The only reason that idiot doesn’t lose his head is because it’s glued to his neck. Natalia – Oh, Majo, don’t tell me you like him.
María José – Do you know Miguel? How is he? Ese bato solo no pierde la cabeza porque la trae puesta. Natalia – Ay, Majo, no me digas que te mola. María José – ❼onoces a Miguel? ¿Sabes cómo es? It normally refers to someone who’s maybe not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Particularly in the northern states of Mexico, you’ll hear people refer to younger men as ‘vatos’, kinda similar to the way people use ‘lad’ in English.Ībuelo – A ver, vato, pásame la caja de herramientas.Īs I explained at the beginning of this article, the word ‘bato’ in Spain often has a bit of a negative undertone. To describe a young man or teenager (Northwest Mexico) *Erika’s top tip – ‘a mí también’ is a great way to say ‘me too’ in Spanish. Ivan – Dude, it’s nice to see you too! How have you been? Iván – ¡Wey, a mí también* me da gusto verte! ❼ómo has estado? Pedro – I’m next to a guy in a yellow jacket, you can’t miss it.īut ‘vato’ isn’t only used to describe strangers … in Mexico a ‘ vato’ can also be your pal, your best friend, or your ‘bro’.ĭos amigos se encuentran después de un largo tiempo Pedro – Estoy junto a un vato de chamarra amarilla, no hay pierde.Īndrés – Have you arrived yet? Where are you? I can’t see you. Una llamada telefónica dentro del aeropuertoĪndrés – ¿Ya llegaste? ❽ónde estás? No te veo. ‘Vato’ can be used in the same sense as ‘dude’ or ‘guy’ when describing an unknown man in casual conversation. When referring to an unknown man (Mexico) To describe a young man or teenager (Northwest Mexico).When referring to an unknown man (Mexico).‘ Vato’ can be used in the following ways – So, if you see it written with a ‘v’, rest assured that it’s not misspelled! Well, even though you’ll find it spelled with a ‘b’ in most Spanish dictionaries, the Mexican Academy of Language recognizes BOTH forms as valid. Wanna know how people use ‘ vato’ in everyday spoken Spanish?ĭon’t be surprised if you find this word written with a ‘b’ AND a ‘v’! Nowadays, the word is so popular in Mexico that people use it in a similar way to the English word ‘ bro’! Expressions with ‘ vato’ in Caló, such as ‘bato fulastre’ or ‘bato fu’, normally describe a ‘bad person’, a ‘swindler’ or someone of “little value”. This is because the word ‘ vato’ comes from Caló, a language spoken by the Spanish Romani. In fact, the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) still defines a ‘ bato’ as a ‘ foolish’ or ‘ silly’ man. And, vato has a feminine counterpart: vata, which can be used to refer to prostitutes or a female who owes someone money.īato is just a friendly term, used among male friends.In short – ‘Vato’ (or ‘bato’) is Mexican slang for ‘guy’ or ‘dude’, but it wasn’t always so. But, vato has a bit of a rougher past than bato. Because of it’s gang history, it has an implicit “bad boy” undercurrent to it. Vato is a variation of bato-the result of both v and b sounding similar, and a shortening of the word chivato, which is rooted in street slang of the ’40s, meaning informant, or snitch in gang and crime life. So, is there a difference between bato and vato? Seems so. In it, they said “ Bato can mean a guy, a Latin, a friend, or even be used instead of loco or chifladoto call somebody crazy in a complimentary way.” In fact, The San Diego Reader wrote an article describing bato in 1992 … some time indeed. Either way, it’s clear … bato or vato have been describing dudes in Spanish for a decent amount of time. Vato is seen before that, in a post made in 2002. The sense of “guy or dude” is first seen for bato on Urban Dictionary in a post made in October, 2006.
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