Mexican Spanish is one of the most spoken Spanish in the world with at least 122 million people in just Mexico. During my journey of learning Spanish in Mexico, I had “discovered” a lot of interesting words that ONLY used in Mexico. Each of them is very unique and commonly used in Mexican society. Whenever you’re in Mexico and asked somebody there to teach you some Spanish, they would first think of teaching you the Mexican slang. Learning these slangs not only help you have a better understanding of Mexican Spanish, it also makes easier to get around Mexico and making more local friends.
Table of Contents
1. Orale (Hell yeah)
- oh-rah-leh
An affirmation, stronger word for yes, just like hell yeah.
Example
“Vamos al cine?” (let’s go to the cinema?)
“Orale!” (hell yeah!)
2. Cabrón (Dude/Bastard)
- car-bron
Mainly used among close friend to replace their name. It might be offensive if you say this to somebody that’s not too close.
Example
“Como estas, cabrón?” (How are you, dude?)
“Eres un cabrón cuando te tardas de responder.” (You’re a bastard when you are late to answer.)
3. Guey (Bro/Dude)
- wey
Similar usage as cabrón but this is more common to be heard in conversation and Mexican tends to use this a lot. It’s pronounced as “wey”
Example
“Guey, cual es tu problema?” (Bro, what’s your problem?)
“Guey, como te va?” (Dude, how are you?)
4. Que Chido (Amazing/Awesome)
- keh chee-doh
To express when you think something is amazing or cool.
Amazing, super, cool “que chido que alguien invento el whatsapp”
Example
“Que chido que alguien inventó el whatsapp.” (How amazing it is that somebody invented whatsapp.)
“Que chido que estes visitando Mexico.” (How awesome it is that you’re visiting Mexico.)
5. Que Padre (Amazing/Awesome/Cool)
- keh pa-drey
It has the same meaning as “que chido” and it is less used.
Example
“Que padre que estas aprendiendo slangs.” (It’s cool that you’re learning slangs.”
6. Que Onda (What’s up?/That’s good!)
- keh on-dah
There are two meaning for “que onda” depends on how you use it.
- In a question form: “Que onda?” it means what’s up?
- “Que buena onda” contains the meaning of telling something is great and have a good vibe.
Example
- “Que onda, guey?” (What’s up, bro?)
- “Que buena onda que viajes mucho.” (That’s good that you travel a lot.)
7. Que Pasó (What have you been doing?)
- keh pa-soh
Normally comes right after greeting. It has the same meaning as “que onda”.
Example
“Que pasó, Alejandro?” (What have you been doing, Alejandro?)
8. Pendejo (Asshole)
- pen-deh-ho
It is a very offensive word, beware of using it!
Example
“Eres un pendejo si haces algo y no te queda bien hecho.” (You’re an asshole if you’re doing something and not doing it well.)
9. Aguas! (Watch out!)
- a-guas
To warn somebody or to tell somebody to watch out.
Example
“Aguas con el carro que paso muy rápido!” (Watch out for the car that’s driving fast.)
10. Cruda (Hangover)
Cruda only used in Mexico, the word for hangover in other spanish countries is “resaca”
Example
“Tengo cruda.” (I’m having hangover.)
11. Nini (A person who neither work nor study)
- ni-ni
It’s the short form of “Ni trabaja ni estudiar”(neither work nor study). It’s equal to NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) in English.
12. Chingon (cool)
- chin-gone
To saying somebody is cool or better than the rest. An equivalent to cabron.
Example
Manuel es un chingon porque sabe snowboard mejor que todos sus amigos. (Manuel is a cool guy because he knows snowboard better than his friends.)
13. Pinche (it sucks)
- pin-cheh
To describe someone in a bad way. This adjective is used in a negative way.
Example
Pinche los estudiantes no saben nada de español. (The students who doesn’t know Spanish are suck)
14. No Mames (are you kidding me?)
- noh mah-mess
Mexican says it when they don’t have 100% credibility over something. It also used among friends to tease each other.
