the difference in gemelos y cuates

Question

what is the difference in the words gemelos y cuates?

Answer 1

what is the difference in the words gemelos y cuates? Now this is interesting to me, when I first read it I thought 'twins?" didn't know the word 'cuates' for twins so I checked and of course it is - and it says it is used in Mexico and it does not add the other meanings of 'gemelos' like cufflinks, binoculars which you can use gemelos for.

Answer 2

I think the only difference is which countries the words are used in.

Answer 3

Gemelo(a) is the proper word for Twin

cuate, ta.

(Del nahua cóatl, serpiente o mellizo).

1. adj. Guat., Hond. y Méx. Camarada, amigo íntimo. U. t. c. s.

2. adj. Méx. mellizo (‖ nacido de un mismo parto). U. t. c. s.

3. adj. Méx. Igual o semejante.

Real Academia Española © Todos los derechos reservados

In Mexico, it's also common to say, Cuatacho for Good friend.

• Great, even more interesting. (And I had forgotten mellizos -where did the brain go.) - margaretbl Jul 4, 2010
• So gemelos for identical twins... mellizo for fraternal twins?? - 0074b507 Jul 4, 2010

Answer 4

Cuate is fraternal twin. Gemelo is identical twin. In the case of enlish, you use twin for both of them right?

Answer 5

I have twins and my Mexican nanny uses cuates to describe fraternal twins and gemelos to describe identical twins. I'm pretty sure cuates is unique to Mexico and in other places (spain, LA) they use the word gemelo for all twins.

Answer 6

cuate also means friend.

Answer 7

That's weird, I call my friends cuate, didn't know it meant twin like gemelo.

Answer 8

I work with two identical twins and everyone calls them both cuate, and i thought it was they could not tell them apart, i can but not many others can.