🇲🇽 Mexican Spanish slang cheat sheet
The 20 words locals actually use. Tap a word for the full story, or print this page and stick it on your fridge.
| Word | Say it | Means |
|---|---|---|
| güey | WEY | Dude, man, bro — the all-purpose Mexican filler for a friend. |
| órale | OH-rah-leh | Wow / alright / let's go — a reaction word with about six different jobs. |
| no manches | no MAHN-chess | No way / you're kidding / come on. |
| chido | CHEE-doh | Cool, awesome, great. |
| ¿qué onda? | keh OHN-dah | What's up? — the standard Mexican greeting between friends. |
| chamba | CHAHM-bah | Work, a job — usually the grind kind. |
| neta | NEH-tah | The truth / for real / seriously? |
| cruda | CROO-dah | A hangover. |
| ahorita | ah-oh-REE-tah | Right now — or in five minutes, or later today, or never. |
| fresa | FREH-sah | Preppy, posh, stuck-up rich kid. |
| ¡qué padre! | keh PAH-dreh | How cool! — the most Mexican way to say something is great. |
| chingón | cheen-GOHN | Badass — excellent, or someone extremely good at something. |
| cabrón | kah-BROHN | Bastard — or, between friends, "dude". Also "brutally hard". |
| mande | MAHN-deh | Pardon? — the Mexican way to answer when you did not hear. |
| chela | CHEH-lah | A beer. |
| carnal | kar-NAHL | Brother — a friend close enough to be family. |
| ¿qué pedo? | keh PEH-doh | What’s up? — or "what’s your problem?", depending entirely on tone. |
| naco | NAH-koh | Tacky, low-class — a class insult, not a style one. |
| antro | AHN-troh | A nightclub. |
| chale | CHAH-leh | Aw man / no way — disappointment, or soft disbelief. |
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