Dominicanisms

Status
Not open for further replies.

stewart

New member
Mar 1, 2004
456
0
0
I thought it would be a good idea to start a list of words that are some what unique to Dominican spanish. I can't think of everything. So anybody can add to the list.

guagua = bus
guineo = banana
bulla = noise
concho = taxi (motorcycle or publico)
biscocho = cake
menudo = loose change
acera = sidewalk
polocher = golf shirt or tee-shirt
franela = same as polocher

I got it started. I'll add to it as I think of words. I hope for all the help I can get.
let the games begin.
 

Chirimoya

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2002
17,850
982
113
Some of these are not unique to the DR.

guagua = bus - also used in PR and Cuba
guineo = banana - not very common elsewhere but also used in some parts of Nicaragua, possibly also Ecuador (IIRC).
bulla = noise - not unique, I've heard it used in this sense in South America. In southern Spain though it means 'in a hurry' - as in 'se caso de bulla' = shotgun wedding.
acera = sidewalk - this is the standard Spanish word
polocher = golf shirt or tee-shirt - Spanglish - from 'polo shirt'
franela = same as polocher - also used in Venezuela and Mexico among others

I think 'un chin' is unique, as well as other Taino/African influenced words.
 

stewart

New member
Mar 1, 2004
456
0
0
I realize they aren't totally unique to DR.
But try telling a Mexican that you want "un pedazo de boscoho" and see where it gets you.
I was also thinking about words that work in DR but can get you strange looks in other countries. GuaGua in Chile is a baby. Menudo in Mexico is tripe soup, Acera is used less frequently than banqueta, bulla less that ruido etc.
 

mofi

New member
Feb 9, 2005
341
0
0
Your right about the word for cake, I've never heard that used in mexico before, and probabley would have looked at someone like they were crazy if they told me they wanted cake..
 

Chirimoya

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2002
17,850
982
113
a cake by any other name

Stewart, you hit on a good example there.

dominicancooking.com article said:
All over the English-speaking world, a cake is a cake. In the Spanish speaking world it can be a ?bizcocho? (DR), ?torta? (Venezuela), ?pastel? or ?tarta? (Spain), ?cake? (Puerto Rico and Latinos in the US), or the hispanicised ?queque? which is used by the English speaking communities that live on the Caribbean coast of Central America.
 

stewart

New member
Mar 1, 2004
456
0
0
mofi said:
Your right about the word for cake, I've never heard that used in mexico before, and probabley would have looked at someone like they were crazy if they told me they wanted cake..

Actually, the word is used in Mexico. It has a vulgar meaning.
 

Rocky

Honorificabilitudinitatibus
Apr 4, 2002
13,993
208
0
111
www.rockysbar.com
stewart said:
I thought it would be a good idea to start a list of words that are some what unique to Dominican spanish. I can't think of everything. So anybody can add to the list.

guagua = bus
guineo = banana
bulla = noise
concho = taxi (motorcycle or publico)
biscocho = cake
menudo = loose change
acera = sidewalk
polocher = golf shirt or tee-shirt
franela = same as polocher
I have never heard local Dominicans call a sidewalk, acera, although I have heard it in other Spanish speaking countries.
The word they use around her for sidewalk, is calzada.

When they talk about Vicks Vaporub, it sounds like they are saying "Beebaboru".
 

La Gata

New member
Jul 16, 2003
181
0
0
39
www.myspace.com
When i first came here ...

I was so confused and thought it was hopeless to learn spanish because of the v/b thing! I talk to my dominican friends on messenger and its always:

vesos
saves
'ta heaby
all the reversed v's and b's ... are they taught that in schools here? or are they just GHETTO!!?!?
 

AnnaC

Gold
Jan 2, 2002
16,050
418
83
La Gata said:
I was so confused and thought it was hopeless to learn spanish because of the v/b thing! I talk to my dominican friends on messenger and its always:

vesos
saves
'ta heaby
all the reversed v's and b's ... are they taught that in schools here? or are they just GHETTO!!?!?


The V has a B sound and B has a V sound but you don't spell them that way

Besos
Sabes

ta heaby ( no clue what this is )

I have come across younger people on the net that are suppose to know Spanish and they do short forms like:

q or K for que. Much like they have for English cyber typing. Me no liky :cross-eye
 

Bartolomeo67

Newbie
Mar 18, 2004
592
2
18
57
more dominicanisms

esa vaina = that thing

una china = una naranja = an orange
una lechosa = a papaya fruit (I think it has a different name in each latin-american country but noone uses the 'papaya' word which has a sexual connotation)

fulano/fulana = someone, like in 'fulano dice que ...= someone said that ...', this is a very strange concept, always sounds to me like they are talking about somebody called Fulano but they aren't, not sure if it's a purely dominican thing.

una 'baja y mama' = 'baja y chupa' en Cuba: men's vocabulary for a women's strapless top shirt

Bartolomeo
 

xamaicano

Well-known member
Apr 16, 2004
1,011
26
48
Bartolomeo67 said:
fulano/fulana = someone, like in 'fulano dice que ...= someone said that ...', this is a very strange concept, always sounds to me like they are talking about somebody called Fulano but they aren't, not sure if it's a purely dominican thing.
Bartolomeo

Fulano is used elsewhere. The english equivalent would be "so and so" as in "so and so said this or so and so said that."
 

