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paliza

beating

noun pah-LEE-sah Rare

Also means

thrashing

Usage Note

Paliza is feminine and primarily means a physical beating or thrashing. It also means a crushing defeat in sport: les dieron una paliza (they thrashed them). In colloquial Spain and Latin America, dar la paliza means to bore someone rigid or to pester them — a very common idiomatic use that can surprise learners expecting a violent meaning.

Examples

"El equipo recibió una paliza en el partido."

Natural Translation

The team took a thrashing in the match.

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