Mexican Slang Dictionary

Search the word you heard. Every entry carries the line as somebody in Mexico would really say it, the answer you give back, and who is in the room when it is safe.

Search 182 words

The word you heard, or what it means in English

Accents are optional. Typing guey finds güey.

Where you are

Who is in the room

182 words, showing the first 30

güey
Friends only
Means
dude, mate — and, with a flat tone, idiot
Literally
an ox
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿Qué onda, güey? ¿Vas a venir o no?
What is up, dude? Are you coming or not?
Sí voy, nada más dame veinte minutos.
I am coming, just give me twenty minutes.
Written wey in messages. Warm between friends and flat between strangers, and the tone is the whole difference: ¿qué onda, güey? is hello, ese güey no sabe nada is contempt. Never to somebody older than you, and never at work on the first day.
neta
Anywhere
Means
the truth; as a question, for real?
Literally
clean, pure (from the French nette)
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿Neta te vas a vivir a Mérida?
Really, you are moving to Mérida?
Neta. Ya firmé el contrato.
For real. I already signed the lease.
La neta es que… opens an honest answer, and it is the most useful two words in this list: it buys you a second and tells her you are not performing.
chido
Anywhere
Means
cool, good, nice
Literally
no literal sense; recorded as Mexican from the 1970s
Heard in
All of Mexico
Está bien chido tu departamento.
Your apartment is really cool.
Gracias, me costó encontrarlo.
Thanks, it took me a while to find it.
padre
Anywhere
Means
great, excellent
Literally
father
Heard in
All of Mexico
¡Qué padre está el museo!
The museum is great!
Verdad que sí, y la entrada es gratis los domingos.
It really is, and it is free on Sundays.
Qué padre is the safest enthusiasm in Mexican Spanish: it works with her mother, at the office and at the bar. Padrísimo is the same word turned up.
padrísimo
Anywhere
Means
fantastic
Literally
most fatherly
Heard in
All of Mexico
La boda estuvo padrísima.
The wedding was fantastic.
Sí, y la comida no se acabó nunca.
It was, and the food never ran out.
órale
Anywhere
Means
three things at once: wow, all right, and go on
Literally
from ahora, now, with the -le ending Mexican Spanish adds to everything
Heard in
All of Mexico
Órale, no sabía que tocabas la guitarra.
Wow, I did not know you played guitar.
Desde chavo, pero ya casi no practico.
Since I was a kid, but I hardly practise now.
Which of the three it means is carried entirely by the tone. Rising and short it is surprise, falling it is agreement, and pushed hard it is hurry up.
ándale
Anywhere
Means
that is it, go on, hurry up
Literally
from andar, to walk
Heard in
All of Mexico
Ándale, ya vámonos que se hace tarde.
Come on, let us go, it is getting late.
Ya voy, nada más cierro la ventana.
Coming, I am just closing the window.
híjole
Anywhere
Means
wow, or uh oh — the sound of bad news landing
Literally
a softened form of hijo, son
Heard in
All of Mexico
Híjole, se me olvidó por completo.
Oh no, I completely forgot.
No te preocupes, lo vemos mañana.
Do not worry, we will deal with it tomorrow.
no manches
Anywhere
Means
no way, you are kidding
Literally
do not stain
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿No manches, te robaron el celular otra vez?
No way, they stole your phone again?
Ya sé, y era nuevo.
I know, and it was new.
The polite stand-in for no mames. Same surprise, and you can say it in front of anybody.
no mames
Never with her mother
Means
no way — the same surprise as no manches, said crudely
Literally
do not suck
Heard in
All of Mexico
¡No mames, ganamos!
No way, we won!
¡Ya sé! No lo puedo creer.
I know! I cannot believe it.
Constant between young friends and offensive to everybody else. Say no manches until somebody says this one to you first, and even then not in front of her family.
chingón
Never with her mother
Means
excellent, or a person who is very good at something
Literally
from chingar, the most flexible vulgar verb in Mexico
Heard in
All of Mexico
Tu hermano es bien chingón con las computadoras.
Your brother is seriously good with computers.
Sí, se dedica a eso desde la prepa.
He is, he has been doing it since high school.
A compliment, and still a vulgarity. Octavio Paz spent a chapter of El laberinto de la soledad on this verb; the register has not softened since.
chingar
Never with her mother
Means
to ruin, to bother, to work hard, to steal — the sense comes from the sentence
Literally
no polite literal sense; the root verb of Mexican vulgarity
Heard in
All of Mexico
No me chingues, ya casi terminaba.
Do not mess with me, I had almost finished.
Perdón, pensé que ya habías acabado.
Sorry, I thought you were already done.
Recognise it, do not use it. Its dozen derivatives all carry the same weight, and a foreigner using them reads as trying too hard rather than as fluent.
a huevo
Never with her mother
Means
hell yes; also, by force, whether you like it or not
Literally
to egg
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿Vas a ir al partido? — ¡A huevo!
Are you going to the game? — Hell yes!
Entonces paso por ti a las seis.
Then I will pick you up at six.
