pelar la pava

Spanish

Etymology

Literally, “to pluck the turkey”. A 19th century legend from Seville claimed that a servant instructed to pluck a bird for dinner forgot her task as she started flirting with her lover by a window; when asked about her delay, she shouted she was plucking the turkey.

Verb

pelar la pava (first-person singular present pelo la pava, first-person singular preterite pelé la pava, past participle pelado la pava)

1. (idiomatic, dated, Spain) to flirt; to engage in courtship, especially by a window or a balcony
2. (idiomatic, Spain) to gossip; to chitchat

See also

• marear la perdiz

Further reading

• “pelar la pava”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10