This post is also available in:
Spanish

A new week means a new word… better said a new Dominican word! We hope this week has been wonderful, and full of learning, so as a bonus to you all, here we add a little fun knowledge of the Dominican language.
Our hope is to facilitate a better understanding between Dominicans and foreigners, which is why we’re bring you one Dominican word per week, to help you comprehend our unusual yet creative form of speech.
This week’s word is “pinta”, you say it to someone when they are wearing a nice outfit, new clothes or look particularly pretty or elegant. Mostly it is used to describe an outfit that is used on special occasions, such as the Christmas holidays or celebrations.
Pinta
“Pinta”, means “good or dressy outfit”, “nice clothing”. It means someone has endeavored to select clothing, shoes and other accessories to look very good, probably for a special occasion.
Example 1:
Dominican 1: ¿¡Oh, pero y esa pinta!? ¿Pa’ dónde vamos? / Wow! You look dressy! Where are you going?
Dominican 2: Bueno, ¡vamos a la misa de Navidad! / Well, we are going to Christmas Mass!
Example 2:
¡Ella tenía una pinta que se acabó! / She was well dressed for the occasion!
Example 3;
Dominicano 1: Y tú, ¿Ya tienes la pinta de Navidad? / And what about you, do you have your Christmas outfit ready?
Dominicano 2: ¡Pero claro, desde noviembre yo busqué esa pinta del 24 y el 31 de diciembre! / Of course! I’ve had my Christmas and New Years outfits ready since November 1st!
*Synonyms: elegant outfit, nice clothing, good clothes,
(You can substitute the word “pinta” for any of the synonyms stated above).Note: Dominicans also called “tire” to a “good pinta” or “good clothes”.
So far we have learnt jumo, guayarse, deg