. (Diario de la Marina. 10/04/1952, p.6)
SYN: ayuntamiento (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: town hall
traganíquel
n, m, obsol. A pay phone or a jukebox that works by inserting a coin.
ETYM: Prob. by combining “traga” and nickel (five-cent coin).
trailero
n, m, occup. Someone who drives trucks and trailers professionally.
Mientras unos podían enseñar sobre cosas prácticas como el oficio de trailero y de gomero,
otros tocaron cosas más espirituales como el amor o la palabra de Dios. (“Respuestas a media”,
ETYM: trailer
tribey
n, m, sport In baseball, a hit enabling batters to reach third base safely.
(…) uno menos que el granmense Yoenis Céspedes, el designado Osvaldo Arias y el jardinero
Juan Miguel Soriano, mientras el también patrullero Yasiel Puig se apuntaba un tribey en
función de emergente. (“Cienfuegos asegura liderato absoluto en béisbol cubano”,
mesaredonda.cubadebate.cu, 23/03/2011)
ETYM: three-base hit
triple
n, m, sport 1 In baseball, a base hit that enables the batter to reach third base.
Yang, octavo en el orden ofensivo, bateó de 3-3, contado el bambinazo, con dos impulsadas y
par de anotadas, antes de ser sustituido por Minho Kang, y lideró el ataque de 13 incogibles de
su equipo, que incluyó también un biangular y un triple. (“Corea vence a Cuba 7x2 y la deja
fuera del torneo”, juventudrebelde.cu, 16/11/2015)
SYN: tribey (Cu.)
~ 346 ~
Annexes
ETYM: triple
n, m 2 One of three babies that are born at the same time to the same mother.
Así, algunos autores plantean que su incidencia está en 1 por cada 80 embarazos en el doble o
gemelar, 1 por 6 000 en los triples o trillizos, 1 por cada 500 000 en los cuádruples
(cuatrillizos) y 1 por cada 40 960 000 en los quíntuples (quintillizos). (“Embarazo múltiple”,
Medical Report bvs.sld.cu)
SYN: trillizo (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: triplet
tripleplay
n, m, sport In baseball, a play in which the team in the field causes three runners to be put
out.
En estos dias se ha recordado el triple play de VC contra Industriales en el 98. Relaciono esto
con la magnifica idea de las reclamaciones usando el video de la TV. (“El triple play de Acebey
en el 98 y las jugadas a reclamar con la television”, beisbolencuba.com, 25/11/2013)
ETYM: triple play
trole
n, m, tech. A metal cable to which an electric vehicle that runs along the street on tracks, is
attached. (DEC)
ETYM: trolley
troler
n, m, colloq. A womanizer.
Leonardo es un troler, enamora a todas las mujeres. (DMC, p. 676)
ETYM: troller
trompón [trompón]
n, m A quick blow with or as if with the fist.
Después de un mal entendido, un trompón del cubano al español, más solar, más música y ron,
ella se decide por el pelotero. (cubadebate.com, 30/07/2013)
SYN: piñazo (Cu.)
ETYM: tromp
trousseau [trusó]
n, m, clothes Women’s underwear collected by a woman when she is about to get married.
ETYM: trousseau
~ 347 ~
truck
n, m, transp. An open trailer, used for carrying freight.
Pero cuando llegué a los truck me enredé de tal forma que no pude seguir. Por esa época estuve
pensando construir un tren magnético que tampoco llego a concretar. (“El colmillo blanco de
Karel”, modelismocubano.com, 07/12/2012)
ETYM: truck
tubey
n, m, sport In baseball, a hit enabling batters to reach second base safely.
El designado Colás ligó tres imparables en cuatro turnos –uno de estos tubey-,impulsó tres
carreras y anotó dos en funciones de cuarto bate. (“Alcanza Cuba tercer éxito en Mundial de
Béisbol sub 18”, radiohc.cu, 31/08/2015)
SYN: doble (Cu.)
ETYM: two-base hit
tubo
n, m, transp. A passage that goes under the ground, through a hill, etc.
“Tratamos de restablecer la impermeabilidad en algunos puntos del túnel donde se ha perdido
por el paso del tiempo”, dice a Cubahora el especialista principal del grupo, Marco Tulio Vega,
mientras observa a los hombres que trabajan en el tubo que va desde La Habana hacia las
playas del este. (“Cuba: El Túnel de la Bahía viste ropas nuevas”, lachiringa.wordpress.com,
21/03/2011)
ETYM: tube
twist-twill
n, m, clothes A type of long-resistant fabric used for suits or trousers.
Ultra: Super pantalón, en excelente twist-twill. (Depatment Store Ad,Diario de la Marina. 27
December. 1958, p.9)
ETYM: twist-till
uan, tu, tri