The clean version is claro que sí, and among friends the softened a huevito exists too.
qué onda
Friends only
Means
what is up
Literally
what wave
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿Qué onda? ¿Cómo te fue en el trabajo?
What is up? How did work go?
Pesado, pero ya salí.
Heavy, but I am out now.
Onda, a wave, runs through half of Mexican slang: buena onda is a good person, mala onda is an unkind act, agarrar la onda is to get the point.
qué pedo
Never with her mother
Means
what is up, or what is the problem — the tone decides
Literally
what fart
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿Qué pedo con el coche? No arranca.
What is going on with the car? It will not start.
Creo que es la batería, déjame ver.
I think it is the battery, let me look.
Between friends it is hello. Said to a stranger with a hard tone it is a challenge, and that is how bar fights start.
pedo
Never with her mother
Means
a problem, a matter, or being drunk
Literally
a fart
Heard in
All of Mexico
No hay pedo, yo te ayudo con la mudanza.
No problem, I will help you with the move.
Gracias, te debo una.
Thanks, I owe you one.
No hay pedo is the vulgar no hay problema. Estar pedo is to be drunk; ponerse al pedo is to pick a fight.
peda
Friends only
Means
a drinking session, a night out
Literally
the feminine of pedo
Heard in
All of Mexico
La peda del sábado estuvo larga.
Saturday night went on a long time.
Por eso el domingo no contesté el teléfono.
That is why I did not answer the phone on Sunday.
crudo
Anywhere
Means
hungover
Literally
raw, uncooked
Heard in
All of Mexico
Ando bien crudo, no me hables fuerte.
I am badly hungover, do not talk loudly to me.
Te traigo un caldo y ya.
I will get you a soup and that is that.
The noun is la cruda. Elsewhere in the Spanish-speaking world it is la resaca; in Mexico that word means the undertow.
chela
Anywhere
Means
a beer
Literally
a blonde woman, in older usage
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿Nos echamos unas chelas?
Shall we have a few beers?
Va, pero yo sólo una que mañana trabajo.
All right, but only one for me, I work tomorrow.
caguama
Anywhere
Means
the 940 ml returnable beer bottle
Literally
a loggerhead sea turtle
Heard in
All of Mexico
Compra una caguama para los tres.
Get one big bottle for the three of us.
Voy al Oxxo, ahorita vengo.
I am going to the corner shop, back in a minute.
In the north the same bottle is a ballena, a whale.
michelada
Anywhere
Means
beer with lime, salt and chilli sauce
Literally
from mi chela helada, my cold beer
Heard in
All of Mexico
Una michelada con clamato, por favor.
One michelada with clamato, please.
¿Con chile en el borde o sin chile?
With chilli on the rim or without?
cheve
Friends only
Means
a beer
Literally
a clipping of cerveza
Heard in
The north
Vamos por unas cheves al rato.
Let us go for some beers later.
Sale, nos vemos como a las ocho.
Deal, see you about eight.
Monterrey and the border states say cheve where Mexico City says chela. Saying the wrong one is the fastest way to be asked where you learned your Spanish.
briago
Friends only
Means
drunk
Literally
from ebrio, drunk
Heard in
All of Mexico
Llegó bien briago a la cena.
He turned up to dinner properly drunk.
Por eso ya nadie lo invita.
That is why nobody invites him anymore.
chamba
Anywhere
Means
a job, work
Literally
no literal sense; recorded across Mexico and Central America
Heard in
All of Mexico
Conseguí chamba cerca de la casa.
I got a job near the house.
Qué bueno, ya no vas a hacer dos horas de camino.
That is good, no more two hour commute.
chambear
Anywhere
Means
to work
Literally
to chamba
Heard in
All of Mexico
Mañana chambeo hasta tarde.
Tomorrow I work until late.
Entonces lo dejamos para el jueves.
Then let us leave it for Thursday.
jefa
Friends only
Means
mum — and, at work, the actual boss
Literally
female boss
Heard in
All of Mexico
Le voy a marcar a mi jefa, si no se preocupa.
I am going to ring my mum, otherwise she worries.
Sí, salúdala de mi parte.
Do, say hello from me.
Mi jefa and mi jefe are affectionate for your own parents. Somebody else's mother is su mamá, always.
carnal
Friends only
Means
brother, a friend close enough to be family
Literally
of the flesh — a full brother, as opposed to a half brother
Heard in
All of Mexico
Gracias, carnal, me salvaste.
Thanks, brother, you saved me.
Para eso estamos.
That is what we are here for.
Heavier than güey. You do not call somebody carnal in the first month.
compa
Friends only
Means
mate, buddy
Literally
a clipping of compadre, the godfather of your child
Heard in
All of Mexico
¿Cómo vas, compa?
How are you doing, mate?
Aquí andamos, trabajando.
Here we are, working.
cuate
Anywhere
Means
a friend
Literally
a twin, from the Nahuatl coatl
Heard in
All of Mexico
Es cuate mío desde la secundaria.
He has been a friend of mine since secondary school.
Con razón se entienden tan bien.
No wonder you two get on so well.
Older and gentler than güey, and safe with anybody.
banda
Friends only
Means
the crew, everybody who is coming
Literally
a band, a group
Heard in
All of Mexico
Dile a la banda que nos vemos en el centro.
Tell everyone we are meeting downtown.
Ya les mandé la ubicación.
I already sent them the location.

