I Speak Colombian ? Words And Phrases That Will Help You Better Understand Colombia

An everyday phrase here in Colombia is, 'Hay un inconievente.' In English this phrase would be used if maybe the meal you ordered at a restaurant is going to take 5 or 10 minutes longer than expected to arrive to your table. The waiter would tell you, 'Sorry sir, there is an inconvenience, the pork sandwich you ordered is going to take an extra 10 minutes before it will be ready.'

Good luck if you are in a hospital in Colombia and the doctor tells you, 'Hay un inconievente.' This no doubt means that what they thought was just a little routine acid reflux really means that your kidneys have exploded and you have 3 minutes to live.

Also in Colombia, the customer is made to feel almost like royalty. This example is illustrated when you enter the small corner grocery store and the sales clerk says to, 'A sus ordenes su merced' (At your service your mercy).

You thank the clerk for such a warm welcome and try to explain to her that really you aren't anyone important. You actually just came in to buy $1,500 pesos worth of that good Bocatto ice cream and are not worthy of being called 'Your mercy.' To this the clerk will promptly respond, 'Para servirle' (another cute way to say 'at your service').

Even the older gentleman with the fleet of dogs by the bus station is always asking 'Me colabora?' (Would you like to collaborate with me?) Like we should get together and work on a project, just him and me. When I inform him that I really already have enough business partners in place and he should use the capital he was going to invest in my company to maybe buy some more food for his dogs. He then looks at me like I am the one who doesn't know what he's talking about.

At home, I always hear my girlfriend say these strange expressions over the phone like, 'Mommy, make sure to put all you books in your backpack for school tomorrow,' or 'Mommy, make sure not to spend all your money on candy, save it for your lunch.'

I would then ask my girlfriend two questions,

#1) I didn't realize your 53-year old mother was still in school and #2) Isn't it a little strange to lecture your own 53-year old mother on how she should be spending her money?

'When I say Mommy, I am referring to my daughter, not my actual mother.'

'Oh ok, that's clear,' I would reply.

Another strange occasion involving my girlfriend's daughter arose when she showed me a text message she sent to her daughter, 'Mommy, don't let the other girls ride you in school.' (Mommy, no dejes que te la montan en la escuela).

'Ok, I understand the mommy part now, that's clear. I am a little confused about your daughter being ridden around like livestock while at school. I thought she was going to private school.'

'No, te la montan, is referring to when the other girls pick on my daughter at school.'

Many people complain about riding the buses here in Bogotá. They say that the drivers are crazy and the people who ride the bus all smell like ham. For this reason, I was a little afraid that something was afoot when I heard the voice of a woman who had just gotten out of her seat and was on her way to the back exit in the bus, 'Que pena con usted.' Wow, this woman must have really done something bad, because she is asking to be pardoned for some capital crime that she had committed. When the man in the aisle got out of her way, I realized the only thing she was guilty of was of wanting a clear path to get off the bus.

During one of my English classes, the boss of the entire company came into the class and made an announcement. He said that during each class, anyone who speaks in Spanish will have to make a $100 peso penalty to the teacher. The proceeds will then be donated to, el Señor del Semaforo. I thought to myself, I have heard about the Lord of The Rings, but is there also a guy who is called, The Stoplight Man?

Is it possible there is one guy who sticks out above all traffic cops for his skill in directing traffic? What I found out later, is that there isn't one specific stoplight man (el Señor del Semaforo) it is just an expression that refers to any guy who cleans windshields, juggles or sells things at the stoplights.

A common occurrence when you are talking to Colombians in English is that they will start off telling you a story, for example; 'I was at the quick stop and a large man with a gold chain, a leather jacket and many tattoos asked if I help him give his car a jump''¦.long pause'¦.You then see, by the look of terror and shame, on your Colombian friend's face that the needle has slipped off of his record. He politely makes eye contact with you and says, 'The dove has left me' (Se me fue la paloma). This means that whatever he was going to say he forgot or isn't sure of the correct way to express his idea.

Or you will be going to the movies and waiting in line with your Colombian neighbor Giovanni. The line seems to go on forever. Out of frustration Giovanni will announce, 'There are a lot of Chinese here.'

You look ahead at the line in front of you, it seems like all the people are typical young Colombians out on the weekend. There is no evidence to believe there are any Asian people in or near the movie theatre. So, you turn to Giovanni and ask, 'The people in line don't look Chinese to me.'

'Ah no, 'Hay muchos Chinos aqui,' means that there are a lot of youngsters here at the movie theatre.'

Another widespread turn of phrase to be heard in Colombia happens when you are having trouble hearing the other person you are talking on the phone. And, to make sure that the line hasn't been disconnected you ask, 'Are you still there Jhon?'

Jhon then replies, 'Siza.'

'Suiza? (Switzerland?). Are you talking about bank accounts?' you ask Jhon.

'No, siza just means 'yes' in Colombian Spanish.'

Another expression that fascinates many foreign people is to hear a Colombian say, 'Me saca la piedra' (It takes the rock out of me).

