Colgado

Colgado is a Spanish adjective derived from the verb colgar, meaning suspended or hung. It is used for objects that are physically attached or suspended, such as un cuadro colgado en la pared (a painting hung on the wall). As a past participle, colgado can describe something that has been hung or suspended.

In colloquial speech, colgado has a range of figurative senses. In many Spanish-speaking regions, alguien está colgado can describe a person who is spaced out, inattentive, or under the influence of drugs. The expression estar colgado de alguien means to be infatuated with or obsessed by someone. The term can also refer to a person who is habitually late or absent-minded, depending on regional usage.

Colgado also functions as a noun. Un colgado can historically refer to a person who has been hanged. In modern slang, the noun may describe someone considered eccentric or odd, though this sense can be pejorative and context-dependent.

Regional usage varies. In Spain, colgado is a common descriptor for someone who seems detached, daydreaming, or under the influence of substances. In parts of Latin America, the term can carry similar nuances of distraction or being overwhelmed, with additional local connotations tied to mood or behavior.

In culture and language, colgado appears in everyday speech, idiomatic expressions, and occasionally in titles or media references related to hanging or suspended objects. It remains a versatile term illustrating how a simple participle can acquire multiple meanings beyond its literal sense.

See also: colgar, hang, hanging.