Dominican Jargon Trivia Quiz

Answer: a lift

Most likely you might want to accept that free ride to your house, since it is very difficult being a pedestrian in the Dominican Republic. In fact after certain hours, there are many places in the city of Santo Domingo where public transportation isn't always available. This situation is even worse in smaller towns.

Answer: una jeva

If you are talking about a hottie, she is definitely 'una jeva'. 'Un cómeme' is a very ugly woman; 'una chivirica' is a derogatory way to refer to an overly flirtatious girl; 'una chopa' is a very tacky woman. The diminutive term of jeva is 'jevita' and the term is most often used when speaking about a girl from middle- high or upper class.

Answer: un grillero

'Grillero' or a 'cricketer' is a common term to refer to man that enjoys the company of ugly women, or "grillos" (crickets). Your girlfriends would not advise you to stay away from "a riquito", considering they are referring to a rich boy. "Un pájaro" would not be interested in you, since he is a gay man. "Un bonche" is a party, and parties don't ask people out!

Answer: carajitos

'Carajito' is the most common way a Dominican would refer to a child whose name he or she doesn't know. A 'cocolo' is a term that traditionally was used to refer to black people with English-speaking ancestors. The Dominican urban jargon has reclaimed the word and reassigned it to rap and reggaeton fans.

A 'yorkie' is a derogatory way of referring to Dominicans who either live in New York or who have been born in New York. A 'furufa' is just a plain and ugly girl.

Answer: eat it

A 'yaniqueque' or 'Johnny's cake' is a fried tortilla made of wheat flour, eggs and water. It is a common thing for people find on food stands at the beaches of the Dominican Republic.

Answer: Carla is cute

Many foreigners who learn to speak Spanish tend to commit the mistake of responding 'yo estoy bueno/a' when asked how they are doing. If you are doing fine, you should respond: 'yo estoy bien'. If you look good, I bet you won't need to tell others.

Answer: to be broke

Someone who claims to 'be in the cooking pot' has no money at all. It is also common to exclaim with no means of offense 'qué olla!' (what a cooking pot!) when someone's appearance resembles that of a person that has been going through hard times (such as an unshaven face, a bad hair day, etc...).

Answer: the person is drunk

'Jumo' is a common way to say someone got down with his or her bad self. The morning after, the person will have a 'resaca', or a hangover.

Answer: avoiding contact with you

A 'sacapies' (literally translated as a person who takes his feet out) is someone who either willingly or unconsciously stops keeping in contact with you. On extreme cases, this person will not pick up your calls. Basically, he or she might not be enjoying your company.

Answer: greedy

'Un agallú' is a very greedy person, who wants everything for himself. This is a common term used among people from the north. Other ways to refer to greedy persons are: 'hambriento' or 'hambroso' (the first being translated to hungry, while the second is a grammatically incorrect term that could be translated as "hungerful"); although the latter two are most often used when addressing lack of generosity with food.