Nothing is uploaded. Everything on this page runs in your browser, and nothing you type is sent anywhere or kept.

What this is

Most slang lists hand over a word and a gloss, which is enough to recognise güey and not enough to take your turn. Every row here carries four more things: the literal sense the joke is built on, a line as it is actually said, the sentence a polite person answers with, and the register — who can be in the room.

The register is the part that matters. There are three answers, and they are answers to one question. Anywhere means a shopkeeper, a doctor, a neighbour, her mother. Friends only means people your own age who already joke with you. Never with her mother means the word is funny among close friends and a vulgarity to everybody else, and ten of those end the conversation outright.

The words are forms recorded in the published Mexican dictionaries listed at the foot of this page, not a collection somebody made up: the Colegio de México dictionary of Mexican Spanish, the Mexican Academy of Language, and the Association of Academies dictionary of Americanisms, which marks the country and the register of every sense. The example lines are written in the register of the conversation lessons on this site, because a dictionary gives a sense and not a sentence.

How to use it

Type what you heardAccents are optional, so guey finds güey and orale finds órale. English works too: typing hungover answers crudo, and typing speed bump answers tope.
Say where you areThe filters are the two real questions — at the bar, in a text thread, on the street, eating, at work, and who is in the room. A word filtered out is a word that does not belong there.
Read the answer out loudThe second Spanish line in every row is your turn, not more explanation. Saying it once before you need it is the difference between recognising a word and using it.

