"Calor" versus "caliente".
I have been led to believe by the hispanic culture at large that calor indicates a warm temperature (either climate or body temperature), while caliente refers to a hot temperature or a "hot" person (someone sexy). I have heard the usage interchanged by them in conversation once in a while but supposedly you don't use "caliente" to describe body temperature unless you are adding an insinuation. Have you found this to be true? Can native speakers weigh in on this please? Perhaps this rule varies by country as well. I would love for others to help me clarify....Thanks ahead of time for your input!
4 Answers
Hey! I'm a native speaker from Colombia and you can say "caliente" refering to body temperature without sounding like your adding an insinuation. E.g.: It's okay to say "Te siento caliente" when you are touching someone and you are trying to insinuate that....they've got a fever hehe. Aswell. if you are cold and let's say you hug someone that feels warm to you, there's no problem in saying "Estás caliente". At the end, I think it all depens on the way you say it and to whom you say it. :D
You can also use ´caliente´ in :
estoy caliente = ¨I´m pissed off¨.
Jordan tiene la mano caliente esta noche = Jordan is on fire tonight
estoy caliente / ando caliente = I´m horny
la rubia me calienta = the blonde girl turns me on
Tengo el pico caliente means I want to keep on drinking (beer, wine, vodka, ecc.)
La mano viene caliente means this situation is getting worse. Similar to la mano viene jodida
Calor is good for describing warmth in terms of temperature, ie: if it's a hot day, you could say "hace calor". If you are physically hot, "tengo calor". Caliente is used by my mexican friends with reference to hot food, "la salsa es caliente", but if you use the word caliente with reference to yourself, "estoy caliente" means "I'm horny". In the end, it's use depends on the context.
Isn´t it the difference between an adjective and a noun? So we say "She is hot" but not "She is heat."
