What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the verb hacer (to make/do) and the noun caca (poop).
Which one should you use?
While hacer caca is informal, defecar is the formal, technical and clinical term. For a more indirect approach, you might use hacer de cuerpo to mean 'do one's business'. If you want to be humorous or colloquial, you can use echar un truño to mean 'to drop a turd' or ir al trono to metaphorically say 'go to the throne'.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Hacer caca is informal and is most commonly used when speaking to children or in very casual settings. For polite but informal situations, hacer del baño is a common and acceptable way to express the action. In professional or medical settings, use the formal term defecar.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some Latin American countries, the term cagar or its derivatives are used frequently instead of hacer caca when talking informally.
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb hacer must be conjugated to match the subject, while caca remains unchanged.
How do you pronounce it?
/aθeɾ kaka/
Did you know?
- The word cagada is a common noun derived from the same root as caca but is frequently used to mean 'a big mistake' or 'a mess'.
- In many parts of Latin America, the vulgar verb cagar is used much more casually in daily speech than its English equivalent 'to shit' might suggest in a social setting.
- The noun caca and the verb cagar are actually two sides of the same linguistic coin. Both words descend from the same Latin root, cacare, which is why they sound so similar.
Examples in context
- El bebé está haciendo caca.The baby is pooping.
- El perro quiere hacer caca en el parque.The dog wants to poop in the park.
- Mi hijo tiene que hacer caca ahora mismo.My son has to poop right now.
- Creo que el gato va a hacer caca aquí.I think the cat is going to poop here.
Example conversation
A parent and child are getting ready to leave the house.
- JavierLucía, ¿estás lista para irnos?Lucía, are you ready to go?
- LucíaNo, Javier, necesito hacer caca.No, Javier, I need to take a poop.
- JavierDate prisa, por favor.Hurry up, please.
- LucíaYa voy, dame un minuto.I'm coming, give me a minute.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries caca, hacer, hacer caca, CC BY-SA 4.0.