adj., colloq. (de ) Having bad qualities. (DMC)
ETYM: one, two, three
~ 348 ~
Annexes
umpire
n, m, sport → ampaya
Con motivo de no haberse preparado convenientemente el terreno, el umpire no pudo funcionar
con el acierto que era de esperar, mereciendo, sin embargo, un voto de gracia por la solicitud y
el buen deseo que dio prueba. (“¿Cómo llegó el béisbol a Cuba?”, radiorebelde.cu, )
ETYM: umpire
unión
n, f, form., obsol. An organization of workers formed to protect the rights and interests of
its members. (LHCLH)
SYN: sindicato (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: union
uppercut
n, m, sport In boxing, a swinging blow directed upward with a bent arm.
Le da una clase de cómo tirar uppercut, directos y jab, de cómo esquivar, boxear de espaldas a
las cuerdas y contraatacar (10-8). (“Cuba continuó “invictus” en Serie Mundial de Boxeo”,
ETYM: uppercut
utilidades
n, pl. A number of services provided.
The first National Bank of Boston: Capital, Reserva y Utilidades. (Diario de la Marina.
01/04/1930, p.10)
ETYM: utilities
utility
n, m, sport In baseball, someone who substitutes another player in a given position.
Jugadores sancionado por otras causas Yandry Canto, utility de cuadro. Marlon Romero,
Lanzador. (forum post, 29/05/2015, beisbolencuba.com)
ETYM: utility
vacacionista
n, f, colloq. Someone taking a vacation.
~ 349 ~
"Entre los 14 buques que visitarán la rada habanera en esta temporada con un total de 90
escalas, pudieran desembarcar unos 600.000 cruceristas en la capital cubana", dijo el
economista y profesor de la Facultad de Turismo de la Universidad de La Habana, José Luis
Perelló. (“Cuba prevé arribo de 600.000 vacacionistas en temporada de cruceros”, cubasi.cu,
20/12/2015)
ETYM: vacationist
vanity
n, m A square-shaped box for face powder.
ETYM: vanity case
varsity
n, m, sport In basketball or rugby, the main team of a college or a school.
Lo que más se conocía era el fútbol americano, el cual según datos consultados se practicaba en
la Isla desde los primeros años del siglo XX, y hasta los años 50 hubo hasta torneos oficiales,
en los cuales se hicieron famosos clubes como Varsity y Caribes. (“En Cuba también se
practica el rugby”, guajiroarrepentio.blogspot.com, 08/08/2011)
ETYM: varsity
vegetales
n, pl., food Plants grown for an edible part.
De esta manera ya ha sido confirmado como las personas consumidoras de una mayor cantidad
y variedad de frutas y vegetales tenían mucho menos riesgo de desarrollar diabetes. (“Frutas,
vegetales y diabetes”, cubahora.cu, 05/11/2012)
SYN: verduras (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: vegetables
velveta
n, f, clothes A soft type of cloth that has short raised fibers on one side. (cf. MWD)
Para ellos y para ellas: la piel llamada actualmente velveta y que es una gamuza, en todos
colores, pero sobre todo negra, es la última expresión de la moda. (Diario de la Marina.
29/04/1930, p.12)
SYN: gamuza (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: velvet
venderse como pan caliente

