20 Guatemalan Spanish Slang Words and Expressions Only Locals Use
Guatemalans call themselves chapines, and their Spanish has a vocabulary you will not find in a textbook. Here are 20 slang words locals actually use, with examples.
Guatemalans call themselves chapines, and Guatemalan Spanish slang is one of the warmest and most playful in Central America. It is full of words borrowed from Mayan languages, softened insults that work as terms of affection, and a vos that replaces tú in almost every casual conversation.
Below are 20 Guatemalan Spanish slang words and expressions that locals use every day. Each one comes with its meaning, an example in context, and the English translation, so you know not just what it means but when it lands right.
How Guatemalans Talk About People
Half of any conversation is about somebody, and this is the vocabulary that does the work.
1. Chapín / chapina
Literally a nickname for a Guatemalan person. Guatemalans use it about themselves with pride, and you will hear it long before you hear guatemalteco.
Ese restaurante es de un chapín que vivió años en Estados Unidos. (That restaurant belongs to a Guatemalan guy who lived in the United States for years.)
2. Patojo / patoja
A kid, or a young person. It works for a five year old and for your twenty year old cousin, depending on who is speaking.
Los patojos ya salieron de clases. (The kids are out of school already.)
3. Cerote
This is the one that confuses visitors. Literally it is crude, but between close friends it means something close to "dude" and carries real affection. Between strangers it is an insult. Listen first, use it later.
Qué onda, cerote, hace años que no te veo. (What's up, man, I haven't seen you in years.)
4. Shute
A nosy person, someone who pushes into other people's business. From a Mayan root, and one of the most Guatemalan words on this list.
No seas shute, esa plática no es contigo. (Don't be nosy, that conversation is not yours.)
5. Canche
Blond, or fair haired. It is descriptive, not rude, and it gets used as a nickname constantly.
Preguntá por el canche que trabaja en la tienda. (Ask for the blond guy who works in the shop.)
6. Colocho
A curl, and by extension a curly haired person. Another nickname you will hear shouted across a market.
Mi hermana tiene el pelo bien colocho. (My sister has really curly hair.)
Everyday Guatemalan Expressions
These are the words that fill the gaps between sentences.
7. Chilero
Cool, great, nice. If you learn one positive adjective in Guatemala, learn this one.
Está bien chilero tu carro. (Your car is really cool.)
8. Púchica
A soft exclamation of surprise, frustration or sympathy. It is the polite way to react when something goes wrong, and it works in front of your grandmother.
Púchica, se me olvidó la cita. (Oh no, I forgot the appointment.)
9. Aguas
Watch out. Literally "waters", from the old habit of shouting a warning before throwing water into the street.
Aguas con ese escalón, está flojo. (Careful with that step, it is loose.)
10. Pisto
Money. Plain, everyday, and used across Guatemala and El Salvador alike.
No traigo pisto, te pago mañana. (I don't have any cash on me, I'll pay you tomorrow.)
11. Ish
A sound of disgust, usually about something dirty or unpleasant. It is a full word in Guatemala, not just a noise.
Ish, esa fruta ya está podrida. (Ugh, that fruit is rotten already.)
12. Sho
Be quiet. Short, blunt and used constantly by teachers and older siblings.
Sho, que ya empezó la película. (Quiet, the film has started.)
If you want to hear this vocabulary the way it actually sounds, in full sentences instead of isolated lists, our Short Stories in Guatemalan Spanish puts these words inside real scenes, with the tricky ones glossed as you read.
Guatemalan Slang for Situations and Things
13. Clavo
A problem, a mess, an awkward situation. One of the most useful nouns in the country.
Me metí en un gran clavo con ese préstamo. (I got myself into a big mess with that loan.)
14. Casaca
A tall tale, flattery, or smooth talk designed to convince you. Echar casaca is to lay it on thick.
No me echés casaca, decime la verdad. (Don't sweet talk me, tell me the truth.)
15. Muela
Persuasive chatter. Someone who echa muela can talk anyone into anything, and the word is usually said with a mix of admiration and suspicion.
Ese vendedor tiene mucha muela. (That salesman has a lot of patter.)
16. Chucho
A dog, and also a person who is stingy or quick to grab an advantage. Context tells you which one.
No seas chucho, compartí las papas. (Don't be greedy, share the fries.)
17. Shuco
Literally dirty, and also the name of the beloved Guatemalan street hot dog. Ordering one is a rite of passage in Guatemala City.
Vamos por unos shucos después del partido. (Let's go get some shucos after the match.)
18. Bolo
Drunk. Direct, common, and not particularly polite.
Llegó bien bolo a la fiesta. (He turned up at the party completely drunk.)
19. Chirmol
A fresh tomato salsa, and figuratively a mess or a jumble of things.
Hice un chirmol con los papeles de la oficina. (I made a mess of the office paperwork.)
20. A la gran
The opening of a surprised exclamation, usually left unfinished on purpose. It is the Guatemalan way of stopping just short of swearing.
A la gran, no sabía que ya te habías graduado. (Wow, I didn't know you had already graduated.)
How to Use Guatemalan Slang Without Sounding Off
Start with vos. Guatemalans use vos with friends and family, not tú. The verb changes with it: vos tenés, vos podés, vos decís. Getting this right matters more than any single slang word on this list.
Be careful with cerote. It is the clearest example of a word that is warm between friends and offensive between strangers. Wait until a Guatemalan uses it with you first.
Soften your exclamations. Púchica and a la gran exist precisely so people can react strongly without swearing. Using them signals that you picked up the register, not just the vocabulary.
Listen for the Mayan roots. Words like shute, shuco and ish come from indigenous languages, and they are a large part of what makes Guatemalan Spanish sound different from Mexican or Salvadoran Spanish.
If you are working through Central American varieties, these posts pair well with this one: 20 Salvadoran Spanish Slang Words and Expressions, 25 Mexican Slang Phrases and 20 Dominican Spanish Slang Words and Phrases.
The fastest way to make any of this stick is to meet the words in context rather than in a list. Short Stories in Guatemalan Spanish is built for exactly that, and if you want to compare how the same idea sounds across the region, the Short Stories collection covers the rest of the Spanish speaking world country by country.