This is usually heard when a Colombian goes to the corner store to pay his water bill via the online lottery machine/bill paying teller, as the clerk starts entering the billing information, the machine spits out a ticket that says 'error.' The clerk reads the ticket and calmly informs him that his billing information still isn't in the system even though the bill arrived to his house four days ago by mail and that he can try coming back and paying the bill the next day. He will then becomes angry and yells, 'Me saca la piedra!'

It also works the other way for Colombians who are learning English. Most are very surprised to learn that in English, we don't have a gender-specific way to say, 'I have to go pee.' In Colombia, this isn't an issue. Colombians here have gender-specific ways to express the fact that they need to go to the bathroom. If you are a woman you say, 'Me estoy haciendo chichi.' If you are a man, you can say, 'Me estoy haciendo pipi.' Needless to say, it is never possible or correct for a woman to say 'Me estoy haciendo pipi' or for a man to say, 'Me estoy haciendo chichi.'

The final vocabulary words, perfectly describe my buying habits when I am at the corner tiendita. Instead of paying $1,600 pesos for the Tutti Frutti quality juices, I like to save a $1,000 pesos and buy the lowest quality juice in the store which is Tangelo, which is the Colombian version of Sunny Delight, except with twice the preservatives and half the fruit juice.

When I bring the Tangelo 'juice' back to my house and put it in the refrigerator, my girlfriend Kary always scolds me for being an incredible cheapskate. She says to me, 'No seas chichipato. Pay the extra $1,000 pesos and buy something that isn't going to dye your stomach a different color.'

'But honey, you won't believe the price I got on this juice.'

'Tu eres muy tacano. (You are so cheap). I don't want this imitation fruit juice in my house.'

Even the names of certain countries are in limbo in Colombia. Like English, there is more than one name for Holland. It isn't solely referred to as Holanda. But, the other name for Holland isn't similar at all to Netherlands, when referring to this country famous for its coffee shops, Spanish speakers refer to as 'Lower Counties' or Paises Bajos. Even though it is only one country and it isn't in the south of Europe.

The most popular music with young people in Colombia is reggaeton. And, the most famous reggaeton in Colombia is, 'Painting Little Birds In The Air' (Pintando Pajaritos en el Aire). So, since the song has come out, anyone who has a boyfriend or girlfriend who says pretty things to them to trick them or mislead them, that person is said to be Pintando Pajaritos en El Aire.

Even the non-verbal communication in Colombia is altered. Normally, when a Canadian, Irish, Scottish, American or British person asks another person from the English-speaking world, 'How tall is your wife?' the other person will usually stare upwards and to the right. They will then extend their hand, palm down, to the appropriate coordinates or where location of the top of the head of their better half. If you ask a Colombian the same question, assuming it is a person who is male and married to a woman, he will make the same gesture but instead of putting his palm down, he will leave it vertical, facing the person, like he was showing you your own reflection in a mirror.

Now imagine you are about to get on Transmilenio and you ask a Colombian police officer, 'Where is Transmilenio stop nearest to the Gold Museum?' Maybe this police officer is from Boyaca and his tells you, 'You need to get off at El Dorado.'

You know fully well that El Dorado is the Transmilenio stop near the airport. So you say, 'Are you sure its El Dorado, or a different stop?'

He then says, 'No, lies. The stop called is Museo de Oro.' When a Colombian gives information that is incorrect and they realize it, they don't say 'Sorry' or 'Excuse me,' they say, 'No, mentiras.'

My favorite time to marinate in Colombian Spanish is while listening to Colombian grandmothers talk to their grandchildren. They are all so affectionate towards their grandchildren and have invented a slough of loving expressions that really crack me up. To get a further explanation on how these grandmothers actually talk, my Colombian girlfriend Kary called her grandmother in Cartagena via Skype so I could hear first-hand this special vocabulary her grandmother uses with her favorite granddaughter.

'Hi preciosa (precious), How is my dulce cielo (sweet heaven), my nena (babe), my niña (little girl)?' asks Kary's grandmother.

'Good grandmother, how are you?' asks Kary.

'Missing you, mi turron de azucar (my chocolate dessert). How are you feeling mamita (little mama), mi vida (my life), mi corazon (my heart), mi muñeca (my doll), mi chiquita (my little girl)? You aren't too skinny are you? I hope you are eating well.'

'Yes grandmother, I am eating eggs for breakfast every morning and lots of fruits and vegetables,' responds Kary.

'Oh course you are, you are so beautiful. I love you so much. But please luz de mis ojos (light of my eyes), anda siempre por la sombrilla (stay out of dangerous situations). I am making you a beautiful dress for your next visit to Cartagena. I hope the virgin accompanies you always and the all-powerful protects you.'

'Thank you grandmother,' responds Kary.

'Ok, mi preciosura (something more precious than precious). I love you so much and please don't talk with strangers mi negrita (my little brown girl). Chao (Ciao).' (Sometimes, Colombians grandmothers have tendency to forget their granddaughter are no longer 8-years old.)

Even though this author had one of the top 10 grandmothers in North America in terms of love, support and advice, this author stills feels somewhat neglected by the fact that his grandmother never referred to him as 'my sweet heaven' or 'the light of my eyes.'

In any case, while in Colombia this author still has a pretty good chance that someday a Colombian taxi driver may actually refer to him as maestro.