v. ph., colloq. To sell well, to become successful.
(…) somos lo que hay, lo que se vende como pan caliente, lo que prefiere y pide la gente, lo
que se agota en el mercado…(“Somos lo que hay”, song lyrics by Manolín)
ETYM: to sell like hot cake
~ 350 ~
Annexes
venirse
v. intrans., vulg. To experience orgasm.
SYN: correrse (Sp.)
ETYM: to come
venta
n, f An event in which a business sales at a lower price than usual.
El Gallo: Esta gran venta se iniciará el día 2 de mayo continuando hasta finalizar dicho mes.
SYN: rebajas (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: sale
venturero, -a
adj. To start to do something new or different that usually involves risk. (DEC)
ETYM: venturer
verde
n, m, colloq. A US one-dollar coin or bill.
Esa era la fotografía que soñaba con publicar en todos los medios informativos del planeta, ésas
son las secuencias (la cabeza de Castro en primer plano, clavada en la unta de una lanza), por
las que hubieran pagado millones y millones de verdes. (Así en La Habana como en el cielo,
J.J. Armas Marcelo)
SYN: fula (Cu.)
ETYM: Prob. from green (Am. “money”) or greenback.
verdolaga
adj., colloq. → verde
ETYM: green
vía ancha
n, f The main wide street in villages or middle-size towns.
Una anécdota: a una vía ancha que da acceso al antiguo Instituto de Segunda Enseñanza de La
Víbora, situada entre la Calzada de 10 de Octubre y la calle Párraga, alguien un buen día
decidió ponerle Plaza Roja. (“El actual Palacio de la Revolución fue construido antes de 1959”,
zoevaldes.net, 16/02/2015)
ETYM: broad way
~ 351 ~
videocasetera
n, f, house A device used for watching or recording video tapes.
Los usuarios que tengan TV más antiguos, que no dispongan de entradas de audio y de video,
podrán solucionar este problema con la conexión de una videocasetera y de la caja
decodificadora a esta. (“Cuba inicia prueba de televisión digital”, tvcubana.icrt.cu)
ETYM: videocassette
videograbador
n, m, house A device used for watching or recording video tapes.
También posibilita establecer recordatorios de programas seleccionados y emplearla como
referencia para el uso del PVR. PVR – “Personal Video Recorder” o videograbador personal.
(“Venta de cajas decodificadoras”, juventudrebelde.cu, 03/09/2014)
ETYM: video-recorder
videotape [bídeotei]
n, m, tech. A TV department specialized in collecting and running taped materials.
Solo a fines de ese decenio, una firma norteamericana comenzó a experimentar el videotape en
los partidos del baseball profesional cubano pero desde 1959, con el triunfo revolucionario,
dicho equipamiento retorno al Norte. (“Cuando la televisión redimensiona al cine”,
tvcubana.icrt.cu)
ETYM: videotape
vicaria
n, f, bot. (Catharanthus roseus) A relatively large reddish or white flower, used for
gardening and flower arrangements; widely-used for eye ailments, especially
conjunctivitis.
Para este enfrentar este padecimiento podemos preparar una infusión con la planta conocida por
Vicaria, se pone a hervir una taza de agua en un recipiente, después que está en plena
ebullición. (“¿Cómo enfrentar la Conjuntivitis?”, radiorebelde.cu, 26/06/2015)
ETYM: vicar
vinyl
n, m, tech., house A type of painting that is made of a plastic material.
Poly-Tex: la nueva pintura de latex de vinyl para exteriores. (Paint Ad, Diario de la Marina.
14/12/1955, p.2)
SYN: vinilo (Cu.)
ETYM: vinyl
violación de domicilio
n, f The act of breaking into a private property.
~ 352 ~
Annexes
Luego de ser liberado de prisión bajo fianza el 18 de junio del 2015 tras mantener una huelga
de hambre durante 46 días, el activista político Rolando Yosef Pérez Morera ha sido acusado de
“violación de domicilio” y enfrentará juicio el próximo lunes en el Tribunal Municipal Popular
de San Antonio de los Baños. (“Disidente acusado de “violación a domicilio” irá a juicio el
lunes”, cubanet.com, 22/10/2015)
SYN: allanamiento de morada (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: property/house violation
visionista
adj., colloq 1 Referring to someone having a lot of imagination or setting certain goals,
incapable of being realized or achieved.
Porque él es el mejor hombre del ultimo milenio, un prodigio, un visionista, uno de los cerebros
mas inteligentes de la historia y es el sueño de toda persona digna estrechar esa mano firme y
fuerte a pesar de los años...(“¿Por qué tantos líderes latinoamericanos quisieron visitar a Fidel
Castro?”, cubainformacion.tv, 31/01/2014)
ETYM: visionario (Cu., Sp.)
adj., colloq 2 Referring to someone who feels disgust or repugnance over ordinary things.
ETYM: visionist
vitrola
n, f 1 A machine that plays music when money is put into it.
La vitrola de Prado 115, símbolo de la casa, pone notas románticas a las horas. Las voces de
Benny Moré, Olrlando Contreras, Vicentico Valdés, Lucho Gatica, Tito Goméz… salen como
por arte de magia de esta reliquia ubicada en el centro del salón, dando la bienvenida al
visitante. (“El mago de la vitrola”, lahabanaprado115.com, 10/12/2015)
n, f, colloq. 2 Someone who enjoys prying.
ETYM: Victrola (trademark)
volante
n, m A piece of paper, spread out in the streets, announcing an activity or advertising
products or services.
Este es el caso de Fidel Coronado, quien consiguió que una tienda de ropa lo contratara de
manera informal para repartir volantes. "Reparto estos papelitos a la gente y a cambio ellos me
dieron dos pantalones" (“Emigrantes cubanos en Costa Rica buscan trabajo, aunque sea ilegal”,
diariodecuba.com, 07/12/2015)
SYN: octavilla (Sp.)
ETYM: Prob. from flier
voly var. voli

