This article is part of the series Top 5 Spanish Slang Words Searched on Google where we feature a full list of examples for:
1. Spanish slang for friend
2. Spanish slang for weed
3. Spanish slang for white person
4. Spanish slang for cool
5. Spanish slang for girl
Spanish Slang for Cool
The word cool in English is an adjective for temperature, but colloquially is hard to define. It is so difficult to find a formal definition that a group of medical researchers lead by a psychologist of the University of Rochester Medical Center conducted the study Coolness: An Empirical Investigation. In the study they found that “being cool” was “focused on positive, socially desirable traits, such as friendly, competent, trendy and attractive.”
Cool is also an interjection for “excellent” and it is also used to express acceptance or agreement.
Spanish has equivalents for “cool” and they vary among countries. Here I have grouped a couple of examples from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Spain and Venezuela. The most common Spanish slang words for cool are bacán, bacano and chévere.
Spanish Slang for Cool in Argentina
1. bárbaro
2. canchero
3. copado
4. es una masa
5. joya
6. piola
In addition to “cool,” this word also can be used in three more ways: 1) with it, on the ball, clever, astute. 2) nice, friendly. 4) calm, relaxed, stay in control.
7. sos un fenómeno
Use this phrase to compliment another person meaning “You are great!” or “You are cool!”
8. zarpado
Source: Speaking Argento: A Guide to Spanish from Argentina by Jared Romey
Spanish Slang for Cool in Chile
1. a todo cachete
2. bacán
3. buena onda
4. buena tela
Means “cool, good vibes” and describes either a situation or a person
5. cachilupi
6. chori
7. cototo or cototudo
This word changes its meaning depending on the context: can be “cool, interesting, nice” or the opposite “hard, difficult”
8. descueve
9. entrete
This word comes from the abbreviation of the word entretenido.
10. filete
11. grosso or groso
12. hevy
13. la cagó
Another word with double meanings: 1) awesome, sweet, cool, well done or 2) crap, poorly done.
14. la muerte
15. mortal
16. pulento
17. ¡qué chori!
18. ¡qué top! or topísimo
Source: Speaking Chileno: A Guide to Spanish from Chile by Jared Romey
Spanish Slang for Cool in Colombia
1. bacano
2. chévere
3. chimba
4. chusco
5. cuca
6. culo
This word literally means “ass” and is often used in the Caribbean coast of Colombia for “something cool or nice”
7. nota
8. play
Source: Quick Guide to Colombian Spanish
Spanish Slang for Cool in Costa Rica
1. buena nota
2. buenazo
This word is only used in reference to things.
3. carga
4. chiva
This word is only used in reference to things.
5. está legal
6. estallada
7. legal
8. militar
In addition to “cool,” this word also is used to refer to a free-spirited person.
9. pichudo
10. pura vida
Pura vida is like the trademark word for Costa Rica that and used in different ways like “cool, good, excellent, awesome” or even to say “How it’s going?” Check out our full article Pura Vida: The most important phrase in Costa Rica.
11. teja
Teja is also commonly used as a denomination for 100, for example “one hundred Colones (Costa Rican currency)” or “one hundred years”
12. tuanes
Source: Diccionario de Palabrotas y Coloquialismos Ticos: Dictionary of Costa Rican Slang by José Antonio González Ugalde
Spanish Slang for Cool in Dominican Republic
1. ápero
2. bacán or bacano
3. chulo
4. jevi
5. ratatá
Source: Quick Guide to Dominican Spanish
Spanish Slang for Cool in Mexico
1. chido or chida
2. chingón
This word can be use in a positive way meaning “cool as shit, awesome as hell” and also to make reference to a guy with great skills. The third meaning is not positive because it can be a sneaky person that waits for someone else to do the job and then takes the credit.
3. conmadre
4. padre, padrídismo or ¡qué padre!
5. que poca madre
This is one of those words that, depending on the context, the meanings are completely opposite: “that’s awesome, cool” or “that sucks, damn” as an expression of disapproval or disappointed
6. suave
Source: Quick Guide to Mexican Spanish and Quick Guide to More Mexican Spanish
Spanish Slang for Cool in Peru
1. paja
2. bacán
3. chévere
4. maldito
Source: Quick Guide to Peruvian Spanish and ¿Quién me llama?: Learn Peruvian Spanish Slang By Daniel McKay
Spanish Slang for Cool in Puerto Rico
1. brutal
This word can be used in two forms: For example: El concierto estuvo brutal meaning “cool, awesome” or El examen estuvo brutal. “too strong, too difficult”
2. chévere
3. fino
4. gufeao
Also spelled gufiao. This word comes from the English “goofy”
5. hevy
6. nítido
Source: Speaking Boricua: A Guide to Puerto Rico Spanish by Jared Romey
Spanish Slang for Cool in Spain
1. chulo
2. de puta madre
3. flaman
4. guay
5. mola
6. ¡qué caña!
7. ¡qué pasada!
Source: El español de la calle: Vocabulario coloquial by María Arnaldis
Spanish Slang for Cool in Venezuela
1. cartelúo
Use in reference to things like for example, something that has a good quality, a good shape or looks, it is also applied to any pleasant situation
2. chévere
3. de pinga
4. fino
5. nota or ¡qué nota!
Source: Quick Guide to Venezuelan Spanish and Quick Guide to More Venezuelan Spanish
Spanish Slang for Cool in Other Countries
1. chivo: El Salvador
2. prity: Panama
3. purete: Paraguay
4. ¡qué fresa!: Honduras
5. tuanis: Honduras
6. virgo: Guatemala
Source: Diccionario de Americanismos by Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española
In the final post of this series The Top 5 Spanish Slang Words Searched on Google I will give you the list of Spanish slang words for girl.
Check out these other Spanish Slang Word articles.
