🇵🇷 Puerto Rican Spanish
How Puerto Rico says it — San Juan, word by word
Nene, Jangueo / un party, Sorbeto. 27 everyday things and the word San Juan uses for each, beside what Buenos Aires, Santiago, Medellín, Santo Domingo, Madrid, Mexico City, Lima and San Juan say. Click any row for the full comparison and its sources.
San Juan word by word
| In English | In San Juan | Elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| a kid informal | nene | pibe cabro chico pelao carajito chaval chamaco chibolo |
| a party / going out | jangueo / un party | joda carrete rumba teteo fiesta / salir de marcha peda tono |
| a straw | sorbeto | sorbete bombilla pitillo calimete pajita popote cañita |
| dude | pana | che weón parce manín tío güey causa |
| what's up? | ¿Qué es la que hay? | ¿Qué hacés? ¿Cómo estái? ¿Qué más? ¿Qué lo que? ¿Qué tal? ¿Qué onda? ¡Habla! |
| a T-shirt | t-shirt | remera polera camiseta franela camiseta playera polo |
| ok / sure | dale | ya po listo ta' to' vale sale ya |
| popcorn | popcorn | pochoclo cabritas crispetas cocaleca palomitas palomitas canchita |
| right away | ahora mismo | ya mismo al tiro de una enseguida ahoritita al toque |
| a job | trabajo | laburo pega camello curro chamba chamba |
| cool | not sourced yet | copado bacán bacano chévere guay chido chévere |
| gas station | not sourced yet | estación de servicio bencinera bomba bomba gasolinera gasolinera grifo |
| money | chavos | guita plata plata cuartos pasta lana plata |
| the bus | guagua | colectivo micro bus autobús pesero micro |
| a beer with friends | una fría | birra chela una caña chela chela |
| a birthday cake | bizcocho | torta torta tarta pastel torta |
| a hangover | hangover | resaca la caña guayabo resaca resaca cruda resaca |
| a pen | pluma | birome lápiz pasta lapicero lapicero boli lapicero |
| a traffic jam | tapón | embotellamiento taco taco atasco embotellamiento embotellamiento |
| beans | habichuelas | porotos porotos fríjoles judías / alubias frijoles frejoles |
| a banana | guineo | banana plátano banano plátano plátano plátano |
| eyeglasses | espejuelos | anteojos lentes gafas gafas lentes lentes |
| a car | carro | auto auto coche coche |
| a swimming pool | piscina | pileta alberca |
| an apartment | apartamento | departamento departamento piso departamento departamento |
| avocado | aguacate | palta palta palta |
| sneakers | tenis | zapatillas zapatillas zapatillas zapatillas |
Each row links to the full eight-country comparison with its sources. Grey = the standard dictionary word is the local word too.
Talk like a boricua
The in-app «Talk like a local» guide for Puerto Rican Spanish — the words and turns of phrase San Juan's characters use in conversation, so you recognise them when they come at you at speed.
| They say | It means | You'll hear |
|---|---|---|
| parcha | passion fruit (elsewhere: maracuyá) | Dame un jugo de parcha bien frío. The fruit and its juice. "Maracuyá" is understood but sounds foreign in PR. |
| guagua | bus (elsewhere: autobús) | Cojo la guagua para ir al Viejo San Juan. The everyday word for a public bus across PR and much of the Caribbean. |
| china | orange (the sweet fruit) (elsewhere: naranja) | Un jugo de china, por favor. In PR the sweet orange you eat is a "china"; "naranja" leans toward the sour one. |
| zafacón | trash can (elsewhere: basurero) | Tira eso en el zafacón, por favor. Casual and universal in PR. |
| chavos | money (elsewhere: dinero) | No tengo chavos ahora mismo. Very common. The old singular "chavo" was a small coin. |
| mahones | jeans (elsewhere: vaqueros) | Me compré unos mahones nuevos. The textbook word is "vaqueros" (or "jeans"); PR says "mahones". |
| gomas | tires (elsewhere: neumáticos) | Tengo que cambiar las gomas del carro. Also the general Caribbean term. |
| habichuelas | beans (elsewhere: frijoles) | Arroz con habichuelas, lo de siempre. Say "habichuelas" here — "frijoles" is the Mexican word. |
| refresco | soda / soft drink (elsewhere: gaseosa) | ¿Me traes un refresco? PR uses "refresco" for any soda; "gaseosa" is understood but not local. |
| carro | car (elsewhere: coche) | Dejé el carro allá afuera. PR, like most of Latin America, says "carro", never the peninsular "coche". |
Everyday phrases
- ¿Qué es la que hay? — What's up? / What's going on? Super-casual greeting among friends; you'll also hear "¿qué es la que es?".
- ¡Wepa! — Woo-hoo! / Yes! An all-purpose shout of excitement, pride, or approval.
- Está brutal — It's awesome "Brutal" means great, not harsh — it's high praise.
- ¡Ay, bendito! — Aw, poor thing! / Oh no! Tenderness, pity, or mild dismay — one of the most Puerto Rican phrases there is.
- A fuego — Awesome / on fire Something excellent; "a fuego pela'o" is even stronger.
- Dale — Go ahead / OK / let's do it Pan-Latin but constant in PR — agreement, encouragement, a green light.
Practise it with someone from San Juan
Caribbean Spanish drops consonants, speeds up, and swings — and no app teaches it, because it's easier to pretend all Spanish sounds like a newsreader. Carmen's restaurant in Old San Juan teaches the Spanish people actually speak on the island: ustedes everywhere, «brutal» as the highest praise, and a cafecito that's non-negotiable.
Meet Carmen in San Juan →