Regional Vocabulary: Words from Different Spanish-Speaking Countries

Don’t Stop at “Hello”: How to Greet in Mexico, Argentina, Colombia and Peru.

 “When in Rome, do as the Romans do” – just as this saying goes, if you want to get closer to or even immerse yourself in Hispanic culture, you need to know how the locals express themselves. You have to knock before you enter. Learn to greet and you’ll be welcomed.

We know that regional vocabulary can be difficult to learn, so we’ll make it easier for you. Below, you’ll find some ways to greet people in four Spanish-speaking countries: Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, and Peru.

Let’s start! You’re probably familiar with the basic and common ways to greet, start a conversation, and/or ask about someone else. 

Do phrases like: Hola, ¿Cómo estás?, buenos días, buenas tardes, buenas noches, ¿Qué tal va todo?, etc. sound familiar? While greeting this way works, regional vocabulary is different. Each region has a unique way of communicating, full of tones, expressions, and neologisms that highlight their identity and culture.

The greeting is the simplest and most powerful gesture of courtesy we can offer others. It’s a way to show respect for their customs and traditions, make a good impression, facilitate interactions, and establish connections.

Let’s see how the regional dialects of each country are:

Mexico 

• ¿Qué pasa güey?:

• ¿Qué tranza?:

This is a colloquial way of asking “How are you?”, “What’s up?”, “What’s new?”. It is mainly used in northern Mexico. 

• ¿Qué onda?:

This is probably one you’ve heard the most. It’s a casual way of greeting and/or asking “How are you?”. It is quite popular in the rest of Latin America as a typical Mexican greeting.

Argentina

 The accentuation and some words in the Argentine regional dialect are different, we’ll show you with these greetings: 

• ¿Qué hacés, che?:

It’s similar to “What are you doing, friend?”. Instead of haces, it is said and written as hacés, accentuating the [e]. Note: The word “Che” can be used to emphasize or get someone’s attention. 

• ¿Qué contás?:

Informal expression to ask about what’s new in the other person’s life or what they’re doing at that moment. Here, as with the previous greeting, the word ‘contás’ has the accent on the [a] and is typical of Argentine regional vocabulary. Contás = cuentas. 

• ¿Qué pasa pibe/piba?:

Greeting addressed to a young person, the word ‘pibe’ refers to a young boy and ‘piba’ is the feminine form. It is used to ask “How are you?” or “What’s happening?”.

Peru: 

• ¿Qué pez?: 

An informal greeting to ask “What’s happening?”, “What’s going on?”, or if there is any news. The trick with this expression is that the word pez also refers to the animal (fish), a play on words in their regional vocabulary. 

• ¿Qué tal la vuelta?:

No, we’re not talking about turning around, with this expression we ask “How are things?”, “How is everything going?”. ‘La vuelta’ = situation. 

• ¿Qué piola?:

It’s a colloquial greeting, in a friendly tone, used to ask how someone is. However, the word ‘piola’ has multiple meanings, among them: ‘calm’ or ‘relaxed’.

Colombia: 

• ¿Qué más parcero/parcera?:

Colloquial greeting to ask a friend how they are or just to say “hello”. ‘Parce’ is a word from the Colombian regional vocabulary used to refer to a friend or companion and is a contraction of the word ‘Parcero’. 

• ¿Qué más, manito?:

Although ‘manito’ is the diminutive of ‘mano’ (hand), in this case, it is also a contraction of the word ‘hermanito’, diminutive of ‘hermano’. This greeting expresses closeness and friendship. 

• ¿Qué más, pues?:

You’ve probably heard it in some songs by Maluma or J Balvin, as it is one of the most colloquial and representative greetings of certain regions of Colombia. It’s informal and friendly. It’s used to ask how the other person is.

This is just a taste of the vast ways of expression and communication in Hispanic culture. The regional dialect of each country is filled with the essence of its inhabitants. 

Approaching a language is also approaching its people, and what better way to do it than by knowing their regional vocabulary. Mandela once said, “The encounter between cultures is a dialogue between histories, an exchange of experiences that enriches the fabric of humanity with diverse threads of color.” 

Let’s start by greeting each other!