List of Puerto Rican Slang Words and Phrases

List Of Puerto Rican Slang Words And Phrases

This article is a summary of common slang words and phrases used in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rican Spanish differs significantly from other dialects of Spanish for various reasons. One reason is the island's status as a commonwealth of the United States, which adds sizable English influences to the language of Puerto Rico. Puerto Ricans often use anglicisms and words made directly from English; for example, "janguiar" means "to hang out". Puerto Rican Spanish is also influenced by the language of the Taíno people, the original inhabitants of the islands. It is further influenced by the languages of the African slaves brought to Puerto Rico by colonial Spain, and by the Spanish dialects of immigrants from the Canary islands and Andalusia. An example of the latter is Puerto Ricans often leaving "d" sounds out of words, for instance the word "arrancado" (ripped out) is commonly pronounced and spelled "arrancao". Idiomatic expressions may be difficult to translate fully and may have multiple meanings, so the English translations below may not reflect the full meaning of the expression they intend to translate.