Spanish Slang
Spanish slang words and lingo decoded — meanings, translations, and origins for the street Spanish you won’t find in a textbook. Properly sourced.
436 words
To drink (alcohol)
A rough, low-class dude (from 'compañero').
Money, cash (Caribbean)
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Home, house, crib (Cuban).
To kill it / go all out / be awesome
To like (a post).
Not much (rhyming reply to a greeting).
To get hyped / excited (Cuba)
Okay, alright, let's go
A bundle of odds and ends (DR)
What's up? (rhyming Chicano greeting).
To work (Cuba)
Bro / sis — short for hermano/hermana (PR)
Colombian and Caribbean slang for 'cool,' 'awesome,' or 'great.'
Cool, nifty, awesome (DR)
A posh, upper-class kid (DR)
Papaya — the fruit (Cuba)
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For bad luck / an unwelcome person to strike
A fine/loyal girlfriend (Caló)
I swear it's true / for real (Caló)
Baby (term for a girlfriend/attractive girl)
The rumor mill / word of mouth (Cuba)
To sleep deeply, to crash (Cuba)
To watch, to look at.
A petty thief.
What's up? How's it going? (Cuba)
Bad vibes; an unpleasant or mean person
Police; also a graffiti tag/nickname (Caló)
Bohemian, artsy alternative types (DR)
To run a small hustle/side gig
Mexican 'dude' or 'bro' — also a verbal filler like 'man.'
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What's up? / how's it going?
Mexican slang for a kid, youngster, or young guy.
To joke around, tease, kid (DR)
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A tough guy, a bully looking for a fight (PR)
Lunch; a packed midday meal.