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guagua. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
guagua, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
guagua in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
guagua you have here. The definition of the word
guagua will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
guagua, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Spanish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈɡwaɡwa/
- Rhymes: -aɡwa
- Syllabification: gua‧gua
Etymology 1
Onomatopoetic of the sound made by the wheel suspension of the bus. (The public transport buses in the Canary Islands were not very modern in the early years.) The Royal Spanish Academy considers this etymology debatable.
Noun
guagua f (plural guaguas)
- a trivial thing
- (Caribbean, Canary Islands) bus (with a fixed route)
- Synonyms: colectivo (Argentina, Mexico), combi, pesero (Mexico City)
- (Cuba, Dominican Republic) hemipter
- Synonym: hemíptero
Derived terms
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Quechua wawa (“infant, child”). Possibly imitative of a baby's sound.
Noun
guagua f (plural guaguas)
- (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru) baby, infant
- Synonym: bebé
1915, Julio Vicuña Cifuentes, Mitos y Supersticiones Recogidos de la Tradición Oral Chilena, page 53:[Los duendes] son pequeñitos y visten como las guaguas, con el mismo traje que llevaban en vida.- (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- (Peru) a type of sweet bread shaped like a baby
See also
Further reading