English→Colombian Spanish

Translate English to Colombian Spanish like a local.

The courteous, melodic Spanish of Colombia, with the usted warmth and vocabulary locals actually use.

Going the other way? Colombian Spanish to English·Esta página en español

474 local dialects

AIRTranslate on iPhone choosing between Spanish varieties

What locals actually say

Thanks so much, that's very kind.

Muchas gracias, muy amable.

“Muy amable” closes interactions all over Colombia; skipping it reads colder than intended.

How cool!

¡Qué chévere!

“Chévere” marks the Caribbean and Andean north; “qué padre” would sound Mexican.

Could you break a fifty for me?

¿Me regala cambio de un billete de cincuenta?

Me regala is a common Colombian service-style request meaning please give me, not an actual request for a gift. Billete means banknote.

Which way is the main square?

¿Para dónde queda la plaza principal?

¿Para dónde queda...? is a characteristic Colombian way to ask where a place is located.

Let's get some arepas for breakfast.

Vamos por unas arepas para el desayuno.

Arepas are a staple Colombian food, and vamos por is a natural local way to suggest going to get something.

I'm going to my mom's place.

Voy donde mi mamá.

Voy donde alguien is especially common in Colombian Spanish for going to someone's home.

I'll send you the file from my computer.

Te mando el archivo desde mi computador.

Computador is the usual Colombian word for computer, rather than the more widely used computadora.

It's raining really hard, take an umbrella.

Está lloviendo durísimo, lleve sombrilla.

Sombrilla is the common Colombian word for umbrella, and the usted imperative lleve gives the sentence a warm, polite local tone.

Notes like these come with every AIRTranslate translation, so you learn why locals phrase it that way as you go.

How Colombian Spanish differs

Colombian Spanish. Usted is warm and common even among friends and family (especially Bogotá); tú in coastal regions, vos around Medellín/Paisa region. Local colour where casual: chévere, bacano, parcero/parce, qué más, a la orden (service contexts). Celular, computador, carro. Avoid Mexican/Argentine slang.

Sound like a local everywhere, not just here.

Every one of 474 dialects, with voice, camera, a keyboard for any app, and offline packs.

Choosing Spanish (Peru) from 471 local variants

Localization Notes explaining why locals say it that way