12 May 6 Slang Phrases in Spain You Should Know Before Going Abroad Posted at 11:41h in Trip Preparation, Learn Spanish by juan 0 Likes Besides the obvious language inprovement, studying abroad exposes you to the slang phrases that aren’t taught in school. There are various slang phrases that are specific to a country or to a city, and can sometimes have multiple meanings. This can be challenging at times, but once you learn the phrases and how to use them in the right context, you’ll start to speak like a native! Here’s a list of 10 common slang phrases in Spain that I have the most during my time in Spain. Miarma This slang phrase is typical of Seville. Its correct pronunication and spelling is ¨Mi alma¨but Sevillanos have transformed it to be pronounced with an ¨r¨. The literal translation means ¨my soul¨ but it’s used to not refer to the soul rather than to add a small personal/ loving/ caring gesture when talking to someone. My abuela (host grandmother) uses this everytime she talks with me…she usually says Adios miarma (Bye love or Bye sweetie!)! Qué fuerte This was one of this first slang phrases in Spain that I learned. My host mom, Isabel, loves to say it. It’s literal translation means ¨how strong¨ but trust me, that’s not the intended meaning. At first, I thought ¨wow, my host mom just thinks everything and everyone is so strong…weird.¨ Needless to say, I felt dumb when I realized the actual meaning. It’s actually used to show shock, awe, or surprise in both a positive or negative way. In english it’s most equivalent to ¨wow.¨ Ni fu ni fa This is one of my favorite phrases! This one is easy to master quickly because there is no strange literal translation and it doesn’t have multiple meanings. This is used to express that you feel indifferent about something, that it’s neither good nor bad. For example, I would ask someone, ¨Did you like the movie?¨ and if they respond ¨ni fu ni fa¨, it means they weren’t crazy about nor did they dislike it. No ni ná No ni ná comes from the phrase ¨no ni nada¨ but Andalusians (people from Andalucía, Southern Spain) more commonly use the shortened version thanks to their rapid talking speed. This slang phrase is a form of affirmation to say ‘of course’. For example, ‘Aren’t you going to miss Spain?’ and then respond ‘no ni ná (heck yes I am).’ Qué chulo Many students learn that the word for ¨cool¨ is ¨guay¨ but Spaniards tend to use a different word. Que chulo means that something is cool, hip, groovy, or rad! You could say ¨guay¨ too, but some of my Spaniard friends told me it was a word from the previous decades. Haha! Vaya tela This slang phrase in Spain is a way to show shock, but more in a negative way. It’s possible to use it in good situations, but it’s even more common in a negative sense. This can best be translated as ¨What a nightmare!/ Oh my goodness!/ Gosh! Would you look at that!/ Wow! Isn’t that something!¨ Quillo/a
