Argentinian slang dictionary

a full

Full-on, maxed out. An adapted anglicism: 'estoy a full con el trabajo' (I'm swamped with work).

atorrante

A loafer, layabout, also a person of ill repute. A classic of tango and popular speech.

bancar

To back, support, endure. 'Te banco' is 'I've got you'; 'bancar la parada' is facing up.

bardo

A short synonym of quilombo: trouble, ruckus, an out-of-control situation. Very common among young people.

boliche

Nightclub. In small towns also a general store or village bar.

boludo

Literally 'dumb', but among friends it works as an affectionate filler, close to 'mate'. Tone and context decide whether it is affection or an insult.

botón

A snitch; also a cop. 'No seas botón' asks for discretion.

buena onda

Good vibes, good disposition. Argentine social currency: everything is measured in vibes.

cabeza de termo

A closed-minded person, an unthinking fanatic. A modern ideological insult.

canchero

Self-assured, experienced. Between praise and criticism depending on tone.

careta

A phoney person who pretends to be what they are not; also the conservative, buttoned-up scene itself.

chabón

Dude, bloke. More generationally marked than 'tipo': it sounds young or working-class.

chamuyo

Smooth talk to convince or seduce. 'Tener chamuyo' is having the gift of the gab; 'chamuyar' is the verb.

che

Interjection to get someone's attention or address them directly. It is the trademark of Rioplatense speech and shows up in almost any informal conversation.

copado

Good, nice, likeable. It applies equally to people, plans and things.

dale

Come on, agreed, go for it. The universal acceptance filler: it works for almost everything.

de una

Right away, no hesitation. 'Lo hago de una' promises instant action.

escabio

Alcohol in general and the act of drinking. 'Traé el escabio' opens any pre-party.

facha

Looks, appearance. 'Tener facha' is looking good; 'qué facha' is a compliment.

fiaca

Laziness, physical listlessness. 'Tener fiaca' explains entire Sundays.

flaco

Young man, regardless of build. An affectionate vocative among acquaintances.

flashear

To over-imagine, trip, also hallucinate. 'No flashees' brings back to earth.

forro

A strong insult: a despicable, backstabbing person. Best understood, not used, by foreigners.

gil

Foolish, naive. Softer than 'boludo' and almost always derogatory, without its affectionate use.

groso

Someone or something excellent, admirable. Applied to people as high praise.

joda

Party, fun, also a joke. 'Estar de joda' is partying; 'ni en joda' is a flat no.

macana

A blunder, mistake, also a white lie. 'Mandarse una macana' is messing up.

macanudo

An excellent person; also a great thing. A classic, slightly retro compliment.

mala onda

Bad vibes, bad attitude. 'Tirar mala onda' is ruining the mood.

mamado

Drunk. 'Estar mamado' is the state; 'mamarse' the process.

mandar fruta

To make things up, talk without knowing. The standard accusation against bluffing.

mina

Woman, girl. Massively used but with a sexist charge depending on context; among women it is reclaimed.

mufa

Bad luck, and also the person who brings it. 'Mufar' is spreading it.

nabo

Silly, daft. A light everyday insult, similar to 'salame'.

ni en pedo

No way, not a chance. An emphatic no, vulgar in origin but massively used.

papelón

Public embarrassment. 'Hacer un papelón' is the national stage fright.

pavada

Nonsense, something unimportant. 'Decir pavadas' is talking for talking's sake.

pavo

Silly, daft. A soft insult nobody takes seriously.

pelotudo

A direct insult: idiot. Stronger than 'boludo' with no affectionate version.

pibe

A young guy; the feminine 'piba' is used the same way. It comes from Genoese dialect and has been established since tango lyrics.

piola

Chill, easy-going, uncomplicated. 'Quedarse piola' also means to keep a low profile.

posta

The truth, for real. It works as an adverb ('te lo digo de posta') and as an adjective ('un amigo posta', a true friend).

previa

Gathering at someone's home for drinks before heading to the club. An Argentine youth institution.

qué sé yo

I dunno, who knows. A doubt filler that ends sentences without ending them.

quilombo

A mess, chaos, big problem. Of African origin, it travelled through prison slang to become the all-purpose word for any chaos.

resaca

The hangover after drinking. A standard word used intensively in Argentina.

salame

A harmless, clueless fool. A light insult, almost affectionate depending on tone.

tarado

Dim, slow on the uptake. A mid-strength insult, very common in everyday speech.

tipo

Some guy. Also an approximative adverb: 'tipo cinco' (around five o'clock).

trucho

Fake, counterfeit, low-quality or untrustworthy. It applies to banknotes, products and people.

vago

Lazy, work-shy. 'Vaguear' is the verb for enthusiastically doing nothing.

yeta

A person who brings bad luck; 'mufa' applied to people. Also the streak itself.

zafar

To narrowly escape trouble. 'Zafamos' is the national cry of relief.

asado

Grilled meat and, above all, the weekend social event. The asador (grill master) rules.