n, m, sport A shortening form of volleyball.
Cuba debutará frente a las dos selecciones de Argentina en el voleibol de los Juegos Panameri-
canos de Toronto. (“Cuba-Argentina, el debut del voli panamericano”, granma.cu, 08/05/2015)
~ 353 ~
SYN: voley (Sp.)

ETYM: volleyball
vuelo
n, m, clothes A garment closing concealed by a fold of cloth extending over the fastener.
(cf. MWD)
Es una camisa masculina cubana, de mangas anchas y con vuelos, acompañada generalmente
de pañuelos en el cuello y en la cintura. Hoy sólo se utiliza en manifestaciones artísticas y
escénicas. (“La guarachera”, Habana Danza Facebook page)
SYN: volante (Sp.)
ETYM: fly
vulcanizadora
n, f, tech. A repair shop in which tires are treated to improve rubber’s properties. (DEC)
"Estamos en la calle porque no tenemos otra posibilidad, lo mismo pasa en nuestros países, hay
personas que terminan en la calle porque no tienen otra posibilidad", agregá Pérez, quien antes
de caer en la calle trabajaba en una "gomera" (vulcanizadora). (“Miami del gran lujo a hogar de
indigentes ”, radiohc.cu, 04/08/2014)
ETYM: to vulcanizate
vulcanizar
v. trans. To provide tires with a special treatment to improve the properties of the rubber
they are made up of.
SYN: recauchutar (Sp.)
ETYM: to vulcanize or to vulcanizate
warandol
n, m, clothes Type of linen used for sheets and pillow cases.
(…) y la satisfacción que le producía el olor de los holanes, tafetanes, warandoles y demás
tejidos que Pedro les proponía y que ellas compraban a crédito para pagar en seis meses.
(“Cosas de isleños”, cosasdecuba.com, 29/12/2011)
ETYM: warandol
~ 354 ~
Annexes
warfarina
n, m, colloq. A low-quality alcoholic drink.
Pero toda suerte de alcoholes tóxicos inunda a Cuba: mofuco, warfarina, chispa e´ tren,
champán de hamaca, espérame en el suelo, bájate el blúmer. (“La botella, un refugio para
cubanos”, cubanet.org, 15/08/2013)
SYN: chispetren (Cu.)
ETYM: warfarin
warren bros
v. ph. (no levantarse ni con una ) To be very heavy (as per weight).
ETYM: Warren Brodds (trademark)
wash and wear

