Mexican Slang from La Oficina: The Complete Season 1 Slang Guide

La Oficina, the Mexican adaptation of The Office produced by Prime Video, is probably the best Latin remake of an American show ever made. Fernando Bonilla as Jerónimo Ponce III is outstanding, the tone nails the balance between the original's cringe comedy and a distinctly Mexican sensibility, and most importantly for us: The script is soaked in authentic Mexican slang from start to finish.

If you're learning Spanish and want real conversational vocabulary, or if you're Mexican and curious how many Mexican expressions slipped into every scene, this guide is for you. We cover episodes 1 through 7 of season 1 and we keep updating it as Prime Video drops the remaining episodes.

Here are the most iconic words and expressions characters drop in the show.

Cuate

Scene: Episode 1. Jero is on the phone with the Alfa 9000 certifier: "Betty, ¿Me puedes comunicar con estos cuates del Alfa, por favor?"

Cuate comes from the Náhuatl "cóatl" (twin) and means friend or associate. Jero uses it constantly because it's the classic Mexican way of referring to any acquaintance without being too formal. "Los cuates del Alfa" are his business contacts. Not friends, but not strangers either.

Chamaco

Scene: Episode 1. Jero speaks with pride about his past: "Cuando era chamaco vivía en el barrio de allá."

Chamaco comes from the Náhuatl "chamahua" (to grow) and means kid or teenager. In the show, Jero uses it both to talk about his younger self and to refer to his son, who keeps asking him to Venmo 2,000 pesos for a Fortnite skin. It's affectionate, not condescending.

Pedo and Peda

Scene: Episode 2. Jero organizes the office outing to La Calidita: "Quiero verte tan pedo que José José parezca una niña de secundaria."

Pedo is the single most versatile word in Mexican Spanish. It means drunk, problem, matter, situation, and about ten other things depending on context. "Estar pedo" is to be drunk. "Qué pedo" is a greeting. "Sin pedo" means no problem. The peda is the drinking session as an event, the party where everyone gets wasted. In La Oficina you hear all of these across the first three episodes.

Pomo

Scene: Episode 2. Aniv confirms the Calidita reservation: "Si somos cinco, me incluye un pomo nacional, y si somos más de diez, es pomo de importación."

Pomo is a bottle of liquor, usually the cheap one you buy for the pregame. The hierarchy between "pomo nacional" (Mexican tequila or rum) and "pomo de importación" (Grey Goose, Scotch whiskey) is a whole Mexican social structure: The pomo you request defines how much you're trying to flex that night.

Jale

Scene: Episode 1. An employee asks Jero for a recommendation letter: "Escuché de un jalecito en Ciudad de México."

Jale means work, but not in the abstract sense: It's a specific job, a gig, an opportunity. "Tengo un jale" means I have something to do. The diminutive "un jalecito" is affectionate. The verb jalar means to go somewhere, accept an invitation, or just get moving.

Huevón

Scene: Episode 1. Lucía complains about the possibility of getting fired: "Yo mantengo a mi mamá y luego yo con el huevón de mi marido que no trae ni pa' la renta."

Huevón is the lazy one, the couch potato, the person who leeches off others. It's an insult but also used affectionately between friends. "El huevón de mi marido" mixes affection, frustration, and acceptance. Very Mexican in its resigned tone.

Ruca

Scene: Episode 2. Jero announces the Friday outing: "Viernes de quincena. Viernes de ahorcar rucas."

Ruca is slang for woman, usually older or experienced. "Ahorcar rucas" is a colloquial (and, admittedly, sexist) expression for going out to pick up women. Jero drops it with zero filter, part of his character as the out-of-touch boss who thinks he's bonding with his employees.

La neta

Scene: Episode 3. El Jimmy tells his story to the office: "No, la neta, sí. No me quejo, no me quejo."

La neta means the truth, the real deal, without filters. It comes from "neto" (pure, unmixed) and became the most Mexican way to say "I'm telling you the truth." When someone starts a sentence with "la neta es que...", you know something honest is coming.

Bronca

Scene: Episode 2. Jero explains why payroll didn't hit: "Tuvimos una bronca, es que no ha caído el recurso."

Bronca means problem, complication, or fight. It's the casual way to say "we have an issue" without alarming anyone. "Sin broncas" means no problem. "Es mi bronca" means I'll handle it. One of the most useful words in Mexican corporate vocabulary.

Tufo

Scene: Episode 1. An employee comments on Jero after the Alfa meeting: "Está durísimo el tufo."

Tufo means bad smell, but in Mexico it's specifically used for the alcohol reek of someone who's hungover. Jero's "tufo" in the scene is the morning-after breath, the chemical trail of last night's peda. Brutal word for a brutal reality.

Tehuacanazo

Scene: Episode 1. Aniv narrates his military family backstory: "En una familia militar lo más importante es la lealtad. Mi primer tehuacanazo me lo dio mi padre, el coronel Prudencio Rubio, a los cinco años."

