maluco

Portuguese

Etymology

Unknown. Maybe from maluco (“moluccan”)- see Moluccas - or from a diminutive of malo.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /maˈlu.ku/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /maˈlu.ku/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /maˈlu.ko/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /mɐˈlu.ku/

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ma‧lu‧co

Adjective

maluco (feminine maluca, masculine plural malucos, feminine plural malucas)

1. crazy, mad

   Synonyms: doido, louco, marado

   O Tom ficou maluco? ― Has Tom become crazy?

Noun

maluco m (plural malucos)

1. (Brazil, slang) guy; dude (male person)

Further reading

• “maluco”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “maluco”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maˈluko/ [maˈlu.ko]
• Rhymes: -uko
• Syllabification: ma‧lu‧co

Adjective

maluco (feminine maluca, masculine plural malucos, feminine plural malucas)

1. diminutive of malo; sick; under the weather

Further reading

• “maluco”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025