Panamanian Spanish→English

Translate Panamanian Spanish to English the way locals mean it.

Panamanian Spanish speakers use greetings, slang, and softeners that a textbook reader can mistake for literal questions, descriptions, or references to people.

Going the other way? English to Panamanian Spanish

474 local dialects

AIRTranslate on iPhone choosing between Spanish varieties

What locals actually say

¿Qué xopá, fren?

Hey, what's up, bro?

Qué xopá is a casual Panamanian greeting, not a literal question about what is happening, and fren means friend or buddy.

Eso está chévere.

That's cool.

Chévere signals that something is good, enjoyable, or fine, not that it is related to the English word clever.

No tengo chen chen ahorita.

I don't have any money right now.

Chen chen is informal Panamanian slang for money, so the phrase means the speaker is broke at the moment.

Fren, ve por esa calle y dobla donde está el minisúper, queda ahí mismito.

Head down that street and turn where the mini-market is. It's right there.

“Fren” is a Panamanian informal term for a friend, while “ahí mismito” adds a distinctly casual local sense of “right there.”

Voy a comprarme un raspao de leche condensada.

I’m going to get a shaved ice with condensed milk.

“Raspao” is the Panamanian term for a flavored shaved ice, signaling a local food reference.

Mi hermana anda cuidando a los pelaos de la casa.

My sister is looking after the kids at home.

“Pelaos” is a Panamanian colloquial word for children, signaling an informal local register.

Está cayendo un palo de agua, mejor espera un rato.

It’s pouring rain, so you’d better wait a while.

“Palo de agua” is a Panamanian expression for a heavy downpour, not just ordinary rain.

El sábado nos vamos pa’l interior a visitar a la familia.

On Saturday we’re heading out to the countryside to visit family.

“El interior” refers locally to Panama’s provinces outside the capital, and “pa’l” is the casual contraction of “para el.”

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

How Panamanian Spanish differs

Panamanian Spanish. Tú informal; local colour where casual: chévere, fren from friend, qué xopá as greeting, chen chen informal for money.

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Localization Notes explaining why locals say it that way