carioca

noun

ca·​ri·​o·​ca ˌker-ē-ˈō-kə How to pronounce carioca (audio)
ˌka-rē-
1
Carioca : a native or resident of Rio de Janeiro
2
a
: a variation of the samba
b
: the music for this dance

Examples of carioca in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But even more so as a carioca [a person from Rio]. — Christopher Edwards, PEOPLE, 11 May 2026 The carioca, or grapevine exercise, provides an aerobic challenge while improving your agility and balance. — Tim Petrie, Verywell Health, 30 June 2025 These days, Brazilian funk (also known as funk carioca or baile funk) is bigger than ever, spawning TikTok dance challenges and full-on choreography. — Julyssa Lopez, Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2024 All dishes feature an element of fire cooking, whether from the grill, yakitori, or charcoal, and all showcase an adventurous culinary approach to traditional carioca cuisine. — Claudia Alarcón, Forbes.com, 23 Aug. 2025 Through her trilingual funk carioca, reggaetón, Afrobeat, and fizzy pop songs, the singer closes the divide between cultures while celebrating her Brazilian roots on the world stage, as evinced in her 2024 album, Funk Generation. — Isabela Raygoza, Billboard, 23 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Brazilian Portuguese

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of carioca was in 1830

Rhymes for carioca

See All Rhymes for carioca

Browse Nearby Words

cario-
carioca
cariogenic
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Carioca.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carioca. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All