Just as Puerto Rican Spanish has many names for individual slaps and blows, it offers several ways to describe overpowering or beating someone.
These expressions imply more than one isolated hit and may also describe a decisive victory by a large margin:
- Una pela — a beating.
- Caerle encima a alguien — to descend on or overwhelm someone.
- Dar una catimba — to give someone a thorough beating.
- Darle como pillo de película — to beat someone like a movie villain.
Usage
- Le dieron una catimba. — They gave him a beating.
- Te van a dar una catimba si sigues. — They will beat you if you keep going.
- Se ganaron una catimba bien dada. — They earned a proper beating.
Related expressions
- The thousand ways to hit someone.
- Una galleta — a slap.
- Una pela — a beating.
- Darle como pillo de película — to beat someone up dramatically.
Origin note
The origin of catimba is uncertain. The term is used throughout Puerto Rico for a thorough beating.