The twenty you will hear first

In order of how soon a newcomer meets them. The first six are not slang at all in the sense a list usually means: they are the ordinary furniture of a Mexican conversation, and not knowing them is what makes a first week feel faster than it is.

#	Word	What it means	Who you can say it to
1	mande	sorry, what? — or simply, yes?	Anywhere
2	ahorita	in a moment, or in three hours, or never	Anywhere
3	provecho	enjoy your meal — said to strangers as you pass their table	Anywhere
4	órale	three things at once: wow, all right, and go on	Anywhere
5	ándale	that is it, go on, hurry up	Anywhere
6	híjole	wow, or uh oh — the sound of bad news landing	Anywhere
7	güey	dude, mate — and, with a flat tone, idiot	Friends only
8	qué onda	what is up	Friends only
9	sale	all right, deal	Anywhere
10	ni modo	oh well, nothing to be done	Anywhere
11	la cuenta	the bill	Anywhere
12	bueno	hello, on the telephone	Anywhere
13	¡aguas!	look out!	Anywhere
14	no manches	no way, you are kidding	Anywhere
15	neta	the truth; as a question, for real?	Anywhere
16	chido	cool, good, nice	Anywhere
17	padre	great, excellent	Anywhere
18	tantito	a tiny bit, a moment	Anywhere
19	pica	it is spicy	Anywhere
20	chela	a beer	Anywhere

The ones that end conversations

Every word here is ordinary between close friends and a problem in front of anybody else. None of them is worth using in a first year: the cost of getting the register wrong is a conversation, and the same thought can always be said with the word in the last column.

Word	What it means	Why it lands hard
no mames	no way — the same surprise as no manches, said crudely	Constant between young friends and offensive to everybody else. Say no manches until somebody says this one to you first, and even then not in front of her family.
chingar	to ruin, to bother, to work hard, to steal — the sense comes from the sentence	Recognise it, do not use it. Its dozen derivatives all carry the same weight, and a foreigner using them reads as trying too hard rather than as fluent.
naco	tacky, low class	It carries class and race in it and it lands hard. Recognise it; never say it.
baboso	an idiot	Said about a friend who forgot something it is almost affectionate, and said to somebody's face it is a straight insult. Menso is the version that does not end the evening.
mamón	arrogant, full of himself	Its root is crude enough that the word is never printed in a polite place. Sangrón says the same thing about a person and can be said out loud at a family table.
pinche	damn, bloody — an intensifier in front of any noun	Everywhere in private speech and nowhere in polite speech. In front of a person's name it is an insult, not an intensifier.
cabrón	a hard man, a difficult thing — and, between friends, mate	Affectionate between close friends and a serious insult from a stranger. There is no safe way for a newcomer to use it.
pendejo	an idiot	This is the word that starts fights. Recognise it and never say it, not even as a joke, until somebody has called you one first and laughed.
culero	a person who did something rotten	A judgement on what somebody did, not a description, and it is vulgar in every register. The sayable version is qué mala onda.
vieja	somebody's wife or girlfriend, in old-fashioned speech	Said about your own partner it is dated and some people hate it. Said about somebody else's it is an insult. Say mi esposa, mi novia or her name.

Questions

Is güey rude?

It depends entirely on tone and on who is speaking. Between friends of the same age ¿qué onda, güey? is simply hello, and ese güey no sabe nada, said flat, is contempt. It is not for somebody older than you, and not for your first week in an office. Written wey in messages.

What is the difference between no manches and no mames?

The same surprise at two registers. No manches is safe in front of anyone, including her family. No mames is the crude version, constant between young friends and offensive to everybody else. Say no manches until somebody says the other one to you first.

What does ahorita actually mean?

In a moment, or in three hours, or never. It is the single biggest misunderstanding a foreigner has in Mexico. Mexicans ask each other ¿ahorita ahorita o ahorita al rato? for exactly this reason, and asking it yourself is not rude.

