Argentinian Slang phrases and words in English
Argentine Spanish sounds like nowhere else: a sing-song Italian melody, 'sh' sounds where others say 'y', and a treasure chest of lunfardo — slang born in the immigrant tenements and tango bars of Buenos Aires. Learn these ten and you'll understand why a porteño can pack a whole mood into one word — from the legendary 'che' that gave Guevara his nickname to the chaos of a proper 'quilombo'.
10 phrases · meanings & example sentences
“Che”
The word so Argentine that it became Ernesto 'Che' Guevara's nickname. 'Che' is how you grab someone's attention — 'hey', 'dude', 'mate' — dropped into the start, middle, or end of almost any sentence. Use it once and you instantly sound less like a textbook and more like a local.
- Che, ¿vamos a tomar algo? — Hey, shall we go grab a drink?
- Pará, che, no entendí nada. — Wait, dude, I didn't get any of that.
- Che boludo, ¿qué hacés? — Hey man, what are you up to?
“Boludo / boluda”
The most Argentine word of all, and a masterclass in tone. Said warmly, 'boludo' means 'dude/mate' between friends; said sharply, it means 'idiot'. The same word can be an insult or a term of endearment depending entirely on how you say it — a perfect lesson in Argentine intonation.
- ¿Todo bien, boludo? — All good, man?
- No seas boludo, eso es peligroso. — Don't be an idiot, that's dangerous.
- Sos un boludo, me hiciste reír. — You fool, you made me laugh.
“Quilombo”
A glorious word for a mess, chaos, or a huge mix-up — from a traffic jam to a political scandal. Its history is wild: it once meant a hideout for escaped slaves, then a brothel, and finally any total disorder. 'Se armó un quilombo' (a quilombo broke out) is pure Argentina.
- El centro es un quilombo a esta hora. — Downtown is chaos at this hour.
- Se armó un quilombo en la reunión. — All hell broke loose in the meeting.
- Tengo un quilombo de papeles en casa. — I've got a mess of papers at home.
“Laburar / el laburo”
Argentina was built by Italian immigrants, and you can hear it: 'laburar' (to work) and 'laburo' (job/work) come straight from the Italian 'lavorare'. They've fully replaced the standard 'trabajar' in daily speech. Learn this and you've learned a piece of Argentine immigration history.
- Mañana tengo que laburar temprano. — I have to work early tomorrow.
- Conseguí un laburo nuevo. — I got a new job.
- Estoy cansado, fue un día de mucho laburo. — I'm tired, it was a long day's work.
“Posta”
'Posta' means 'for real', 'the truth', 'no joke'. Ask '¿posta?' to mean 'seriously?', say 'te lo digo posta' to mean 'I swear it's true', or call something 'la posta' to mean it's the best, the real deal. Compact, versatile, and unmistakably Argentine.
- ¿Posta que te vas a vivir afuera? — Seriously, you're moving abroad?
- Te lo juro, posta. — I swear, for real.
- Este lugar es la posta para comer. — This place is the real deal for food.
“Copado / copada”
The everyday word for cool, awesome, or great — for both things and people. A copado plan, a copada person, a copado movie. 'Me copa' as a verb means 'I'm into it / I love it'. It's friendly and upbeat, the slang you'll reach for to compliment almost anything.
- Qué copado tu departamento. — Your apartment is so cool.
- Es re copada tu amiga. — Your friend is really nice.
- Me copa la idea de viajar juntos. — I love the idea of traveling together.
“Chamuyar / el chamuyo”
'Chamuyo' is smooth talk — sweet-talking, flirting, or charming nonsense designed to win someone over. A 'chamuyero' is a slick talker who could sell ice to a penguin. Born in tango lyrics, it's the art of talking your way into (or out of) anything.
- No me vengas con chamuyo. — Don't give me that smooth talk.
- Le chamuyó toda la noche. — He flirted with her all night.
- Ese vendedor es puro chamuyo. — That salesman is all talk.
“Fiaca”
That heavy, delicious laziness when you just want to do nothing — Argentina's answer to the French 'flemme'. 'Tengo fiaca' means 'I can't be bothered'. Likely from Italian dialect ('fiacca', weariness), it's the perfect word for a rainy Sunday on the couch.
- Hoy tengo una fiaca terrible. — I'm feeling super lazy today.
- Me da fiaca salir con este frío. — I can't be bothered going out in this cold.
- Domingo de fiaca total. — A do-nothing Sunday.
“No tengo un mango”
A 'mango' is slang for a peso — money. So 'no tengo un mango' means 'I'm flat broke', not a single coin. With Argentina's famous inflation, it's a phrase people use only half-jokingly. Learn it and you've learned how Argentines talk about money's ups and downs.
- No puedo salir, no tengo un mango. — I can't go out, I'm broke.
- Está todo carísimo, no me alcanza un mango. — Everything's so expensive, I can't afford a thing.
- Junté unos mangos para el viaje. — I saved up some cash for the trip.
“Mufa”
Argentines are gloriously superstitious, and 'mufa' is bad luck or a jinx — and also the person who brings it. Call someone 'mufa' and you're blaming them for the team losing. There's even a verb, 'mufar'. It's a window into a culture that takes its omens seriously (and dramatically).
- No invites a Juan, es mufa. — Don't invite Juan, he's bad luck.
- Qué mufa, perdimos otra vez. — What a jinx, we lost again.
- No digas eso que mufás. — Don't say that, you'll jinx it.
