cabrón

What it means

1. 1.

   Between friends: mate, dude. An affectionate address term, roughly as strong as English 'bastard' used warmly.

2. 2.

   To a stranger: bastard, son of a bitch. A genuine insult.

3. 3.

   As an adjective: tough, difficult, or impressively good. Está cabrón el examen — the exam is brutal.

   Which of the three is meant depends on relationship and tone, not on the word.

Literally: Large male goat.

Examples with translations

• ¿Cómo estás, cabrón? Ya te extrañaba.

  How are you, you bastard? I've missed you.

  Note: Warm. Only works between established friends.

• Ese cabrón me chocó el coche y se fue.

  That bastard hit my car and drove off.

  Note: Genuinely hostile.

• Está cabrón encontrar estacionamiento por aquí.

  It's a nightmare finding parking round here.

Where it comes from

The goat is the traditional emblem of the cuckold across Romance languages, which is where the insult's original sting came from. That sense has largely faded in Mexico, leaving a word whose meaning is set almost entirely by the relationship between speakers.