The word angaú is an expression that accounts for a situation of falsehood, lie, or fiction, used during the colonial period among the Guaraní community.
Currently the expression angaú, is used daily by the inhabitants of northeast Argentina, mainly in Chaco, Formosa, Corrientes and Misiones. It is common to use it at the end of a sentence in normal Spanish, and close with this term.
Its use appears in all the spaces of these provinces, from towns to the capital of the Argentine provinces.
The colloquial meaning of Angaú
When the term angaú is used as a response to someone else’s story, it means that the person who has heard your story does not fully or partially believe it. This expression is ironic and joking, it is not confrontational.
The most common use for this word comes when one does not have a good omen of something that is about to be done or hopes to achieve, and when faced with a nervous situation, he uses the word angaú as a mockery of himself. For example, “I’m going to take the exam and I’m going to pass angaú.”
Angaú is a term anchored in culture, of daily use by all generations, and it is not lunfardo, but typical of the regional language of northeastern Argentina.
Examples of use of the expression Angaú
-A friend tells another: I missed work and the next day I showed up and my boss didn’t scold me. Answer: Angaú didn’t tell you anything!
-A friend tells another that he will visit him soon and bring food to share. Answer: yes, of course, angaú you are going to bring something!
-I have an Angaú job.