birra

Beer. A direct Italianism that displaced 'cerveza' in youth speech.

choripán

Chorizo sausage in bread with chimichurri. Stadium, concert and rally food alike.

curda

Drunkenness. 'Agarrarse una curda' is getting drunk; 'estar en curda', staying drunk.

facturas

Sweet bakery pastries for mate time: medialunas, vigilantes, tortitas negras. Sunday's dozen.

fernet

Italian amaro turned national youth drink: fernet with coke, ice and just the right foam.

mate

Argentina's national infusion: yerba in a gourd, shared in a circle. A social ritual before a drink.

medialunas

The Argentine croissant in two versions: de grasa (savoury, flaky) and de manteca (sweet, glazed).

morfar

To eat, heartily. Lunfardo's eating verb.

picada

A board of cold cuts, cheeses and preserves to share before or instead of dinner.

sobremesa

The long chat after eating, over coffee or mate. It lasts longer than the meal itself.

afanar

To steal. 'Afano' is the theft.

cana

The police and also jail. 'Caer en cana' is going to prison; 'la cana' is the force.

changa

Odd job, temporary short-term work. 'Changuear' is living off them.

chanta

A phoney, unreliable, all talk. The classic snake-oil seller.

chorear

To steal, a synonym of afanar. 'Choreo' is the theft; 'chorro', the thief.

coima

A bribe, an illegal payment to grease a procedure. 'Coimear' is the verb.

curro

Work, with a hustle undertone. Also a shady deal depending on context.

garca

A scammer, freeloader. The economic insult par excellence.

guita

Money. The everyday word for it.

laburo

Work, a job. The default labour noun.

luca

A thousand pesos. 'Cinco lucas' is five thousand. The big everyday unit.

mango

A peso, a unit of money. 'No tener un mango' is being broke.

morlaco

A peso, in an old tango tone. It sounds retro today, almost affectionate.

ñoqui

A public employee who collects pay without working. Shows up only to collect, like gnocchi on the 29th.

ortiba

A snitch, tell-tale. Vesre of 'batidor', one who spills.

palo

A million pesos. 'Tres palos' is the price of a used car.

yuta

The police. Street slang, derogatory or descriptive depending on who says it.

chele

Milk in vesre. Nearly extinct, surviving in old lyrics.

dolobu

'Boludo' in vesre. An insult with built-in irony.

feca

Coffee in vesre. It survives in historic bars and old waiters' mouths.

gomia

Friend in vesre. Working-class and affectionate.

gotán

Tango in vesre. It named the Gotan Project band and a thousand venues.

jermu

Woman in vesre, almost always wife or girlfriend. 'Mi jermu' equals 'mi mujer'.

lompa

Trousers in vesre, the syllable-flipped form of pantalón with the ending trimmed.

sope

Peso in vesre. It lived its golden age with 1980s inflation.

telo

Hotel, but only as an hourly love motel. Textbook vesre.

tombo

Policeman in vesre (from 'botón'). The most used of the three synonyms with yuta and cana.

vesre

The syllable-flipping game (from 'revés', backwards): tango→gotán, café→feca. Lunfardo's central mechanism.

arrabal

The poor outskirts. Tango's birthplace landscape.

compadrito

The elegant 1900s tough: hat, scarf, knife and a code of honour.

conventillo

The 1900s tenement where immigrants of ten languages lived together: lunfardo's cradle.

fuelle

The bandoneón, for its bellows. 'Llorar el fuelle' is playing it with feeling.

grela

Woman in tango lyrics, derogatory or pitying depending on the song.

malevo

A tough from the outskirts, knife-carrying dandy. Romantic hero of classic tango.

milonga

The tango dance and dance hall; also a musical genre predating tango.

milonguero

A milonga regular, a dance-floor dancer with his own codes.

mishiadura

Tango-worthy misery, dignified poverty. 'Estar en la mishiadura' is being broke.

percanta

The tango woman of the lyrics: beloved, lost or treacherous depending on the song.

taita

The respected tough of the neighbourhood, one rank above the compadrito.

yira

Street wandering; in tango, prostitution ('yira, yira').

bondi

The city bus. 'Tomar el bondi' is the city's verb.

bulín

A small room or bachelor flat. 'El bulín de la calle Ayacucho' sings the tango.

cotorro

A humble room. A working-class synonym of bulín with less glamour.

fulbito

An informal football match among friends, on a rented pitch or wasteland.

kiosco

The corner stand for sweets, cigarettes and top-ups. Open late on every corner.

parrilla

The grill grate and the grill restaurant. 'Vamos a la parrilla' is a Sunday plan.

pileta

Swimming pool. 'Pileta' is the Argentine word; 'piscina' sounds like a hotel.

remís

A chauffeured car booked by phone or agency, cheaper than a taxi.

subte

The Buenos Aires subway. Six lines with their own letters and colours.

truco

The national card game: bluffing, signals and shouting. 'Truco' is sung as a challenge.