Cagarla

Cagarla is a Spanish verb phrase whose infinitive form means to mess something up or to spoil a situation. It is used primarily in informal speech and is considered vulgar due to its association with the bodily function implied by cagar. The expression is often used with a direct object representing the thing being spoiled, as in la cagué (I messed it up) or la cagó (he/she messed it up). The infinitive form cagarla combines the verb with the clitic la, which stands for the object of the action.

Derived from cagar (to defecate) with the pronominal clitic la, the phrase is metaphorical: causing a failure or blunder that "stinks" as it were. It forms a range of tenses: la cagué, la cagaste, la cagó, la cagamos, and the noun cagada describes the blunder itself (una cagada).

Usage notes: because of its vulgarity, it is typically avoided in formal writing; in casual conversation it conveys strong emotion or emphasis. In some regions it may be shortened or softened, with variants like cagada, or replaced by milder phrases such as meter la pata.

Beyond its verb sense, cagarla is occasionally used as a playful or fictional place name in creative works, but it is not recognized as a standard toponym in official gazetteers. It is primarily encountered as slang in media and online discourse. See also: meter la pata; cagada; cagar.