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bárbaro

barbarian

adjective noun BAHR-bah-roh Rare
Descriptions & Qualities Personality

Origin: Greek barbaros (foreign, incomprehensible)

Also means

awesome

Usage Note

Bárbaro has two very different registers: in historical or formal use it means uncivilised or barbaric; in colloquial Spanish (especially in Spain and the Río de la Plata region) it flips to mean fantastic, awesome, or huge — ¡Qué bárbaro! can be admiring or shocked disbelief. The historical noun un bárbaro refers to a barbarian people; the colloquial un bárbaro informally means a brute or huge amount. Context is essential.

Examples

"Hizo un esfuerzo bárbaro para terminar a tiempo."

Natural Translation

He made a tremendous effort to finish on time.

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