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B1 Spanish listening practice · Mexican Spanish · Curated for intermediate learners
What does “chanfle” mean in Spanish?
¡Chanfle! is an interjection of surprise — anything from delight to dismay — that works as a tidy, family-friendly stand-in for stronger words, on the level of “good grief,” “wow,” or “darn.” It was made famous worldwide by Roberto Gómez Bolaños (Chespirito) in El Chavo del 8 and El Chapulín Colorado, where it replaced the kind of expression you couldn’t say on a kids' show.
In sport, chanfle also literally means a curve or spin put on a ball (a banana kick), from the same root as chaflán, “bevel.” As an exclamation it can stand alone (¡Chanfle!) or appear in the grumble me lleva el chanfle, a softened “this is killing me.” It reads as gently old-fashioned and unmistakably Mexican.
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Words above this video’s level
Quick glosses for vocabulary that goes beyond this video’s B1 level.
Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · SUBTLEX-ESP 2011 (spoken). Buckets approximate; exact ranks not stored.