Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
dictionary thesaurus

dago

noun
da·​go | \ ˈdā-(ˌ)gō How to pronounce dago (audio) \
plural dagos or dagoes

Definition of dago

offensive
—used as an insulting and contemptuous term for a person of Italian or Spanish birth or descent

First Known Use of dago

1832, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for dago

alteration of earlier diego, from Diego, a common Spanish given name

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about dago

Dictionary Entries near dago

daghesh

Daghur

daglock

dago

dagoba

Dagomba

dago red

Statistics for dago

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for dago

The first known use of dago was in 1832

See more words from the same year

WORD OF THE DAY

orthography

Listen to the pronounciation of orthography

the way words of a language are spelled

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

A Green Quiz

  • shamrock
  • What is the best definition of green-eyed monster?
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Citation

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games