Why are there so many expressions with the word pedo in Argentine Spanish?
Well, I don’t know exactly why. But let me tell you that the word pedo in Spanish doesn’t mean what you think, especially if you speak North American English!
Pedo in Spanish means basically ‘fart’. It sounds kind of… unpleasant, right?
But just as it happens with other words of few letters, the meaning of pedo in Spanish can be really versatile.
In many countries it’s just a colloquial (and vulgar) word for ‘drunkenness’.
We Argentines, however, take it to a different level! We use it colloquially to express not only drunkenness, but also laziness, speed, quickness, and more!
Expressions with PEDO in Argentine Spanish
I have selected eight colloquial expressions with pedo in Argentine Spanish that native speakers use in their everyday lives.
As a matter of fact, I think I use at least one or two of these a day!
I’m going to explain each expression and include links to tweets where you’ll see real people using them. That’s the advantage of learning Spanish with Twitter!
And if you would like to sound like an Argentine, you can read all of my articles here.
Are you ready? Let’s go!
1) Tirarse un pedo
Let’s start with the nasty one so that we get rid of it quickly, haha!
This one is used in many countries. Tirarse un pedo means ‘to fart’. Although it’s colloquial, some people find it vulgar, so be careful.
In Argentina, the verb rajarse (to rip, to tear) in its pronominal form is also used with this expression (rajarse un pedo), but it’s less common than tirarse.
Having explained this, let’s focus on the expressions whose meaning have nothing to do with breaking winds!
2) Estar en pedo
If we think of pedo as a colloquial term for ‘drunkenness’, estar en pedo simply means ‘to be drunk’.
It can go with the verb ponerse, which expresses a transformation, and that way ponerse en pedo translates as ‘to get drunk’.
But estar en pedo is also used colloquially to say that somebody is ‘crazy’ or ‘nuts’. It makes sense because depending on how drunk or high you are, you can’t think straight!
And with both meanings people sometimes say tener un pedo (+ adjective). In that case, you’ll figure the meaning out by context.
3) Ni en pedo
Ni en pedo means ‘no way’ and is used basically to refuse to do something, for example when somebody asks you a favor.
Again thinking of the concept of drunkenness (not fart!), it means you won’t do a certain thing by any means, not even under the effects of alcohol!
4) Al pedo
Al pedo has two possible meanings. In the sense of lazyness, estar al pedo means ‘to do nothing’.
Al pedo is an answer commonly given when you are texting and someone asks you what you are up to. If you really aren’t doing anything, you could say something like: acá, al pedo. Y vos?
As for the second meaning, al pedo translates as ‘in vain’ or ‘for nothing’.
It can be accompanied by the verb ser, therefore ser al pedo would mean ‘to be useless’.
Since we are here, if you need to review it, you can read my article to learn the REAL difference between ser and estar in Spanish!
5) A los pedos
A los pedos means really quickly or fast. It’s frequently used when talking about vehicles and its speed, but it actually can apply to any situation.
Many people use it to refer to someone listening to music loudly, too.
Let’s carry on with a few more!
6) Cagar a pedos
In colloquial Argentine Spanish, cagar a pedos a alguien means ‘to tell someone off’.
Please, don’t be fooled by the meaning of the verb cagar! It has nothing to do with that!
Shoot, this is getting scatological, but I didn’t come up with this slang! My job is just to explain it to you. Period.
Notice how I used ‘shoot’ intentionally so as not to reveal myself as the king of comedy 😉
Ahre.
7) De pedo
Here another expression that has two possible meanings! Depending on the context, de pedo translates as ‘barely’, or, more frequently, ‘by chance’.
You can read more examples in those tweets, but I will give you two more to clarify it:
De pedo puede caminar y quiere correr una maratón. (de pedo = barely)
Shaquille O’Neal tiró un triple y entró de pedo. (de pedo = by chance)
8) Del año del pedo
If something is del año del pedo, it means that it’s very old. Like the old films and tv programs that Canal Volver broadcasts for those Argentines nostalgic about the past!
There you have the link if you want to check it out.
And that’s all for today!
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Thank you very much and until next time,
Kevin.