Example (a)
Alguien dice es que aprendi a jugar futbol como messi en 1 año. (Somebody said he learned to play football like Messi in just a year.)
“No mames es imposible” (You must be kidding me)
Example (b)
Alumno: “Maestro! No entiendo esto que me explico.”
(Students:”Sir! Please explain this to me because I don’t understand.)
Y tu piensas, eso ya lo explique 1000 veces y en tu mente dices o piensas: “No mames!”
(You have explained 1000 times and you thought: “No mames!)
15. No Manches
- noh man-chess
Similar to no mames but less vulgar.
16. Compa (mate, bro)
- kom-pah
A term used among guys to call their besties.
17. A Huevo (of course!)
- ah u-eh-vo
To emphasize the certainty of your answer. A strong “of course”.
Example
“Quieres ir al cine esta noche?” (Do you want to go to the cinema tonight?)
“A huevo” (Of course!!!!!)
18. Hueva (laziness)
- u-eh-va
To describe the feeling of not wanting to do anything. Laziness.
Example
“Vamos al centro por tomar algo.” (Let’s go for a drink in downtown)
“Tengo hueva.” (I’m feeling lazy)
19. Fresa (strawberry??)
*freh-sah
Strawberry in Spanish is “fresa” but Mexican called a person who came from a high class and educated family.
20. Ahorita (Right now? Now? Later? Never?)
*ah-oh-ree-ta
A verb with indefinite meaning. Ahorita literally means “a little now”, but it could mean now, later or never.
Example
“Lava los platos!” (Wash the dishes!)
“Ahorita!” (The person gets up and do the job/ the person still sitting around/ the person never wash the dishes in the end.)
21. Carnal (bro)
* kar-nal
Refers to a brother or very close male friend.
22. Chafa (cheap, lousy)
*chah-fah
A synonym for low quality or lousy. Equivalent to “Pinche” that was introduced in number 13.
Example
“Que chafa la bolsa que tiene.” (What a low-quality bag that she has.)
23. Que pedo
*keh-peh-doh
It has a different meaning in different context.
- What’s up?
- What’s your problem?
24. Simon (yes!)
*see-mon
Yeah or yes. Not the name Simon though.
Example
“Vas a jugar el fútbol con nosotros?” (Are you going to play soccer with us?)
“Simon!” (Yes!)
25. Nel (no)
*Nel
Equivalent to no. Most spoken by chilangos.(residents of Mexico City)
26. Ojete (bad person)
*oh-het-teh
Mean, bad person. Asshole.
There you go! 26 Mexican slangs. (sorry to end this list with a vulgar one.) There are a lot more slangs that haven’t been included here for two reasons. Firstly, it’s because I couldn’t recall any of them since there are a lot! Second, I just hadn’t spent much time in Mexico to learn all of them. (That’s a good reason to return to Mexico!);) Hopefully, this compilation of Mexican slangs do help some of you, good nor bad.
Lorenz
El # 20 excelente explicación de “ahorita”😂 felicidades hicieron una buena investigación.
Ray Van Dune
Why present these words without accent markings?
Sergio Armendariz
Órale, Qué (several instances), Simón…also note that cabrón, güey, chingón, pinche, and Qué pedo , those words leans more than the rest to vulgarity or total informality and you may not get a smile if you use them in a first encounter
Rafa bezares
El número 15 sería mas bien….
No Manches!!…..
John
I like it nice suggest
Michael Foy
Cool..how about “esse”?
Jorge TG
Esse (ese=that) is not used in México. It’s used almost exclusively by 2nd generation Mexican-Americans in the Southern USA; same as “bato” (kid).
Rogelio Alberto
La palabra Pinche, no necesariamente es negativa. Podemos decir “pinche wye eres un cabron”, o lo que es lo mismo “amigo eres bueno”… ponganse chingones 😉
Rainer Pilger
Nice and helpful compilation.
A second look at the text would have avoided some phonetic and grammatical mistakes, though.
*(caR-bron) *(The students who doESn’t) etc.
