loco

Sentences
Meaning

Frequency

A1
Hyphenated as
lo‧co
Pronounced as (IPA)
/ˈloko/
Etymology

In summary

Uncertain. Inherited from Old Spanish loco, perhaps from Andalusian Arabic لَوْقَاء (láwqa), from Arabic لَوْقَاء (lawqāʔ), feminine singular form of أَلْوَق (ʔalwaq, “stupid”), by reinterpreting the final Andalusian Arabic -a as the Ibero-Romance -a and back-forming the masculine with -o. Edward Roberts thinks the term is related to Arabic لَاق (lāq, “to soften”), but this verb is of root l-y-q, not l-w-q like أَلْوَق (ʔalwaq). Alternatively, derived from Ancient Greek γλαυκός (glaukós, “clear”). Compare Portuguese louco and Sicilian loccu.

Notes

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