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Bandera de México

/Sounds like "bar" (as in "bar") + "bear" + "oh"/

A suck-up or brown-noser, someone who flatters the boss or anyone in power just to get on their good side. In Mexico, calling someone "barbero" means they're always saying what people want to hear, bringing coffee, laughing at bad jokes, doing whatever it takes to score favors. It comes from "hacer la barba," which literally means to shave someone's beard but figuratively means to butter them up.

Example

"No le hagas caso, es bien barbero con el jefe. -> Don't listen to him, he's a total suck-up with the boss."

"¿Ya viste al barbero? Le llevó café y todo al director. -> Did you see that brown-noser? He even brought coffee to the principal."

Regional synonyms:

Espacio pavimentado al costado de la calle para que caminen los peatones de forma segura. Es la zona sagrada del peatón que los carros deberían respetar pero que en muchas ciudades invaden sin piedad.