kahunas n.pl. testicles; cojones. Also kahoonas. Editorial Note: Can be used in all the same ways as other slang terms for “testicles.” This kind of transformation of a Spanish word into substantially different Anglicized spellings, which in turn represent a different pronunciation, is a sign of its nearly complete adoption into English. There may, however, be some confluence with kahuna ‘a powerful person or leader,’ especially in the common form big kahuna. Mark Liberman at Language Log has written more about cojones/kahuna. Etymological Note: From the Spanish cojones ‘testicles.’ (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Samantha Harvey’s novel Orbital is a sensuous, exhilarating meditation about the strangeness of life on a space station, with its mix of tedious tasks and jaw-dropping views. And: a musician who rode the rails in his youth shares the slang he...
Steve, a singer-songwriter from Rock Springs, Wyoming, shares some slang he picked up while months riding the rails and busking. Spanging refers to panhandling, from asking for “spare change.” The term bull refers to a type of security...