Argentina is unlike any other Spanish-speaking country in Latin America, except for its close cousin, Uruguay. Its population is overwhelmingly white European, primarily descendants of Italian, German, Spanish and French immigrants, and thus its culture is a mix of these, plus what it inherited from the Gauchos, the mestizo cowboys who roamed the plains that cover much of this vast country. I lived two and a half years in Santa Fe province, where I picked-up quite a bit of Argentinian Castellano, the country’s Spanish dialect. To this day, I frequently get “you sound like an Argentinian!”, whether it be from Spaniards, Mexicans or Colombians. Here is a compilation of some of the unique words and expressions you are likely to hear in Buenos Aires, Rosario, Mendoza, or anywhere else in Argentina…

Buenos Aires. Photo by Victoria Rachitzky

boludo / a (bow-loo- do/dah) :  Hate to start the list with a vulgarity, but it is one you will hear constantly! It means “idiot”, but it is often used affectionately. You, as the foreigner, should refrain from uttering the word, lest you want a shiner! Boludez (bowl-loo-dess) : a stupidity.

pelotudo / a (pey-low-too- do/dah) : Also means idiot and is also used frequently.

vos (vauss):  Used instead of “tu“, meaning “you”.

sos (sauss): Used instead of “eres“, or “are”. Ex: “Vos sos Edward?” (are you Edward?)

che (tchey) : Short for “escuchame” or “listen to me”. Used as an exclamation to call your attention to the rest of the sentence.

quilombo (kee-loam-bo) : chaos, mess, disaster. Sounds like an African word, but it is not!

frutilla (froo-tee-shaw) : strawberry. The rest of the Latin world says “fresa“.

anana (ah-naw-nah) : pineapple. Rest of Latin America : piña.

pomelo (po-may-lo) : grapefuit. In the rest of Latin America: torronja.

laburo (law-boo-row) : work / to work. Comes from Italian.

micro (mee-crow) : bus. The bus can be huge, with 2 floors, but still be a micro. No idea how that came to be.

colectivo (co-lay-tee-vo) : Any kind of bus. In the rest of Latin America, it is a shared taxi.

remisse (ray-meess) : a taxi without a meter. If it has a meter, it is just a taxi! Truly a strange word!

porron (pore-ron) : If you are in Sante Fe, this is a large bottle of beer.

goma (go-mah) : a tire. In the rest of Latin America, a goma is a rubber eraser, while a tire is a neumatico.

coche (co-tche): automobile. In other Spanish speaking countries: horse drawn carriage.

concha (con-tcha) : should be shell, but in Argentina it’s vagina.”concha de la lora“, or “the parrot’s vagina”, is a frequent swear.

deja de joder (day-haw day ho-dare)  Stop screwing around! Get serious!

boliche (bo-lee-tchay) : Should mean “bowling alley”, but in Argentina it is a discotheque!

confiteria bailable (con-fee-tay-ree-ah bye-la-blay) : confiteria means pastry shop, but put together with “bailable”, it is a discotheque!

dulce de leche (dool-say day lay-chay) : Similar to caramel and exceedingly popular as a pastry filling.

trucho (troo-tcho) : bogus, fraudulent. Elsewhere, it is just a trout!

bombacha (bom-bah-tcha) : women’s underwear.

corpiño (cor-pee-gno) : bra

remera (ray-may-rah) : T-shirt

chomba (tchaum-bah) : sweater

campera (cam-pay-rah) : jacket.

pollera (po-shay-rah) : skirt.

bronca (bron-cah) :  anger

morocho / a (mo-ro- tcho / tchah): black or dark skinned person.

negro / a (nay-grah) : Same as morocho/a, but often used affectionately between friends. Even a slight tan or dark hair can earn you the nickname “negro”.

pavada (pah-bah-dah) : banal or stupid, as in saying something stupid.

chocho (tcho-tcho) : happy.

floriflor (flo-ree-floor) : rosy, as in “everything’s rosy”. Often used sarcastically.

pileta (pee-lay-tah) : swimming pool. “picina” in the rest of the world.

chino (tchee-no) : could mean Chinese, but more often “child”.

birome (bee-roh-may) : pen for writing.

piola (pee-o-lah) : sympathetic, endearing.

media luna (mey-dee-ah loo-nah): croissant.

cortado : small strong coffee with milk.

cafe americano : large coffee, what would be a normal coffee cup in North America.

alfajor (alpha-hor) : very popular cookies with a layer of dulce de leche (usually) in between. Different styles according to region.

diario (dee-ah-ree-oh) : newspaper. “Periodico” in the rest of the world.

liso (lee-soh): draft beer, usually served in a normal glass, not a bock.

balon (bah-lone) : draft beer, but in large round glass.

picada (pee-cah-dah) : Argentines like to share “picadas” a single large plate loaded with cheeses, olives, and a wide variety of snack items.

lomito (loh-mee-toh) : a sandwich consisting mainly of French crusty bread and fried sirloin steak inside.

asado (ah-sah-doh) : What Argentines die for, literally. A pile of barbecued cow entrails, including tripe, salivary glands, kidneys, blood sausage as well as chorizo (sausage).

bife chorizo (bee-fay tcho-ree-tso): Nothing to do with the sausage, this is a huge cut of meat, preferably cooked a bit red.

That’s it for this lesson, maybe I will do a second class in the near future, but before that I’ll give you a glimpse of how Argentinians live on a day to day basis in my next article. They are quite fascinating, I assure you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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