5 Latin Slang Terms You Should Know
In different regions of the US and other native English speaking countries, there are various unique ways people express themselves with the words and phrases that they use. Same goes for Latin America, however, the use of slang terms and phrases is much larger since multiple countries share the beautiful Spanish language. Here are some of the most common slang terms and phrases you will hear across Latin America:
1. “No mames, guey”
This is a popular Mexican phrase used when you are telling someone to stop messing around. For example, if someone in Mexico tells you news you can’t believe, you would respond with “no mames, guey” which is equivalent to “stop playing, bro”. You could also use it to respond to someone if they are picking on you too much.
2. “Sipote”
This term is mainly used in El Salvador and is used to describe a child (“little rascal”). Although the term is known to come from El Salvador, you might also hear a lot of Hondurans used it as well. Latin countries in Central America tend to use similar slang terms.
3. “Que mas, parcero”
The literal translation of “que mas” means “what else”. However, in Colombia“Que mas” is the same as saying “what’s up” or “what else is new” and the term parcero is a common way to refer to someone as your friend/bro/pal. You will mainly hear this phrase in the city of Medellin in Colombia.
4. “Aguas!”
When most Latin countries hear the word “agua” they automatically think of water. But let’s imagine you are walking around in Guatemala and someone randomly screams out “AGUAS!” to you. What do you do? If I were you, I would duck for my life because in Guatemala this term means “watch out” and it’s better to be informed and safe than sorry.
5. “Resaca”
“Resaca” is known to be the standard way to say “hangover “ in most Spanish speaking countries. However, in a few other Latin countries, they use completely different words to refer to it. In Colombia, most people wouldn’t understand if you were say “tengo resaco” since the slang term Colombians use to refer to a hangover is “guayabo”. Many Central Americans will usually refer to it as “cruda”.
These are just a few main examples of the slang terms/phrases used across Latin America. It’s common for Latinos to have a conversation with other Spanish speakers and be introduced to new terms they don’t understand. It just goes to show that Spanish is such a diverse language in itself and that there are numerous ways Latinos express themselves.
Do you use these terms often? What other Spanish slang terms do you hear often? Let us know in the comments below.
