Spanish · Hand Gestures · hand gesture
El codo (gesto)
He/she is a cheapskate (stingy)
coarse but friendly; fine among acquaintances
The gesture
"Tap or raise your bent elbow; sometimes pat the elbow with the other hand"
What your hand is actually doing.
How to use it
In Mexico "codo" (elbow) means stingy — the image is someone so tight they'd have to bend their elbow to reach their wallet and won't. Tap or wag your elbow while talking about someone and everyone knows you're calling them cheap. Silent, funny, and only mildly rude — but the target won't love it. Verbal version: "¡qué codo eres!"
Heard in the wild
—¿Va a pagar la cuenta? —(tocándose el codo) Uy, no.
—Is he going to pay the bill? —(tapping elbow) Ha, no way.
Where it lands
Mexico (universal)
Quick answers
- What does "El codo (gesto)" mean?
- In Spanish, "El codo (gesto)" means "He/she is a cheapskate (stingy)". Literally it's "Tap or raise your bent elbow; sometimes pat the elbow with the other hand". In Mexico "codo" (elbow) means stingy — the image is someone so tight they'd have to bend their elbow to reach their wallet and won't. Tap or wag your elbow while talking about someone and everyone knows you're calling them cheap. Silent, funny, and only mildly rude — but the target won't love it. Verbal version: "¡qué codo eres!"
- Is "El codo (gesto)" offensive?
- It's on the mild end — 2/5 (Bar-safe) on the Punch-o-Meter. coarse but friendly; fine among acquaintances.
- How do you pronounce "El codo (gesto)"?
- This one's a hand gesture — there's nothing to pronounce. Tap or raise your bent elbow; sometimes pat the elbow with the other hand.
Related in Spanish
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