Is there a Spanish equivalent for "douche", as in the insult?
I've search and found several results which, while being correct, either are too regional or lack the force of the English insult.
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1Are you claiming that "douche" isn't regional?– Peter TaylorMay 17, 2012 at 9:02
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1@PeterTaylor I think he just means that the possible translations of "douche" are regional, regardless "douche" itself is regional as well.– JoulSauronMay 17, 2012 at 9:15
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3@JoulSauron, to expand, I think "forceful" insults are almost always going to be regional. Either the force depends on some cultural factor, in which case the word either doesn't spread or loses its force; or it depends on shock, in which case spreading implies losing its force as it becomes familiar.– Peter TaylorMay 17, 2012 at 9:25
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@PeterTaylor That's correct, I only found (or knew) translations that were regional, but JoulSauron, I get your point, that's highly possible. I've seen good suggestions here though.– AlphaMay 17, 2012 at 13:55
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Children’s slang like this varies too much not just from country to country but from one playgroup to the next for a definitive answer to be possible. I’d laugh if I heard an adult using douche as an insult. I don’t know a term in Spanish that carries the same little-kid feel to it.– tchristJun 4, 2012 at 11:12
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4 Answers
Some equivalents used in Mexico are: pendejo (literally means pubic hair, and it's kind of the Mexican equivalent to the Spanish gillipollas, and really offensive too), cretino, and idiota.
The English insult douche or douche bag is an idiomatic expression. As such, it is difficult to translate it literally.
A literal douche is a medical device used typically for vaginal cleaning, as during or after a woman's period.
As such, the insult is similar to calling someone a "sh*t bag", or anything else that might be considered unpleasant, unclean, smelly, gross, or disgusting.
The English word has the same Latin roots as the Spanish word for shower, ducha and they are close cognates. The Spanish word for the medical device is also ducha.
However, this clearly is not an insult in Spanish. You might get your point across, but you'd get some odd looks, too, if you used the full expression and called someone a ducha vaginal.
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5Being a native speaker, I swear to laugh for at least half an hour if someone use "ducha vaginal" as in insult. You could expect it perhaps in a very good stand-up (sounds very creative!) May 18, 2012 at 2:10
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1@belisarius: I would laugh, too... if someone said that to me in English or Spanish :)– FlimzyMay 18, 2012 at 2:36
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1@belisarius: But said in the right context, it would be a very colorful insult, indeed.– FlimzyMay 21, 2012 at 14:14
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1Can you give any insight on what sorts of Spanish insults might be more apt to be heard out of the mouths of children (including teens) than adults? I imagine this must be very regional, but is still interesting.– tchristJun 4, 2012 at 11:13
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The Spanish equivalent would be something like "capullo", "imbécil" or "gilipollas", although this last one is more offensive/vulgar.
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1Capullo refers to a closed flower, gilipollas is regional expression (Spain) a term that I can think is "LADILLA" an unpleasant bug that attacks on the genital area (due to poor hygiene) Laddila is quite used in some countries in Latin America May 17, 2012 at 15:39
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3in Spain's spanish, "capullo" also stands for "douche" , and "gilipollas" is an insult, not a bug.– ImaMay 18, 2012 at 10:40
Capullo. You can see images in Google of the cocoon.
Ladilla does not stand for gilipollas is used in Spain only, not in Hispanic America. Douche bag is not a idiomatic expression ,is just ducha vaginal.
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