galán

heartthrob

noun gah-LAHN Rare

Origin: From Old Spanish galan, from French galant (gallant, courtly).

Also means

leading man

Usage Note

Galán in theatre and film refers to the male romantic lead, the handsome hero. In everyday speech it can describe any attractive, charming man, sometimes ironically. The feminine equivalent for a romantic lead is dama or primera actriz, not galana (which exists but is archaic). The plural galanes loses the written accent, a common pattern for nouns ending in -án.

Examples

"El galán de la telenovela tiene millones de fans."

Natural Translation

The heartthrob of the soap opera has millions of fans.

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