Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A traditional folk song of Mexico, typically performed by a mariachi band or solo musician and featuring alternating vocal and instrumental passages.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[American Spanish, from feminine of ranchero, of or relating to ranches; see ranchero.]

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Examples

  • In Grammy speak, 'Regional Mexican' often refers to ranchera, banda, mariachi, and norteña music.

    Voto Latino: Grammy Protest Fights the Elimination of Cultural Categories Voto Latino 2012

  • Mr. Vargas courted controversy during his spell in a Colombian prison by recording an album of Mexican-style "ranchera" songs.

    Drug Lord Gunned Down in Hospital 2009

  • Those aren't hints to the location of a lost gold mine, they're ads for some great 'ranchera' and mariachi songs.

    June 2006 2006

  • Those aren't hints to the location of a lost gold mine, they're ads for some great 'ranchera' and mariachi songs.

    ON THE BUBBLE with LOUISE URE 2006

  • Noted celebrities have been named Mr. Amigo each year ever since, including famous Mexican comedian Mario Moreno "Cantinflas," former Mexican President Miguel Aleman, and even famous women such as ranchera singer Lola Beltran.

    Brownsville Herald : 2010

  • We call it "ranchera" around here in LA among the Latin community.

    PW FULL RSS FEED 2009

  • The first, "Dance Floor Democracy," featured my old friend Michelle Habell-Pallan, talking about Chicana punk singer Alice Bag, from the early-80s Los Angeles scene, and about the influence of "ranchera" music (the Mexican mariachi sound she listened to as a child) on her performances - a whole hidden history of women's emotional expression and how this complicates the history of punk.

    Warren Ellis 2009

  • Family favorites include enchiladas suizas with green sauce paired with a Viognier; crispy tostadas with ground beef and salsa with a Chardonnay; or carne asada ranchera style with a Serat or a Zinfandel.

    Wine industry aims to attract more Latinos 2011

  • They assumed all that vulgarity came from Univision shows or radio stations that blared ranchera music -- you know, the stuff that mainstream America ignores.

    Daniel Cubias: What the !#$@%*?: Will the Rise of Spanish Redefine Indecency? Daniel Cubias 2011

  • They assumed all that vulgarity came from Univision shows or radio stations that blared ranchera music -- you know, the stuff that mainstream America ignores.

    Daniel Cubias: What the !#$@%*?: Will the Rise of Spanish Redefine Indecency? Daniel Cubias 2011

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