n, m, clothes Made from a cloth that does not wrinkle so that clothes can be worn
immediately after being washed. (cf. MWD)
J. Vallés: camisas de selecto poplín blanco con acabado wash and wear. (Shirt Shop Ad, Diario
de la Marina. 27 December. 1958, p.15)
ETYM: wash-and-wear
watt
n, m, tech. A unit for measuring electrical power.
Lo cierto es que, si gota a gota el agua se agota, kilo a kilo (watt) se escapan mega-volúmenes
de una energía eléctrica que quizá en el futuro venga toda del viento, del agua o del Sol.
(“Fraude que “toma” corriente”, granma.cu, 02/04/2015)
SYN: vatio (Cu., Sp.)
ETYM: watt
wattímetro
n, m, tech. An instrument for measuring electric power.
Se colocó el wattímetro entre la entrada de la corriente y el motor del banco. (“Evaluación de
dos bombas hidráulicas de engranajes de desplazamientos 32 y 50 cm3/rev”, Revista Ciencia
Técnicas Agropecuarias, 2013)
SYN: voltímetro (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: wattmeter
waynot
n, m, sport A throwing done by the pitcher. (LHCLH)
ETYM: Prob. from way and not.
~ 355 ~
week-end
n, m, vulg. 1. Saturday and Sunday.
v. ph.. 2 (vivir en ) To idle. (DMC)
ETYM: week-end
welter
n, m, sport → welterweight
En la siguiente velada de hoy la Isla presentará al mosca Yosbany Veitía, al ligero Lázaro
Álvarez, al welter Roniel Iglesias y al semicompleto Julio César La Cruz. (“Púgiles cubanos
aseguran bronce en Mundial de Boxeo”, granma.cu, 10/10/2015)
ETYM: welterweight
welterweight var. welter-weight

