Colombian Slang 101: Essential Phrases for the Curious Traveler

Due to its popularity and widespread usage, we can definitely call Colombian slang a language within a language. There are tons of expressions and words locals use in their casual conversations, and learning some of those phrases can positively impact your language learning. And that’s what we’re going to talk about today! Make yourself comfortable, and join us in the exploration of the unique Colombian slang.

Chimba Meaning and More: Common Colombian Slang Terms

Despite being one of the cleanest Spanish dialects, the Colombian language has numerous slang words widely used by natives. And, of course, we are glad to share them with you! In the list below, you can find the most common Colombian slang words.

• Chimba – [ˈʧimba] – Awesome/Great (can also mean ‘useless’ or ‘worthless’ depending on context).

Esa fiesta estuvo una chimba. (That party was awesome.)

• Bacán – [baˈkan] – Cool/Chill.

Juan es un bacán, siempre ayuda a todos. (Juan is a cool guy, he always helps everyone.)

• Berraquera – [beraˈkeɾa] – Determination/Resilience (can also mean something great or awesome).

¡Qué berraquera de carro tienes! (What an awesome car you have!)

• Boleta – [boˈleta] – Embarrassing/Uncool.

Fue una boleta que se cayera en la fiesta. (It was so embarrassing that he fell at the party.)

• Caco – [ˈkako] – Thief/low-Life.

Cuidado con tus cosas, hay muchos cacos por aquí. (Watch your stuff, there are a lot of thieves around here.)

• Chino/China – [ˈʧino/ˈʧina] – Kid/Boy/Girl.

El chino está jugando en el parque. (The boy is playing in the park.)

• Chucha – [ˈʧuʧa] – Body odor.

Tienes que bañarte, hueles a chucha.(You need to shower, you smell like sweat.)

• Lucas – [ˈlukas] – Money (usually in thousands of pesos).

Necesito 20 lucas para el cine. (I need 20 thousand pesos for the movies.)

• Mono/Mona – [ˈmono/ˈmona] – Blonde or fair-skinned person.

El mono que conocí ayer es muy simpático. (The blonde guy I met yesterday is very nice.)

• Polas – [ˈpolas] – Beers.

Vamos por unas polas después del trabajo. (Let’s go for some beers after work.)

• Parcero/Parcera – [paɾˈseɾo/paɾˈseɾa] – Friend/Buddy.

Mi parcero me ayudó a mudarme. (My buddy helped me move.)

• Rumba – [ˈɾumba] – Party.

La rumba de anoche estuvo increíble. (The party last night was amazing.)

• Vaina – [ˈbaina] – Thing/Stuff (can also mean a problem or issue).

Esa vaina no funciona. (That thing doesn’t work.)

• Sardino/Sardina – [saɾˈdino/saɾˈdina] – Teenager/Young person.

Ese sardino siempre está en la esquina con sus amigos. (That teenager is always on the corner with his friends.)

• Tombo – [ˈtombo] – Cop/Police officer.

Cuidado, ahí viene el tombo. (Watch out, here comes the cop.)

• Plata – [ˈplata] – Money.

No tengo mucha plata ahora. (I don’t have much money right now.)

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Colloquial Colombian Sayings and Slang Expressions

In addition to countless slang terms, there are also various sayings and phrases that locals widely use. And we can’t miss the opportunity to share them with you! Take a look at the most common Colombian phrases in our list below.

• Azotar baldosa – [a.soˈtaɾ balˈdo.sa] – To dance (especially salsa or any fast-paced rhythm).

Vamos a la fiesta a azotar baldosa toda la noche. (Let’s go to the party and dance all night long.)

El fin de semana pasado, azotamos baldosa hasta el amanecer. (Last weekend, we danced until sunrise.)

• ¡Paila! – [ˈpaila] – Too bad/Tough luck (expresses resignation or that something is hopeless).

¿Se acabaron las entradas para el concierto? – ¡Paila! (The concert tickets sold out? – Tough luck!)

Llegamos tarde y ya no queda comida. – ¡Paila! (We arrived late, and there was no food left. – Oh well!)

• ¿Bien o qué? – [ˈbjen o ˈke] – How are you? (informal greeting, similar to “What’s up?”).

¿Bien o qué, parcero? (How are you, buddy?)

¡Hola! ¿Bien o qué? (Hi! How’s it going?)

• Dar papaya – [daɾ paˈpaʝa] – To put yourself in a vulnerable position (inviting trouble or making yourself an easy target).

No des papaya caminando solo por ese barrio de noche. (Don’t make yourself an easy target by walking alone in that neighborhood at night.)

Si dejas tu celular ahí, estás dando papaya. (If you leave your phone there, you’re asking for trouble.)

• ¡Déjate de vainas! – [ˈde.xa.te de ˈbai.nas] – Stop messing around!/Quit it!

¡Déjate de vainas y ponte a trabajar! (Quit messing around and get to work!)

Déjate de vainas, sabes que tienes que hacerlo. (Stop fooling around, you know you have to do it.)

• Estar tragado/tragada – [esˈtaɾ tɾaˈɣaðo/tɾaˈɣaða] – To be head over heels (in love).

Juan está tragado de Ana, no deja de hablar de ella. (Juan is head over heels for Ana, he can’t stop talking about her.)

María está tragada, solo piensa en él. (María is totally in love, she only thinks about him.)

• Hacer el oso – [aˈseɾ el ˈoso] – To embarrass oneself.

Hice el oso cuando me caí en plena reunión. (I embarrassed myself when I fell during the meeting.)

No quiero hacer el oso en frente de todos. (I don’t want to embarrass myself in front of everyone.)

• ¡Ni de vainas! – [ˈni de ˈbai.nas] – No way!/Not a chance!

¿Vas a prestar tu carro? – ¡Ni de vainas! (Are you going to lend your car? – No way!)

¡Ni de vainas voy a hacer eso! (There’s no way I’m doing that!)

• ¡Ya dijo! – [ˈʝa ˈdi.xo] – Yeah, right (expresses skepticism or disbelief).

¿Juan dijo que va a llegar temprano? – ¡Ya dijo! (Juan said he’ll arrive early? – Yeah, right!)

¿Te ganaste la lotería? – ¡Ya dijo! (You won the lottery? – Yeah, right!)

• Parar bolas – [paˈɾaɾ ˈbolas] – To pay attention.

No le paré bolas al profesor y ahora no entiendo nada. (I didn’t pay attention to the teacher, and now I don’t understand anything.)

Tienes que parar bolas si quieres aprender. (You need to pay attention if you want to learn.)

Master Colombian Spanish Slang and Beyond with Promova

Colombian slang, like any other one, is an integral part of a language. Mastering it can help you expand your vocabulary and enhance your overall learning experience, allowing you to sound more fluent in your daily speech. With the convenient Promova application, you can access all the essential materials to do so.

Within the Promova app, you can find interactive lessons created by language professionals to help you practice speaking, reading, writing, and listening skills. Moreover, you can easily track your progress to see your achievements and stay motivated. And that’s not all! In addition to Spanish, you can also learn Korean, French, Arabic, German, and many other languages. So try Promova right now and enjoy your learning!

Conclusion

As you can see, there are numerous Colombian words that you won’t find in official Spanish dictionaries. However, they are an integral part of a language and culture, and knowing them allows you to take a glance at the local life in daily conversations. We hope that this article was helpful, and we’re looking forward to seeing you in the next one!