A previous entry at DSWU I talked about a marcha as being the word they use in Mexico as the starter motor for a car. In Argentina the same English word is represented by burro de arranque. However, I have also heard people just call it burro. Seems that the lowly donkey has many uses […]

Acudir is a word that I heard in a song. Trying to figure out the meaning of the word through the song did not prove helpful. After looking up acudir on the web, I understand why. Acudir has many meanings based on the words around it. Most of its usage is idomatic in nature; it […]

Maña is a word with many definitions, but in the context I heard it in it meant bad habits. In that context it could also be quirky, cranky, odd or eccentric. When used this way it is usually referring to an older person who is set in his ways. The positive meaning of maña is […]

A new friend of mine asked me how old I was (he is 86). When I told him that I was 40 he replied with “¡Eres un pibe todavía!” Or, “You are still just a kid.” Pibe seems to be quite Argentine in its use according to a forum thread. It can mean a child […]

A couple of weeks ago I heard someone talking about chistes verdes. I did not know what that expression meant, but I gathered from the way it was said it meant off-color jokes, or dirty jokes. What little research I did on this phrase (I have to admit I really did not want to find […]

Pochoclo is the word used for popcorn in Argentina. It seems to be uniquely used here. In the rest of Latin America (as far as I know) the word for popcorn is palomitas.

When something is of low quality or a fake ripoff in Argentina they call it trucho. This can be used for something that is not what it seems; i.e., a pirate taxi company. Apparently this word is used in Uruguay in the same way. Does anyone know of other countries that use trucho like this? […]