n, m, sport In boxing, a fighter in a class of boxers who weigh up to 147 pounds (67
kilograms).
Después que Ray Sugar Robinson conquistó el fajín mundial welter-weight, con victoria
decisiva en 15 asaltos ante Tommy Bell (20 de diciembre de 1946), la figura de Kid Gavilán
fue encaminada a convertirlo en el primer retador. (“Cosas de la vida”, bohemia.cu,
04/10/2010)
SYN: ligero welter (Cu.)
ETYM: welterweight
wild [wáil]
adj., sport 1 → wild pitch
La otra anotación llegó en la baja del octavo por error del camarero Raúl González, un
lanzamiento wild del relevista zurdo Liván Moinelo, que permitió que llegara hasta tercera base
el corredor, y una rolata por el cuadro. (“No hit no run para Cuba en tope de béisbol con
EE.UU”, cubasi.cu, 01/07/2015)
adj. 2 (estar ) To be in a mess due to the lack of concentration.
ETYM: wild
wild pitch
n, m, sport In baseball, a throwing that cannot be managed well by the pitcher.
A la hora del descontrol tenemos a Facundo Morales (HEN), que en 1983 realizó la fatal
empresa de tirar 5 wild pitch consecutivos en el tercer inning del partido pactado contra
Granma. (“Récords del beisbol cubano”, oncubamagazine.com, 30/05/2013)
SYN: descontrolado (Cu.)
ETYM: wild pitcher
~ 356 ~
Annexes
winche
n, m, tech. → güinche
Subir a bordo de un winche (suerte de ascensor metálico) y poner los pies a más de 80 metros
de tierra firme no es gran experiencia. (“Notables maniobras”, granma.cu, 30/09/2015)
ETYM: winch
winchero
n, m, occup. → güinchero
(…) no se me ocurría causa alguna para que Maibely, la especialista de Seguridad y Salud del
Trabajo, sonriera dulcemente a mi lado, como si no le preocupara el abismo que nos podría
devorar si el winchero cometía un solo error. (“Guaracabulla: tierra de tesoros y desafíos”,
vanguardia.cu, 06/06/2014)
ETYM: winch
wind up
n, m, sport In baseball, the movements that a pitcher makes before the ball is thrown.
Y quien no recuerda su doble wind up cuando lanzaba sin hombres en bases y con dos outs en
la pizarra. (“La pelota”, memoriascubano.blogspot.com, 16/03/2014)
ETYM: windup
yale [yále]
n, m, house A door fastening operated with a key.
Vendo dos yales dobles para puerta de cristal y hierro. (Ad Post, revolico.com, 10/09(2015)
SYN: cerradura (Sp., Cu.)
ETYM: Yale (trademark)
yanquirule
n, m, colloq. An American citizen.
Dice un colega que Ella nació en Toledo. Claro, para un periodista yanquirule, tales
coordenadas no se refieren al asentamiento castellano donde confluyeron armónicamente tres
culturas. (“En nuestro ayer, un sonado crimen”, cubahora.cu, 14/06/2014)
ETYM: Yankee
yaqui
~ 357 ~
n, m One of the pieces, made of plastic or metal, used to play in a children’s game.
ETYM: jack
yaquis
n, pl. Children’s game, whose pieces need to be collected before the ball hits the ground.
Ella, al igual que la rueda-rueda, el arroz con leche..., también el burrito 21, los yaquis, los
soldaditos, los palitos chinos, el parchís, padecen del mismo mal. (“Juegos tradicionales
cubanos: Pesadumbres de la Pájara Pinta”, cubasi.cu, 21/04/2015)
ETYM: jacks
yatismo
n, m The act of sailing a yacht. (DEC)
A la pregunta de en qué sentido podría influir la el turismo náutico proveniente de los Estados
Unidos, Escrich apuntó que “por cuestiones geográficas, históricas y de simpatía, el yatismo
norteamericano es el mercado natural para el desarrollo de este tipo de actividad en Cuba.
(“Havana Challenge: 90 millas de diálogo”, oncubamagazine.com, 17/05/2015)
ETYM: yacht
yatista
n, occup. Someone who sails a yacht professionally. (DEC)
Yatistas que se encuentren próximos a aguas territoriales y deseen anclar en Cuba, pueden
solicitar el permiso de entrada al país, a través de un documento único disponible en sitios web
cubanos. (“Flexibilizan trámites para yatistas que deseen anclar en Cuba”, cadenagramonte.cu,
23/12/2013)
ETYM: yacht
yersi
n, m, clothes → jersey
La Casa de Granados: juegos de yersi a la mejor calidad. (Clothing Shop Ad, Diario de la
Marina. 1 April. 1930, p.7)
SYN: jersey (Cu.)
ETYM: jersey
yipe
n, m, transp. → jeep
Posteriormente, el comandante Ramiro llegó a mi posición y me dijo, nos vamos, y ordena
coger un yipe que estaba en la zona y tomar un atajo. Ya Fidel había salido y pudimos
adelantarnos a su escolta e interceptarlos a la entrada de San Juan. (“Con Fidel en La Salina”,
guerrillero.cu, 11/06/2011)
ETYM: jeep
~ 358 ~
Annexes
yoni
n, m, colloq. An American citizen.
SYN: yanqui (Cu., Sp.), yuma (Cu.)
ETYM: Johnny
young gentleman
n, m, obsol. A young and well-educated man.
De viajeros: Hacen sus preparativos de viaje (…) el joven pintor Francisco Coro y el simpático
young gentleman Carlos Miguel Pérez. (Diario de la Marina. 25/06/1947, p.14)
ETYM: young gentleman
yuma
n, f, vulg. 1. The United States of America.
No por ser novedad sorprende demasiado que un hijo del Ministro del Interior de Cuba haya
recién llegado a EE.UU. para quedarse. (“Papi, quiero irme pa’ “La Yuma””, cubanet.org,
07/04/2014)
n, m, vulg. 2. An American citizen.
Ay, a mí me gustan los yumas. ¡Cómo tú has cambiado desde que salista de la cuna! (“Me
gustan los yumas”, song lyrics by Calle 35)
ETYM: Prob. from American Western hit “3:10 to Yuma” (1957).
Obs.: One of the colloquial ways of calling the United States was yunay < United, which
was phonetically associated with the new hit town Yuma, leading to the spin of the already
existing yunay, and the coinage of a new term.
Yunai
n, m, obsol. A popular way of calling the American company United Fruit Company,
established in Cuba before fidel Castro’s Revolution. (Mamita )
Pero en tierras del Tío Sam los Dumois emprendieron negocios con el poderoso emporio de los
Boston, quienes años después compraron sus propiedades en Cuba, dando origen así a la época
dorada de la tristemente célebre Mamita Yunai: la United Fruit Company. (“Exponen una de
las locomotoras más pequeñas del mundo”, juventudrebelde.cu, 12/09/2006)
ETYM: United
~ 359 ~
zambrán
n, m, clothes A wide belt, made of a highly resistant material, which is worn with the
military uniform.
Ahora está tan menuda como entonces, cuando el ancho zambrán, abrazándole la cintura, la
hacía lucir aún más delicada. (“La vida linda que él me enseñó, me ayuda en todo”,
ETYM: Sam Browne belt (trademark)
zipper or zíper [síper]

