Real World Spanish
When you are learning Spanish nobody tells you that
the language can be extremely different from one
country to the next. I remember asking how to say
CAKE in school. Although the teacher answered
TORTA, it would have been better to mention that the
word varies from country to country, but TORTA
would probably get you close in many places. The
truth is TORTA is wrong in several countries but is a
good starting point.
-Jared Romey
Author and Creator of
www.SpeakingLatino.com

Real World Spanish
I started collecting and translating Spanish
slang in 2003. I had already lived in Mexico, Chile
and Argentina as well as traveled to other
Spanish-speaking countries.
When I arrived to Puerto Rico it amazed me how
different the language was from the other
countries I knew, even with my previous country
experiences.

My Definition of
Spanish Slang
To me, Spanish slang is a collection of the words
and phrases used locally (in a country, region or
city) that will not be understand throughout the
Spanish-speaking world. This includes typical
slang terms as well as everyday words that will
not be easily understood elsewhere.

Argot o jerga
(slang or jargon)
“A type of language that consists of words and
phrases that are regarded as very informal, are
more common in speech than writing, and are
typically restricted to a particular context or
group of people.” Another synonym in English is
lingo. – Source: Oxford Dictionary
Example: “Pasto” is Spanish slang for marijuana

Coloquialismo
(colloquial language)
It is the informal language used in everyday
conversations; it is the words and phrases used
in casual conversations that are not used in
formal situations like, for example, a speech or
business letter.
Example: “Vamos pa’l monte.” is the colloquial
expression and pronunciation for “Vamos para la
montaña.”

Americanismos
(words from the Americas)
Americanismos can be categorized in two ways:
Words passed from an indigenous American
language to another language.
Example: avocado or aguacate, hurricane or
huracán, hammock or hamaca
Words or expressions created in the Americas that
integrate into the Spanish language
Example: revolú in Puerto Rico and agüite in El
Salvador

• Within Americanismos, you may further identify words with specific
countries such as dominicanismos, chilenismos, mexicanismos, etc.
• The concept of americanismo is not only limited to the vocabulary or
lexicon. It also includes phonetics, grammar and semantic variations of
an American country. – Source: Diccionario Austral de la Lengua Española

Anglicismos & angloamericanismos
(Spanish words from English)
English is one of the languages that most influences
Spanish today.
Spanish words that come from the English are called
anglicismos.
Angloamericanismos is also a more specific term for
the words that come from US English and are
adapted into Spanish.
Example: basquetbol (basketball), fórmula (baby’s
formula), tuit (a tweet) and bloguero (a blogger)

Modismos
(idioms)
It is a phrase that has a figurative meaning or
whose meaning is not clear from the words that
form it.
People often confuse modismos with
proverbs, but they aren’t the same (see proverb
explanation next).
Example: “Hay que consultarlo con la almohada”
is the equivalent idiom of “Let me sleep on it.”

Refrán or proverbio
(refrains or proverbs)
“A simple and concrete saying, popularly known and
repeated, that expresses a truth based on common
sense or the practical experience of humanity. They
are often metaphorical.” - Source: Wikipedia
Proverbs can’t be conjugated.
Example: “Más vale pájaro en mano, que cien
volando” is the Spanish proverb for “A bird in the
hand is worth two in the bush”. The literal translation
is “Worth more is a bird in the hand than 100 flying.”

Dialecto
(dialect)
A dialect is a regional variation of a language.
The term also applies to regional speech
patterns, grammar and vocabulary.

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http://www.speakinglatino.com/define-spanish-slang/
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