David Eidell
Call someone desconocido a cabrón down here and get a high speed fist applied to the face. Not funny. Avoid. Chinga is another palabra picante
Ian Hugo
Mexican girls are very sweet
Mickey
Erré…..that also means “”LATER””
Hétor
Fresa = square (Mostly usted in the 60-70s)
¡No seas fresa! Don’t be square
Angelo
Nope, square means boring people and fresa does NOT mean boring people. Fresa means something like classy or posh.
Bill Warner
First, they are slang expressions, not slangs. There’s no plural for slang. Secondly, As a commenter noted above, be careful using these terms in polite company or in a bar, taverna or social gathering. As David wrote above, in some places these words can get you a fist to the face, rapidly applied. In Colombia ahorita is also indeterminate, but I was taught by Mexican and Cuban profes that it means right now, like ya! And pedo can mean the common bodily function, or in Mexico it can also mean a social gaffe. Then there are the many Latin ways to hint at saying son.of.a.bitch without using the whole phrase. I found in Mexico many say hijo de, and then don’t finish the phrase.
Pedro Barrera
Excelente artículo y de mucha ayuda para quienes buscan comprender el lenguaje cotidiano en Mexico
Max Rojas Boada
En Venezuela cabron significa cornudo o el marido de la puta.
Tam ExPat
Use these words cautiously. Most of them are slang that only super good compas use with each other and only when in very casual situations. A traveler who shows up in an unfamiliar place and says “¿Orale, que pedo cabron¿'” is going to get in serious trouble.
Jose
The word “slang” is always singular in English, so it is quite ironic to see it misused in an article about language.
john doe
Don’t waist you money going to Mexico. its a shit hole, the people are almost all criminals, meaning they WILL steal from you given the opportunity. They haven’t got a clue what good serves is and they say good serves is reserved for good tippers. Instead of the other way around. Everywhere is dangerous, I don’t care what you were told. Its a culture of drugs and crime. You get in situation there and nobody will help you. i lived there for ten years and had everything stolen from me. watch countless crimes go unpunished, learned what to look for and saw people being screwed everyday. Mexico is a shit hole country. Go someplace else. NEVER TRUST A MEXICAN! Remember that.
viralvacationideas
Hi John Doe,
Every one is free to have their own opinion. Living there for 10 years itself means there is something good, no one will stay longer if they feel not welcome or being cheated. Regarding crimes, it happens every where in the world and not just in mexico.
Nana
Man! That was harsh. True, not everyone’s experiences are the same. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mexico. Living in So Cal I’ve driven all the way from Santa Barbara to Cabo twice. I’ve also driven all around the Yucatán, as well as Puerto Vallarta, Colima, and Guadalajara, I’ve run out of gas in the sticks and have had a car pulled out of a ditch. The locals were very helpful and when offered $ for their assistance, they politely refused. ¡Viva Mexico!
Briuce
For John Doe. I would never trust someone who doesn’t know the difference between “good service” and “good serves”. You lived in a “mistrusting” environment for 10 years? How stupid is that!!!!
Eric Hays
Wow, are you a trump fan by any chance? It’s hard to believe that the people of Mexico didn’t fall in love with your personality and attitude. And if you had everything stolen from you, watched countless crimes and saw people being screwed over everyday, you’re most likely either associating with the wrong crowd, or you’re just an asshole and you probably deserved to have your stuff stolen. I’ve been coming down to Baja for decades and the Mexican people are overwhelmingly friendly, hard-working, helpful and family oriented. Sadly though, I think that the trump era has done real damage to the way some Mexicans feel about American visitors and expats, which isn’t surprising given trump’s insults, lies and the abuse of Mexican children while in ICE custody. I love my country, but the U.S. has been a shit hole of the highest order during the last four years under trump. He has embarrassed the U.S. on a nearly daily basis, alienated our allies, and allowed Covid to spread unchecked to the point where we have more cases per capita than all of the countries that he called shitholes. And Mr. Doe, NEVER TRUST A TROLL WHO IS TOO COWARDLY TO USE HIS REAL NAME! Remember that. Loser.