Marianopolita

Former Spanish forum Mod 2010-2021
Dec 26, 2003
4,821
766
113
Xamaicano,

Estoy de acuerdo contigo. Es muy internacional ? fulano o fulano de tal.


LDG.

xamaicano said:
Fulano is used elsewhere. The english equivalent would be "so and so" as in "so and so said this or so and so said that."
 
Last edited:

Bartolomeo67

Newbie
Mar 18, 2004
592
2
18
57
Lesley D said:
Xamaicano,

Estoy de acuerdo contigo. Es muy internacional ? fulano o fulano de tal.


LDG.

Must be typical latin-american spanish then, certainly not castillian spanish.
 

Chirimoya

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2002
17,850
982
113
Bartolomeo67 said:
Must be typical latin-american spanish then, certainly not castillian spanish.

I'm sure I've heard it used in Spain, by Spaniards. The odds are they were andaluces, not Castillians. ;)

Fulano, mengano y zutano = Tom, Dick and Harry.
 
Nov 5, 2004
597
0
0
Anna Coniglio said:
The V has a B sound and B has a V sound but you don't spell them that way



ta heaby ( no clue what this is )



q or K for que. Much like they have for English cyber typing. Me no liky :cross-eye

Ta heavy (actually spelt "ta jevi")- an expression that Dominicans use meaning like "thats ok, thats cool" pronounced like the word "heavy" in English.

how about Que lo que? or if you are writting on MSN or something it would be k lol k? :D

que lo quento montro? :)
manso, tranquilo
 
Last edited:
Nov 5, 2004
597
0
0
Se te sale lo Dominicano ...

Se te sale lo Dominicano ...

Como hablas y Algunas de tus expresiones favoritas son:

"Co?o"

"Anda La Porra"

"Anda El Diablo"

"Anda la mierda?

"Anda pal co?ooo"

"C?jelo"

"El diache"

""Que Vaina"

"D?melo"

"Ta To"

"Y E' F?cil"

"Qu? lo Qu? "

"Ah Po Ta Bien"

"Qu? Tripeo"

"T? si jode"

"T? Cool"

"Ta jevi"

"La creta"

"T? t? pas? "

"No Le D? Mente!"

"C?jelo suave"

"Qu? Bufeo"

"No Te Quille"

"Degraci? o Degraciaiiiita"

"Malv? o Maluca"

"Barbaraza"

"Pariguayo"

"Mira, Cara de fu? "

"Qu? Loquera"

Entonces si eres de la CAPITAL, cambias la R por la L la B por la V y la T por la D

Si eres de SANTIAGO O MOCA... quitas la R y pones la iii y cuando esta la iii la quitas y pones la R...

Le dices al esmalte de u?as CUTE

Le dices al Vick's Vapor Rub... Vivapor?

Le dices a las camisetas... Poloch?

Le dices a los cereales... Confl?

Le dices a los shorts... Shol o shori

Le dices a los gatos Mishu y a los perros Wawauu

Y las camionetas le dices guagua

Cuando est?s en tu pa?s, oyes mucho esto: "se fue la luz!!!!!"

Le dices a una cerveza congelada VESTIDA DE NOVIA O UNA FRIA

Las elecciones, un ciclon o una huelga son motivo de celebracion y tomarse unas vacaciones.

Estas en una guagua de 7 pasajeros y ya son 10 personas adentro y todav?a hay alguien afuera gritando "caben m? !"

C?mo Eres...

La gente te dice que pares de gritar, cuando en realidad est?s hablando

Aplaudes con tus manos cuando te r?es

Puedes bailar y tener swing sin m?sica

Se?alas cosas con tu nariz o tu boca

Te bebes Brugal,Presidente, o Mama Juana como si fuera AGUA

Crees que el Vivapor? lo cura todo

En la bodega compras fiao

C?mo te criaron...

Aprendiste a bailar bachata y merengue antes que caminar

Puedes oler una chuleta concin?ndose en tu casa aunque est?s afuera

Te criaron escuchando m?sica de Fernandito Villalona y/o Sergio Vargas

Cuando chiquito le ten?as miedo a un tal "cuco"

Tambi?n te han hecho poner ropa interior para ir a la playa

Tus pap?s te dieron aceite de bacalao cuando estabas enfermo

Te han ba?ado con jab?n de Cuaba
 

planner

.............. ?
Sep 23, 2002
4,409
26
0
Nice list

But I am sure I speak for many of us: I know what some of them mean but what about the rest????? Don't leave us hanging...
 
Nov 5, 2004
597
0
0
planner said:
But I am sure I speak for many of us: I know what some of them mean but what about the rest????? Don't leave us hanging...

Thanks...I will go over it in a bit and put in most of the meanings.

It's an e-mail my husband sent me. So I'm just checking with him for some of them so I don't go posting things that aren't true.

If anyone else wants to write in some meanings while I'm waiting for his e-mail back feel free....
 

Hillbilly

Moderator
Jan 1, 2002
18,948
514
113
Here's one that originated

from today's style of low rider jeans: "Al can seee ah" almost yelled out: "Alcanc?a" (Piggy bank) = for obvious reasons!!

My favorite: see leh bee = sealed beam = replacement headlamps for your car

HB :p
 
Status
Not open for further replies.