• spic, spick, spik, spig, or spigotty
– (U.S, U.K) a. a person of Hispanic descent. Use of the
word is often perceived as extremely offensive if used
by a person other than that of Latino descent in any
context. [origin uncertain. first recorded use in 1915.
Theories include (1) from "no spik English" (2) from
spig, in turn from spiggoty, which could be from
spaghetti as it originally was used to refer to Italians
as well when coined in 1910. Common belief is that it
is an abbreviation of "Hispanic", although this is
probably an anachronism] b. the Spanish
language.[123]
• Gringo
– (Latin American, Hispanic Americans,
Portugal) a white person or foreigner. The
term lends itself to derogatory or paternalistic
connotations, but depending on the context it
may not be meant pejoratively. In Brazil,
"gringo" is applied to any foreigners (including
Mexicans or Argentines) and has no negative
connotations by itself[61].
• Greaseball
– (US) Formerly a person of Italian descent;
now also applies to a Hispanic person. This
term also refers to a person who regularly
uses some sort of hair gel or product. People
who fit this description stereotypically live on
Long Island or the Jersey Shore. See the play
"A Streetcar Named Desire" by Tennessee
Williams.[60]
• Gook
– (U.S. military slang) an Asian person, especially an
enemy (e.g. Koreans or Vietnamese during the
Korean and Vietnam wars). By extension, any Asian
person. Probably derived from the Korean words
“hanguk” and “miguk”. “Hanguk” refers to Korea[30]
and “miguk” is the common word for America.[31]
American troops misinterpreted "migook" (sounds like
"me gook") as an assertion of "I am a gook". The
word persisted during the Vietnam War, perhaps also
because the Vietnamese people have a similar word
“quốc”, meaning "country". Strangely, "gook" was also
used by white soldiers in Africa to designate enemy
insurgents.[57]
• Durka
– a person (Typically male) of middle eastern or
south asian heritage. Widely publicized
through the movie Team America: World
Police, durka is a mockery of certain south
asian and/or middle eastern languages.
Considered moderately offensive
• Cracker
– (U.S.) poor Southerner, "poor white trash",
first used in the 19th century.[39] By
extension, white people in general. (Europe)
People with blue eyes and blonde hair.
(Southeast Asia) White people (usually White
Americans).
• Chink
– (U.S. and UK) used to refer to people of
perceived Chinese descent or East Asian.
Contraction of Chinese/East Asians, or
describes eyes as shaped as chinks.
Considered extremely derogatory, although at
least one US school proudly used the term as
a sports mascot until the 1980s.[34
• Chicano
– (U.S., Mexico) a person of Mexican descent
born in the United States. This word is
sometimes used by native Mexicans as a
derogatory term to insinuate that the person
born in the United States is not a true
Mexican and, therefore, a "lesser" Mexican.
• Canuck
– (U.S. & CAN) a Canadian national. (Rarely
offensive, and considered by Canadians to be
somewhat obsolete — compare "Yankee")
The Vancouver NHL team is even called the
"Vancouver Canucks". When pronounced
Can-OOK it is somewhat more derisive,
although in a comical sense. The original
meaning, like "Canadian", meant French
Canadians only.
• Apple
– (North America) An American Indian (Native
American) who is "red on the outside, white
on the inside." Used primarily by other
American Indians to indicate someone who
has lost touch with their cultural identity. First
used in the 1980s.[12]
• Whore, slut
• Beaner
– (U.S.) term widely regarded as derogatory, that refers to people of
Mexican descent or, more broadly, Latinos.[16][17][18] The term
originates from the prevalence of frijoles pintos and other beans in
Mexican food.[18][19]
– According to The Historical Dictionary of American Slang, the word was
first seen in print in 1965, although the term has reportedly been in use
at least since the 1940s (perhaps having evolved from previous slurs
such as "bean-eater" and "bean-bandit" that were in use since as far
back as the 1910s.) [16]
– Although the word is generally considered pejorative, its usage is not
always overtly offensive and can be fairly benign depending on the
context (similar to the term "frog" for a French person.) Though perhaps
once considered strictly offensive, it appears that the term may be going
through a phase of melioration, where the negative connotation of an
ethnic slur is "reclaimed" by those it is directed against and used in a
neutral or even positive manner. [16]