figa

See also: Figa, figá, figà, and figą

Catalan

Etymology

Inherited from Vulgar Latin *fīca, from Latin fīcus. Compare Occitan figa or higa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈfi.ɣə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈfi.ɣa]

• Audio (Valencia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iɡa

Noun

figa f (plural figues)

1. fig

   (idiomatic) Ser figues d'un altre paner ― to be something very different from what was expected (an idiom, literally to be figs from another basket)

   (idiomatic) Fer figa ― to fail to achieve an expected result (an idiom, literally to make fig)

2. (vulgar slang) cunt; pussy (the vulva)

Derived terms

• fer figa
• figa de moro
• figa de pala
• figaflor
• figueta

Further reading

• “figa”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “figa”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
• “figa” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “figa” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Fanagalo

Etymology

From Zulu -fika, from Proto-Bantu *-pìka.

Verb

figa

1. to arrive, to reach

Galician

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese figa (13th century, Cantigas de Santa Maria), from Vulgar Latin *fīca (“vulva”), from Latin fīcus (“fig tree or fruit”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfiɣɐ]

Noun

figa f (plural figas)

1. (folklore) fig sign, used to ward off evil spirits, the evil eye, etc. When directed to a person is insulting and equivalent to a bras d'honneur

References

• Seoane, Ernesto Xosé González; Granja, María Álvarez de la; Agrelo, Ana Isabel Boullón (2006–2022), “figa”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval [Dictionary of dictionaries of Medieval Galician] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Barreiro, Xavier Varela; Guinovart, Xavier Gómez (2006–2018), “figa”, in Corpus Xelmírez: corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval [Corpus Xelmírez: linguistic corpus of Medieval Galicia] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “figa”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “figa”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega