Topo meaning spanish slang

Confused | © Flickr/CollegeDegrees360

One of the most confusing things for any non-native trying to speak Spanish, especially Mexican Spanish, is the sheer wealth of phrases and sayings that permeate the language. Whether theyre densely culturally referential or just plain weird and untranslatable, here are the top 15 Mexican expressions that make absolutely no sense in English.

Lazy | © Scott Schwartz/Flickr

What it actually means: I spent all day doing nothing. Hueva in Mexican Spanish is slang for laziness, as well as literally meaning roe or spawn.

Fart | © Marco/Flickr

What it actually means: Theres no problem. Yeah, we cant explain this one either, but pedo [fart] is a very popular word in much Mexican slang.

Eggs | © Pixabay

What it actually means: Calm down. As a side note, huevos is also slang for testicles.

Tacos | © City Foodsters/Flickr

What it actually means: Someone who thinks very highly of themselves will echarle mucha crema a sus tacos.

Clown | © Pixabay

What it actually means: Hes had it now, hes done for. In other words, something was a total failure and theres no coming back from it.

Balls | © Pixabay

What it actually means: Who knows! This phrase expresses a simple I dont know in a rather more roundabout way.

Soup | © Pixabay

What it actually means: Im going to get the truth out of him/her. It can also mean that youre going to find out all the gossip from someone.

Duck | © Pixabay

What it actually means: Dont be a dick, for want of a better way of saying it. This is the polite way of expressing that sentiment in Mexican Spanish the rather less polite version would be no te hagas güey.

Cannon | © Pixabay

What it actually means: If referring to a person it tends to mean that theyre good at something, although when referring to a problem it more likely expresses the difficult nature of said problem.

Corn | © Pixabay

What it actually means: It can either mean caught red handed or that someone has put a stop to your plans. Ya nos cayó el chahuistle is one of those phrases so intricately linked to Mexican culture that its unlikely to be understood by other Spanish speakers chahuistle is a type of fungus that attacks the corn plant and the word has its roots in Nahuatl.

Tamal | © Pixabay

What it actually means: People know who you are by the way you dress. Its essentially a more every day form of saying dress for the job you want, not the job you have or, appearances are important.

Juárez | © Laurie Avocado/Flickr

What it actually means: Whatever threatens me wont do me any harm, just like the wind didnt harm Juárez. This phrase of course makes reference to famed Mexican president Benito Juárez.

Torta | © Mark Mitchell/Flickr

What it actually means: Get pregnant at a young age or have sexual relations outside of matrimony.

Tongue | © Matthew Cook/Flickr

What it actually means: Unafraid to say what they think. People with no pelos en la lengua dont have a filter on their thoughts before they say them.

Stuck up | © Pixabay

What it actually means: A big deal. If someone thinks of themselves as la/el muy muy they have an often overinflated opinion of themselves.

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