Bitching In Spanish Like A Latino

Ever reflected on how all of us, as language learners, have secretly fancied being able to unleash the choicest of insults in the target language? I don’t know about you but I know most Spanish learners who have and that includes me. Though, being members of an allegedly civilized society, we might never even need to use any such derogatory words for anyone, it’s fun to learn them and be able to use them anyways. Just remember that while it’s fun knowing them, actually using them should be avoided under all circumstances. Knowledge of such terms is to only serve the purpose of recognizing when someone else is using them.

In this article, we will learn some of the choicest negative adjectives and nouns in Spanish that should come handy should you ever need to describe an unpleasant encounter in a Latino país (country). Just like most Spanish language swear words, some of the words listed here might not even be found on a regular dictionary or phrasebook but are rather members of the ever-interesting street-Spanish jargon. Street lingo is often vulgar and while vulgar speech must always be avoided, it will be immensely helpful to have a knowledge of this glossary should you ever need to interpret something loaded being spoken.

The list that follows comprises of words that describe negative traits and are not all necessarily profane or vulgar. There is a thin red line between honestly describing something or someone unpleasant and deliberately insulting them and that, my friend, must not be breached regardless of who you are dealing with. No points for guessing which side of the fence you are recommended to be on.

All things negative

fanfarrón/fanfarrona – show-off

baboso/a – retard

burro – a dumbass


chulito/a – cocky


chiflado – nuts/crazy

cuatro ojos – a person wearing glasses

huelepedos – an ass-kisser

bola de billar – a baldie

pelón – a bald person

cerdo – a person with bad manners

espantapájaros – a skinny person (literally, a scarecrow)

chorra – stupid

ordinario/a – common


nieto de puta – son of a bitch (literally, grandson of a whore implying that all past mothers in the family have been whores; more offensive than hijueputa)

bola de manteca – a fatso (literally, a ball of butter)

maldito – damn

hijueputa – son of a bitch (very offensive)

hortera – tacky


fósforo – a skinny person (literally, matchstick)

gordiflón – a fatty

buchón – a selfish person

Cuerpo de gallina?
Photo credit: Hodgkinson licensed CC BY-SA 2.0

cuerpo de gallina – a bad body with no hips

choni (feminine) – chav/trashy


enano – shortie (literally, dwarf)

esclavo/a de la moda – fashion victim


beato/a – goody-two-shoes


banano – homosexual

mandón/mandona – bossy


pesado/a – boring/annoying


mama pichas – a despicable person (extremely offensive; literally, someone who performs oral sex on a man)

bostezo – a boring person

camote – a person who acts strangely

calzonazos (masculine) – henpecked


bueno para nada – a good-for-nothing

aliento de dragón – bad breath

rata – a selfish or inconsiderate person

pega – a person who is a pain in the butt

veleta – opportunist


Es limpio
Photo credit: Dimitris Kalogeropoylos licensed CC BY-SA 2.0

chepito – a nosey person

limpio – a person with no money

playo – a gay man (offensive yet often used in jest amongst Costa Rican men)

playa – a lesbian

cuatro culos – a person with a big butt

perro/a – a promiscuous person

aprovechado/a – free-loader


trepa – social climber


desgraciado/a – loser


caripicha – dick-face/dickhead (very offensive)

mamón/mamonazo – sucker


inútil – good-for-nothing


aguafiestas – party-pooper


rácano/a – stingy


guarro/a – disgusting/dirty


grosero/a – crass


viejo verde (for a perverted old man) – pervert


pijo/a – stuck-up


ingenuo/a – gullible


hazmerreír – laughing stock


niñato/a – brat


cascarrabias/gruñón – curmudgeon


chismoso/a – gossip

ceguetas – a person with poor eyesight


paleto/a – small-town

jetón – a liar

jaibo – an idiot (very offensive)

pueblerino/a – small-town
/downmarket

vago/a – sponger/slacker


matón – thug


tarro – an ugly face

gilipollas – idiot

tonto/a – idiot


lameculos (vulgar)/chupaculos (vulgar)/pelota – ass-kisser


un/una chapas – pain in the ass

un/una plasta – pain in the ass

zaguate – a womanizer

Want more?

Careful with those slurs while learning Spanish!
Photo credit: Demitri. W Photo licensed CC BY-SA 2.0

That’s all for today. I hope you found this collection amusing if not useful and are now motivated to explore further the fun and interesting activity of learning Spanish. While you are at it, be careful with such slurs as they could be pretty hurtful if used incorrectly. Almost every negative listed above changes meaning with not only context but location and the severity and intensity could have wild variations. So, while one community might take a particular slur mildly, another might get madly offended by the same word. It is rather best to follow the footsteps of the natives if you must decide to use these words in your conversations in order to avoid any awkward situation.

Needless to say, this list is not all there is and many more negatives exist; enough to warrant a dictionary of their own. However, this list should do enough to set the ball rolling for you. The best sources, as they say, are those who are born with Spanish. Native speakers would not only enrich your vocabulary further but will also be able to show you the precise sense exhibited by those words in ways no dictionary in the world can! So go ahead, make friends with native speakers and learn it all right from the horse’s mouth!