Narcos & Colombian Slang phrases and words in English
The Netflix series Narcos turned Colombian Spanish into a global obsession — that fast, melodic, slang-soaked paisa accent from Medellín. Behind the drama is a genuinely rich dialect: words for your buddy, for a snitch, for cool, plus street-smart sayings every Colombian lives by. These ten phrases let you catch what the characters really mean, swap the textbook for the streets, and pick up the warm, witty rhythm of how people actually talk in Colombia.
10 phrases · meanings & example sentences
“Plata o plomo”
'Silver or lead' — Pablo Escobar's infamous ultimatum: take the bribe (silver) or take the bullet (lead). It became the dark slogan of the whole Narcos era and is now instantly recognisable worldwide. Beyond the menace, it's a neat vocabulary lesson: 'plata' is the everyday Latin American word for money (not just silver), and 'plomo' is lead. A chilling phrase, but one that unlocks two extremely common words.
- Le ofrecieron plata o plomo. — They offered him silver or lead.
- En esa época era plata o plomo, no había más. — Back then it was bribe or bullet, nothing else.
- No tengo plata para eso. — I don't have money for that.
“Parcero / parce”
'Buddy', 'mate', 'bro' — the single most Colombian word there is, shortened to 'parce' in everyday speech. It comes from 'aparcero' (sharecropper/partner) and now means a close friend or just a friendly 'man' you tack onto sentences. If you only learn one word of Colombian slang, make it this one: it's warm, constant, and instantly marks you as someone who knows the country. You'll hear it in every other line of dialogue.
- ¿Qué más, parcero? — What's up, buddy?
- Tranquilo parce, yo te ayudo. — Relax man, I'll help you.
- Ese parce es de confianza. — That guy's trustworthy.
“El sapo”
A snitch or informer — literally 'the toad'. In narco culture being called a 'sapo' is the gravest insult, and the verb 'sapear' means to rat someone out. The toad image (croaking, giving you away) is vivid and very Colombian. It teaches an important cultural code: loyalty and silence are everything, and there's no worse fate than being the sapo. Outside the drama it's still common slang for a busybody who can't keep secrets.
- Lo mataron por sapo. — They killed him for being a snitch.
- No seas sapo, no le cuentes a nadie. — Don't be a rat, don't tell anyone.
- Alguien sapeó el plan. — Someone snitched on the plan.
“No dar papaya”
Literally 'don't give papaya' — a beloved Colombian life rule meaning don't make yourself an easy target, don't give people an opening to take advantage of you. Leave your phone on the table? You 'gave papaya'. It's half safety advice, half philosophy, and it sums up a whole streetwise mentality. There's even a follow-up: 'papaya puesta, papaya partida' — if you offer the papaya, don't be surprised when it gets taken.
- No des papaya con el celular en la calle. — Don't flash your phone on the street.
- Le robaron porque dio papaya. — He got robbed because he made himself a target.
- Acá toca no dar papaya, parce. — Round here you can't give people an opening, man.
“¿Quiubo, pues?”
The quintessential paisa (Medellín) greeting — a crunched-together 'qué hubo, pues?' meaning 'what's up?' or 'how's it going?'. That little 'pues' at the end of everything is the trademark of the Antioquia accent you hear all over Narcos. It mostly adds rhythm and emphasis rather than meaning ('well…', 'so…'). Nail this greeting and the trailing 'pues' and you instantly sound like you're from Medellín.
- ¡Quiubo pues, parce! ¿Cómo va todo? — Hey man! How's everything?
- ¿Entonces qué, pues? — So what's the plan, then?
- Bien pues, aquí tranquilo. — All good, just chilling.
“Berraco / la berraquera”
'Berraco' (also 'verraco') is one of Colombia's most versatile words: it can mean tough, brave, badass, brilliant — or, depending on tone, furious. 'La berraquera' is the noun for awesomeness or grit. Calling someone 'un berraco' is high praise: they're a force to be reckoned with. It perfectly captures the Colombian admiration for resilience and hustle, and it swings from compliment to complaint with just a change in voice.
- Ese man es un berraco para el trabajo. — That guy's a beast at work.
- ¡Qué berraquera de gol! — What an amazing goal!
- Se puso berraco cuando le dijeron. — He got furious when they told him.
“Bacano / chévere”
Two ways to say 'cool' or 'awesome'. 'Bacano' is the more Colombian-flavoured one; 'chévere' is loved across the whole Caribbean and Andean region. Both describe anything great — a plan, a person, a party. Learning the local word for 'cool' is one of the quickest wins in any language because you'll use it ten times a day. In Colombia, if something's good, it's 'bacano', and you'll fit right in.
- Esa fiesta estuvo muy bacana. — That party was really cool.
- Qué bacano verte, parce. — So great to see you, man.
- El plan suena chévere. — The plan sounds cool.
“El patrón”
'The boss' — the title Escobar's men used for him, and the word for the head of any operation, business or household. 'Patrón' carries weight: respect, authority, the one in charge. It's standard Spanish but Narcos gave it an unforgettable charge ('Don Pablo, el patrón'). Useful far beyond the drama — your boss at work is 'el patrón' too — so it doubles as practical vocabulary with a memorable hook.
- Lo que diga el patrón. — Whatever the boss says.
- El patrón quiere verte ahora. — The boss wants to see you now.
- Ella es la patrona de la empresa. — She's the boss of the company.
“El tombo / la ley”
Slang for the police. 'El tombo' is gritty street Spanish for a cop (used in Colombia and beyond), while 'la ley' ('the law') refers to the authorities in general. In a world built on staying one step ahead of the police, these words come up constantly. They're a window into street vocabulary you'll never find in a classroom — exactly the kind of insider term that makes dialogue suddenly click into place.
- ¡Cuidado, ahí viene el tombo! — Careful, here comes the cop!
- Los tombos rodearon la cuadra. — The cops surrounded the block.
- Se escondió de la ley por años. — He hid from the law for years.
“Camellar”
To work, to grind — 'el camello' is your job. The image is pure poetry: working like a camel, hauling the load across the desert day after day. It's everyday Colombian slang with none of the drama, and it reveals the other side of the country behind the headlines — ordinary people grinding hard to get by. 'Conseguir camello' means to find a job, something every Colombian conversation eventually touches.
- Me toca camellar todo el fin de semana. — I've got to work all weekend.
- Por fin conseguí camello. — I finally found a job.
- Ese camello es muy pesado. — That job is really tough.
