Guatemalan Spanish→English

Translate Guatemalan Spanish to English the way locals mean it.

A textbook reader can miss how Guatemalan Spanish uses vos with friends and local words such as chilero, pisto, and cabal to change the force of a message.

Going the other way? English to Guatemalan Spanish

474 local dialects

AIRTranslate on iPhone choosing between Spanish varieties

What locals actually say

Vos, ¿me hacés la segunda y me prestás pisto?

Hey, could you do me a favor and lend me some cash?

Vos signals a familiar peer relationship, hacer la segunda means to do someone a favor, and pisto is informal Guatemalan Spanish for money.

Qué chilero estuvo el toque, vos.

That gig was great, man.

Chilero means cool or great, while toque can refer to a live music show, not just a touch.

No te ahuevés, cabal a las ocho estamos ahí.

Don’t worry, we’ll be there at eight sharp.

Ahuevarse means to get worried or discouraged, and cabal adds the sense of exactly or right on time.

Vos, ¿por dónde queda el parqueo? Me fui a meter por otro lado.

Hey, where’s the parking lot? I ended up coming in from the wrong side.

Vos marks the familiar Guatemalan form of address, while parqueo is the local word for a parking lot.

¿Me regalás otra tortilla? Esta salsa sí pica, ¿va?

Could I get another tortilla? This salsa really packs heat, huh?

Me regalás is a common Guatemalan way to make a friendly request, and va works as a local conversational tag meaning something like “right?”

El patojo ya se quedó dormido, bajale la voz, vos.

The kid’s already fallen asleep, so keep it down.

Patojo is a distinctly Guatemalan word for a child or youngster, and the voseo form bajale signals an informal request.

Ahorita te paso el archivo, solo estoy cerrando este chance.

I’ll send you the file in a minute. I’m just wrapping up this task.

Chance is commonly used in Guatemala for a job, task, or bit of work, while ahorita signals that something is happening shortly.

Está cayendo un aguacero, mejor llevate la chumpa.

It’s pouring, so you’d better bring your jacket.

Chumpa is a Guatemalan term for a jacket, and the voseo imperative llevate gives the advice a familiar, casual tone.

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

How Guatemalan Spanish differs

Guatemalan Spanish. Vos among peers, tú softer, usted respectful; local colour where casual: chilero, cabal, patojo for kid, pisto informal for money.

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