n, m, clothes A device made of plastic (or metal) used for fastening clothes, or for
opening/closing bags.
Una de ellas, que no quiso revelar su nombre, añadió: "Esto no es raro, yo me encontré una
minifalda sin zipper a tres dólares en la shopping. Un empleado de allí me dijo que por eso
estaba rebajado su precio". (cubanet, 14-03-2000)
SYN: cremallera (Sp.)
ETYM: zipper
zona de silencio
n. ph., obsol. An area in which radio or TV signals fail.
La inauguración de una moderna planta a fines del 2014 en el Consejo Popular de San Carlos,
al sur de Pinar del Río, llenó de júbilo a sus más de 2 mil habitantes, pues mejoró la calidad de
la recepción de la señal televisiva. (“Ya San Carlos no es una zona de silencio”,
ETYM: zone of silence
zona de strike
n. ph., sport In baseball, the area over home plate through which a pitched baseball must
pass to be called a strike. (cf. MWD)
Héctor Mendoza, pitcher que se apuntó juego salvado en el segundo partido del tope
preparatorio para el torneo mundial Premier 12 entre Cuba y Corea del Sur, manifestó que el
mayor reto radica en mantener la zona de strike, para evitar que los contrarios concreten una
buena conexión. (“Héctor Mendoza: el mayor reto es la zona de strike”, cubasi.cu, 06/11/2015)
ETYM: strike zone
zurdo, -a
adj. Not being able to dance properly.
~ 360 ~
Annexes
El Cha cha cha se bailaba a la par con el Rock and Roll (yo no bailaba ni bailo, soy zurdo para
el baile, lo que en Cuba se llama un patón, que viene de pata y no de pato, pero sí disfruto
muchísimo la música). (“Memorias de un cubano”, carlsobua.com)
ETYM: to have two left feet
~ 361 ~

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Anglicisms in Cuban Spanish

José Antonio Sánchez Fajardo

FACULTAD DE FILOSOFÍA Y LETRAS

ANGLICISMS IN CUBAN SPANISH

JOSÉ ANTONIO SÁNCHEZ FAJARDO

Tesis presentada para aspirar al grado de

PROGRAMA DE DOCTORADO: FILOSOFÍA Y LETRAS

A David, por toda la vida que le debo.

