Colombian Spanish Slang Every Expat Should Know
A practical guide to Colombian slang and parlache: parce, bacano, paila, dar papaya, tinto, guayabo, and the register notes that keep you out of trouble.
Learn these and daily life in Colombia gets a lot warmer and a lot clearer. A few of them will also keep you safer and save you from awkward moments.
The essentials
- parce / parcero / parcera: friend, buddy. The all-purpose word for mate.
- bacano / chévere: cool, great, nice. "Qué bacano" is "how cool."
- berraco: tough, impressive, or hard, depending on context. A berraco can be a determined, capable person.
- paila: too bad, tough luck, ruined. "Quedé paila" is roughly "I am done for."
- vaina: thing, stuff, or a vague situation. The most flexible word in the country.
- chimba: can mean awesome ("qué chimba") but is informal and crude, so keep it for friends.
Greetings and small talk
- ¿Quiubo? or ¿Qué más?: what's up, how's it going.
- ¿Bien o qué?: you good or what, a friendly hello.
- ¡Qué pena!: sorry, or how embarrassing. Colombians say this far more than "lo siento" for small social slips.
- juicioso / juiciosa: well behaved, hardworking, responsible. "Pórtese juicioso" is "behave yourself."
Coffee, drinks, and the morning after
- tinto: a small black coffee, not wine. This one trips up everyone.
- pola: a beer.
- guayabo: a hangover. "Tengo guayabo" is "I am hungover."
- rumba: a party or a night out. rumbear is to party.
Money, work, and getting by
- lucas: units of money, usually thousands of pesos. "Diez lucas" is ten thousand pesos.
- camello: a job. camellar is to work. mamera is a drag, something tedious.
- regalar: literally to give as a gift, but used constantly to mean "pass me" or "give me." "¿Me regala un tinto?" is a polite way to order a coffee.
The one piece of street wisdom
No dar papaya. Do not give anyone an easy opportunity. Keep your phone in your pocket on a busy street, do not flash valuables, and you are following the most repeated local advice there is. Dar papaya is to leave yourself exposed.
A register warning
Some words you will hear, including gonorrea and stronger uses of chimba, range from crude to genuinely vulgar depending on tone and company. Understand them, but do not sprinkle them into conversations with people you just met. When in doubt, stay on the friendly tier: parce, bacano, chévere, qué más.
Want to hear these in context? Order un tinto at a spot like Jaguar Coffee House, take a graffiti walking tour in La Candelaria, and practice with Luz in the Everyday Colombian and Regional Dialects courses.
Frequently asked questions
What does parce mean?
Parce (also parcero or parcera) means friend, mate, or buddy. It started in Medellín and is now used all over Colombia. It is casual and friendly, fine among friends but not in a formal meeting.
What is parlache?
Parlache is the slang that grew out of working-class Medellín and spread nationally. Many words you will hear daily, like parce and chimba, come from it. Some terms carry a streetwise edge, so watch the register.
Is it true that tinto is not wine in Colombia?
Correct. In Colombia a tinto is a small black coffee, not red wine. If someone offers you un tinto, they mean coffee. It is one of the most common false friends for new arrivals.
What does no dar papaya mean?
Literally do not give papaya. It means do not make yourself an easy target, for example by flashing a phone or valuables. Dar papaya is to leave yourself open. It is everyday safety advice, not an insult.
From the Bogotá guide
Start learning Colombian Spanish
Courses, the AI tutor Luz, and the Bogotá guide are all free, no account required.