Kappelvo
” me too ” I’m a TRUMP fan . Is there any problem ?
John Lane
Haven’t been to Mexico except once to Tiajuana when I was a young Marine, I’ve known many Mex’s in Florida and they all had jobs and seemed to be nice folks. Sounds like the . Pendejo that had been there for 10 years may have been in prison. Viva Mexico
Catherine Ann Hays
LOL!!!!!! Wow your post did not age well did it? I guess now that you see how your beloved dems are treating the children at the border Trump didn’t look so bad huh? hahahahaaa
Merrill L Eriksen
Could you be a bigger pendejo? I think you attracted yourself in the many bad experiences you talk about.
Marcio Jose Accioly Xavier
Hi John Doe, The whole world is a crazy place. Think of the crimes committed by Americans, aiming aimlessly when they freak out. There is no safe place in the world.
Roberta Feldser
I have lived in Mexico 23 years now and I have loved it so much. My Mexican friends and associates have been helpful and kind and I feel like a real part of the community. There’s certainly crime all over the world, but there are ways to lessen your chances of becoming a victim.
Gene
We’ve been coming to Mexico for nearly 40 years. These folks are unbelievably honest and friendly.. They are family and religiously oriented. Folks that say otherwise must have been brain-washed by
Faux News and Donald Trump.
Pablo
I’ve lived in Guatemala for 65 years and traveled through Mexico by car many times. Once our utilitiy trailer unhitched from our vehicle, overturned and was wrecked. Within minutes a pickup stopped and assisted us in reconnecting the trailer and taking us to a nearby town for repairs. Very nice people urging us to hurry before the police came to subject me to a fine for the “privilege ” of having a personal accident- no one else involved. Living in. a place for 10 years and not liking it so much must be a little insane. I’ll bet they were glad to see you leave !!!!
Margarita
Ahorita is not a verb… just saying… And NEVER trust anyone who signs JOHN DOE… What a coward! And, yes, I am a trustworthy Mexican! Just saying…
Kappelvo
To Eric Hays : A perfect exemple of demoRATic indoctrination . Wrong again : NOW The U.S. is on its way to turn to be a shithole of the lowest order.
Kappelvo
So, only comments written by leftists are welcome . Then continue to wipe their backside.
Kappelvo
Leftist site ?
Timmy
John Doe, so you were screwed systematically for 10 years in Mexico and you still stayed there? Hahahaha NO MAMES, cut the bullshit.
Mexican people are not as you described them. Mexicans are good people.
Pedro
Have you seen Seattle lately? talk about lawlessness.
Pedro.
Memo Watson
Thanks for the slang tips. There are many more on YouTube with a few clicks. Been coming to Mexico for 45 years (mostly coastal) snd after surviving a tire blowout and 3x rollover in the CA desert and traumatic brain injury decided to recuperate in Aguascalientes 1-3 weeks a month. Stereotypes are hateful and hurtful and, degrade comity and present false equivalencies. To the Mexicans and Mexican Americans out there, I love your country. You have made the USA stronger. Thank you.
Stephen
I lived in Centro America for a few years and some of these Mexican terms would be very offensive in Centro America.
viralvacationideas
Hi Stephen,
May be you can share some alternate mexican terms which are not offensive in Centro America which will be helpful for those planning to visit such areas.
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As David composed above, in certain spots these words can get you a clench hand to the face, quickly applied. In Colombia ahorita is additionally uncertain, yet I was instructed by Mexican and Cuban profes that it implies at this moment, as ya! Furthermore, pedo can mean the normal real capacity, or in Mexico it can likewise mean a social indiscretion. At that point there are the numerous Latin approaches to allude to saying son.of.a.bitch without utilizing the entire expression. I found in Mexico many say hijo de, and afterward don’t complete the expression.
I USER
would not go there if you paid me
Cristina Alonso
Be careful with the 26, in Spain it refers to the anus.
Cristina Alonso
Pedo, at 23, in Spain can refer, depending on the context, to drunkenness or intestinal gas. In origin it refers to the latter.