A Cuba, porque sí.

fenómenos sociolingüísticos, en especial aquellos relacionados con los cambios semánticos

Una característica distintiva de este capítulo es precisamente el paralelismo trazado

1.2 RESULTADOS DE LA INVESTIGACIÓN

Uno de los primeros resultados de la investigación ha sido la observación de patrones

que la migración norteamericana no constituyó un factor fundamental a la hora de valorar

cambios funcionales (left-field se encuentra como lugar y como jugador), anglicismo

mejor los fenómenos de homonimia, polisemia o transparencia semántica. Fueron

frecuentemente en adjetivos con semas negativos o con sentido de hilaridad: palmolivero

El número de coloquialismos alcanza la cifra de 137 variantes léxico semánticas,

El estudio de la relación entre los períodos históricos y el proceso de anglización

reconocida asimilación de estructuras derivadas del inglés. La mayor aportación del

Don Manuel, viejo guajiro a La Habana ha regresado.

(“La Habana de Ayer”, Luis Carbonell, 1988)

island have resulted in an unprecedented display of sociolinguistic phenomena, especially

In summary, this research embodies the need to study English-induced linguistic

3. ANGLICISMS IN CUBAN SPANISH: A HISTORICAL ACCOUNT

3.1 THE INEVITABLE ASCENT OF ENGLISH

spreading newly-coined words, especially those in relation with technology, economics,

3.2 CUBA AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (COLONIAL PERIOD)

From a diachronic perspective, the contribution of English lexis to Cuban-Spanish was

A former Cuban municipal administrative unit governed by a council.

Manufacturing and industrial production were significantly developed by the

registered 6 anglicisms as opposed to 36 gallicisms. The anglicisms referred to before are:

¡Oh, carramba, venca un abrazo!

Amerindian words. Esteban Pichardo’s Diccionario provincial casi razonado de vozes y

3.3 CUBA AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (NEOCOLONIAL PERIOD)

(muzzle in English): language used by Africa-born slaves.

Some of the assimilation channels used by anglicisms to penetrate into Spanish

3.4 CUBA AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (POST-1959 PERIOD)

“Nadie puede negar que con el triunfo de la Revolución Cubana, disminuyera

➔ The development of tourism, especially in the 90s, has led to an acquisition of a

➔ The import of undubbed American materials (films, series, documentaries). The

Notwithstanding the lack of materials on lexical borrowing in post-1959 period, it is

merely regarded as vulgarism or containing antisocialness traits, i.e. a low-register word-

4. LINGUISTIC BORROWING: TYPOLOGY

4.1 EXPLORING THE PROCESS OF BORROWING

L2 → L1 for W2 (E + C) (between T and T’)

Earlier classifications of borrowing, or interference as it was initially called, have

Figure 1: Global Categories in Linguistic Borrowing

Phonological Borrowing (PhB): the loans are chiefly phonological assimilations,

Morphological Borrowing (MB): this type of borrowing is necessarily dependent on

4.2 THE CONCEPT OF ANGLICISM

In general, there is no consensus on the terminology of Anglicism, and it is clearly used as

4.3 ANGLICISMS: PEST OR ZEST?

The long-lived nonacceptance of anglicisms as natural linguistic units is still nowadays a

Throughout the twentieth century, stances towards the presence of anglicisms in

4.4 LEXICAL BORROWING: SUBCATEGORIES

As pointed out in precedent sections, of the linguistic borrowings’ global categorization

4.4.1 Compendium of concepts and terminology

One of the most comprehensive subdivisions on anglicisms is drawn by Seco

Without a doubt, Type 1 borrowings, based on a direct transference of signifier and