Cinco de Mayo
5
3.1
- noun
- /ˈsɪŋkoʊ deɪ ˈmaɪoʊ/
- US
:
Cinco de Mayo
- In honor of Cinco de Mayo, here are a couple of facts that you may not know.
- Cinco de Mayo parade
- Cinco de Mayo celebrations
Or like, I guess like Cinco de Mayo or something more.
- Or like, I guess like Cinco de Mayo or something more.
Examples
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On May 5th, many people in the U.S. celebrate Cinco de Mayo with parades and festive parties.
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Cinco de Mayo, after all, celebrates the battle that initiated Mexico's overthrow of the French on May 5, 1862.
Academic text (1995) -
"All excited about putting on a program for Cinco de Mayo."
Fiction book (1995) -
Actually, it's a Cinco de Mayo parade.
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At this Cinco de Mayo festival in Denver, a parade celebrates the proud Mexican heritage of many Americans.
Academic text (1999) -
On Cinco de Mayo, he boards the Mexico City subway during rush hour, flotsam in the crush of humanity.
Blog text (10) -
Families often gather to enjoy traditional foods and music during Cinco de Mayo festivities.
Surface Forms
Morphology
Cinco + de + Mayo
The phrase literally consists of Spanish words meaning 'five' + 'of' + 'May', so a learner who knows the constituents can readily derive that it refers to May 5th and likely infer it names a date-related event or celebration. However, the specific sense as a holiday commemorating the Mexican victory at the Battle of Puebla (and its cultural significance) cannot be deduced from the words alone and requires cultural/historical knowledge.
Etymology
Cinco de Mayo comes from a real event: on May 5, 1862, Mexican soldiers won an important battle in Puebla. 'Cinco de Mayo' literally means 'Fifth of May', cinco means 'five' and mayo means 'May', so people celebrate the victory and the day now means 'a time for festivals and Mexican pride'.