Spanish is a language with Many 💬 Different 🗯 Dialects 📢 And in order to talk the talk, let’s brush up on some of our favorite Latino slang! 

Let’s start with how we say hello! It’s hardly ever “hola” is it 👋🏼 ¿Qué lo Qué? is how Dominicans say “what’s up?”, while Cubans say ¿Qué bola? and Mexicans say ¿Qué pedo?

But if we wanted to literally know what’s going on, a Nicaraguan and favorite would be Ideay, meaning “what happened?” 🤷🏾‍♂️

Hanging with your amigos? Or are they Colombian parces, Venezuelan chamos, Puerto Rican panas, or your bróders from another… you get it. 

Think something’s cool? Venezuelans, Ecuadorians, Salvadorians and others would say it’s “chévere” 😎 Guatemalans would say “qué chilero!” And Costa Ricans? “Qué chiva!” 

Puerto Ricans exclaim “al garete” ( or “wild”) after a night out, to what Argentinians or Uruguayans call a boliche or “nightclub” 💃🏾 

Speaking of 🍻 Had one too many drinks? Well, in Mexico tu andas bien pedo! In Chile, estas arriba de la pelota! and in Peru, you’re a huasca! 

Now we can better socialize with the rest of our Latino compadres 🌎

Share if you want more in-depth slang lessons! 

Author

Lisann Ramos (she/her/hers) is a Content Writer for Pulso. She is a Cuban American writer, audio producer and reporter. She produces a podcast called Now That We’re Friends for O, Miami. She lives in Miami, Florida, where she was born and raised. 📧: [email protected]