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/Sounds like "peh" (as in "pet") + "lah" (as in "lava") + "BOH" (as in "boat") + "lah" (as in "lava")/

Meaning

Completely broke, not a penny to your name. In Venezuela, pelabola is a blunt way to describe someone financially empty, the kind of broke where you can't cover even the most basic expenses and borrowing from them would be pointless.

Examples

Don't ask him for money, he's worse off than you are.

I was completely broke after paying rent.

Regional synonyms

/Sounds like "peh" (as in "pet") + "lah" (as in "lava") + "BOH" (as in "boat") + "lah" (as in "lava")/

Meaning

A person who's completely broke, with zero resources and nothing to offer in Venezuela. The pelabola is so flat broke they can't even afford bus fare, and everyone knows their situation because it's painfully obvious.

Examples

That pelabola can't even afford the bus fare.

Don't come flexing, you're a pelabola.

Regional synonyms
Bandera de Venezuela
Bandera de Colombia
Bandera de México
Arrancado

Showing 2 definitions, sorted by votes

Nuts, unhinged, or acting completely out of control in Argentina. From Rioplatense lunfardo with Italian roots ("piantar" meaning to leave or escape), a "piantado" is someone whose behavior is so bizarre or unpredictable that their sanity seems to have simply walked out the door.