Will Mexicans mind a foreigner using slang?

The safe words are welcomed and the vulgar ones are a trap: a newcomer who uses cabrón or pendejo reads as trying too hard, not as fluent. Start with the twenty in the table, keep the ten conversation enders for recognition only, and let the register do the work.

Is any of this the Spanish they speak in Spain?

No. Every entry is Mexican usage, and the differences are constant: a pavement is a banqueta, not an acera; a straw is a popote, not a pajita; to rent is rentar, not alquilar; a hangover is la cruda, and la resaca is the undertow at the beach.

Is anything I type here sent anywhere?

No. The dictionary is part of the page, the search runs in your browser, and nothing you type leaves your computer or is recorded. Looking up what somebody just called you is private.

What to remember

Twenty words carry a first week, and six of them are not slang at all: mande, ahorita, provecho, órale, ándale and híjole.
Three registers, one question. Of the 182 words here, the anywhere column is the one to speak from; the ten marked never with her mother are for recognition only.
Ahorita is not now. Al rato is not a time either. Ask ¿como a qué hora? and the answer stops being a guess.
Answer your own name with ¿mande?, not ¿qué? The first is ordinary politeness in Mexico and the second is blunt.
Say provecho to strangers at a restaurant table, arriving and leaving. Not answering it is the rudest thing a foreigner does by accident.
Tone carries half of Mexican slang: órale is surprise, agreement or hurry up, and qué pedo is hello between friends and a challenge to a stranger.
When a word is too strong there is almost always a clean twin: no manches for no mames, la neta for al chile, relajo for desmadre, bronca for pedo.

Where the numbers and the words come from

Diccionario del español de México, El Colegio de MéxicoThe Mexican academic dictionary of Mexican usage, free and entry by entry. Every headword here is recorded in it or in one of the three below.
Diccionario de mexicanismos, Academia Mexicana de la LenguaThe national academy list of the forms that are Mexican rather than general Spanish, which is what makes a word belong on this page.
Diccionario de americanismos, Asociación de Academias de la Lengua EspañolaMarks the country and the register of each sense — popular, juvenile, vulgar — which is where the register column in this dictionary comes from.
Diccionario de la lengua española, Real Academia EspañolaThe literal senses the slang moved away from: a güey is an ox, a pedo is a fart, a chela is a beer only in Mexico.

The Progress Estimator

Lessons a day

Mode

Months

99% guaranteed floor

A1SurvivalYou can order food and drinks, greet anyone, count and handle prices, ask her name and number.

YOU · 36/100A1SurvivalA2Bar TalkB1BanterB2Local

5 test lessons a day ≈ 25 minutes a night · 450 distinct lessons over 3 months.

The Library

Choose a category

Reader

The Membership

Castaway

per month · or 90/year

The whole school, at your pace.

4,144 flashcard lessons across vocabulary, grammar and conversation, 73,577 cards, and 430 graded readers. Includes unlimited companion chat to practice Spanish every day.

Voyager

per month · or 190/year

Keep the lighthouse shining.

Everything in Castaway, including unlimited companion chat, with extra support for the school and its growing library.

Mapmaker

per month · or 290/year

Support what comes next.

Everything in Voyager, including unlimited companion chat.

The writer's desk and new game are planned features.

Already a member?Log In

Something broken? Tell us.

Tick what went wrong. A sentence helps, but the tick is enough. No name, no email — we cannot write back, we just fix it.

What went wrong?I cannot sign inMy membership tier is wrongI was charged and got nothingA download did not startA file will not open or printA page or picture is brokenThe chat could not help meSomething else

What happened? (optional)0 / 500

Search 182 words

güey

neta

chido

padre

padrísimo

órale

ándale

híjole

no manches

no mames

chingón

chingar

a huevo

qué onda

qué pedo

pedo

peda

crudo

chela

caguama

michelada

cheve

briago

chamba

chambear

jefa

carnal

compa

cuate

banda