Jalabolas
Suck-up, brown-noser — Venezuela's vulgar word for a flatterer, with a polite twin: jalamecate.
Related lesson: Venezuelan Spanish: A Survival Guide.
Hear it in context
Ese tipo es un jalabolas, siempre le está trayendo café al jefe.
That guy's a suck-up, he's always bringing the boss coffee.
Deja de jalarle bolas al profesor, que igual te va a raspar.
Stop sucking up to the teacher, he's going to fail you anyway.
No seas jalamecate, chamo.
Don't be such a kiss-up, man.
What It Actually Means
A jalabolas is a flatterer: the person who laughs at all the boss’s jokes, agrees with every opinion of whoever is in charge, and carries the teacher’s bag. It’s a compound of jalar (“to pull”) and bolas (“balls”), so it’s crude, roughly “ass-kisser”. The verb phrase is jalar bola(s). Like gilipollas, it ends in -s but stays the same in the singular: un jalabolas, una jalabolas.
The Polite Twin
Venezuelans have a clean version for when the crude one won’t do: jalamecate (literally “rope-puller”), with the verb jalar mecate. It means exactly the same and is fine around family or at work. Learn both, and use jalamecate until you’re sure of the company.
The Map of Suck-ups
Every country has its own word, and they’re good examples of regional Spanish:
- Spain: pelota (polite) or lameculos (vulgar).
- Argentina: chupamedias.
- Mexico: lambiscón.
- Colombia: lambón.
- Venezuela: jalabolas / jalamecate.
Common Pitfall
Because jalar is the everyday verb for “pull” in much of Latin America, learners sometimes miss the vulgarity of jalabolas. The word is rude, and in Venezuelan politics it’s also a common accusation against officials who flatter people in power. In a meeting, say jalamecate, or just adulador (flatterer).