Let’s Sound More Spanish – Part 2

 Photo by Kiril Krsteski on Unsplash

Welcome to my second post about sounding more Spanish! If you’ve ever tried watching a Spanish movie with subtitles, you probably noticed that there are many words you won’t find in textbooks or regular lessons.

In my experience, upper-intermediate students want to learn these phrases, but—let’s be honest—Spanish people use a lot of swear words! So, I’ll start with some normal phrases and end with a few spicy ones.

Curro / Currar (job / to work)

In Spanish movies, “curro” is a very common word. In Latin America, people use different words for “job.” For example, in Peru, we say “trabajo,” but in Argentina, people say “laburo.” All mean “job.”

Echar la bronca (to tell someone off / give someone a hard time)

You can combine this with “curro.” For example: Me han echado la bronca en el curro — Someone gave me a hard time at work.

Gilipollas / Gilipollez (idiot / nonsense)

  • ¡Qué gilipollez! — That’s nonsense.

  • ¡Vaya gilipollas! — What an idiot!

Note that “vaya” here doesn’t mean “go,” but expresses surprise or emphasis.

Joder (used to express surprise or annoyance)

  • ¡Joder, qué susto! — Holy crap, what a scare!

It’s not always a bad word but is informal. My students use it often, and I don’t mind—it helps them express strong emotions more like Spanish people.

However, tone matters:

  • ¡Cállate, joder! — Shut up!

  • Me toca trabajar el domingo, ¡joder! — It’s my turn to work on Sunday, shit!

Coño (exclamation of surprise)

In English, it’s like “Damn!”, “Yay!”, or “Wow!”

  • ¡Date prisa, coño! — Hurry up, dammit!

  • ¿Qué coño haces? — What the hell are you doing?

Interestingly, Spanish people can combine “coño” with affectionate words:

  • ¡Coño, cariño! — Damn it, baby!

It sounds like a big contrast but is acceptable.

Coña (joke / cool / something going well)

  • ¿Estás de coña? — Are you joking? Seriously?

  • La fiesta fue de coña. — The party was awesome.

But be careful: “coñazo” has a bad meaning.

  • Ese curro es un coñazo. — That job is a pain in the ass.

Spanish words are like a whole universe. If you start watching Spanish movies today, these words will become familiar and easier to recognize over time.

I don’t know about you, chavales, but it’s a very hot day here in the Czech Republic.
¡Coño, qué calor!

Nos vemos el próximo sábado. See you next Saturday for a new post!

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