This word is so Mexican that Aniv basically has to explain it in the show. A tehuacanazo is a form of torture or punishment that involves pouring Tehuacán (a brand of sparkling mineral water) mixed with chile up someone's nose. It's used in military hazing, gang initiations, and particularly brutal pranks. Having your dad give you one at age five tells you everything about Aniv as a character.

Chingadazo

Scene: Episode 1. Jero is on the phone negotiating with an employee after the certification disaster: "Ya, al chile. Dime, ¿De cuánto va a ser el chingadazo?"

Chingadazo means a heavy blow, either physical or metaphorical. It can be a literal hit, a massive bill at the end of the night, or any kind of problem that just crashed down on you. It comes from "chingar" (a vulgar verb meaning to screw something up) plus the augmentative "azo," and it carries the weight of both parts. In the scene, Jero is asking how much the bribe will cost to actually get the certification. Extremely Mexican in tone: It signals that the amount is going to hurt.

Te la lavas

Scene: Episode 1. Aniv is wrapping up a phone call with a client while promoting the company's soap, blending the product with his farewell: "Te la lavas con Olimpo."

Te la lavas is the Mexican variant of "te lo lavas," one of the most affectionate goodbyes the country has. It sounds like an insult if you don't catch the context (and it scrapes against albur if you hear it wrong), but between close friends it's pure warmth: The Mexican way to say "see you later" with enough trust that a formal goodbye would feel cold. The joke in the scene works on two layers: Aniv uses it as a genuine farewell and simultaneously as an accidental product plug, literally telling the client "wash it with Olimpo." Only Mexican Spanish lets a friendly farewell between coworkers accidentally become a soap commercial tagline.

Me la abro

Scene: Episode 1. An employee ditches Jero's office mid-conversation: "Me la abro. Aquí está."

Me la abro is the blunt way to say "I'm out" in Mexico. It's the fast exit without saying goodbye to anyone. If someone "se la abre" from your party without telling you, they were probably uncomfortable. It's the Mexican ghost exit, minus the ghosting drama, with all the efficiency.

Hasta la madre

Scene: Episode 3. El Jimmy tells a story about his godfather: "Se la pasaba hasta la madre todo el santo día, le decían el enfermero, porque le encantaba meterse jeringas de todo."

Hasta la madre means being at the max level of something: Super drunk, super high, completely fed up, or totally exhausted. Context decides which. In Jimmy's monologue it clearly means drugged out of his mind. It's one of those Mexican expressions that other Spanish-speaking countries can't match for sheer versatility.

Por buen pedo

Scene: Episode 1. El ingeniero (Jero's father and owner of the company) threatens to shut down his own son's office: "A ti te tengo abierto, por buen pedo."

Por buen pedo sounds crass but it's actually a warm expression. It means "as a favor" or "out of friendship." The word "pedo" here isn't a curse, it's slang for "deal" or "matter." The father is telling Jero that Aguascalientes is still open not on its own merits, but as a personal favor from father to son. Pure Mexican family-business dynamics.

Machirulo

Scene: Episode 4. During the workplace harassment training, Jero and the employees try not to sound sexist and fail every two minutes. The word "machirulo" shows up explicitly in episodes 4 and 6 whenever the men of the office behave exactly like the macho cliché the workshop is trying to erase.

Machirulo is the most widely used feminist insult in Mexico for a sexist, contemptible, outdated man. The word crosses every generation of Latin American feminism and lands cleanly in 2026 Mexico. La Oficina plays with it because Jerónimo Ponce III is the archetype of the corporate machirulo: The guy who offers to "teach you how to dress" with good intentions and catastrophic results.

Valió madres

Scene: Episode 5. During the vote over the soap packaging redesign, Jero declares with resignation when he realizes every single employee will get a vote: "Pues ya valió madres."

Valió madres is the Mexican expression for officially declaring that something is ruined beyond repair. It's the verbal stamp of "it's over, no coming back." Jero drops it at the exact moment he realizes corporate democracy has just condemned his national flag (the original soap packaging). Few expressions concentrate so much defeat and so much Mexican humor into two words.

Culero

Scene: Episode 5. When Juana presents the new packaging design over video call, the entire Aguascalientes office erupts in unison: "¡Culero! ¡Culero!"

Culero is one of the most versatile insults in Mexican Spanish. It can mean coward, traitor, jerk, evil, contemptible, depending on context and tone. In the scene, the office is telling Juana that the new design is a historical betrayal, and the collective way to express it is shouting the most sincere insult in the national repertoire. It's the Mexican "boo" of the corporate office.

Marea roja

Scene: Episode 6. Lucio discovers several female coworkers are syncing their periods and convenes the clandestine male meeting: "Caballeros, los hemos convocado el día de hoy porque mi compañero de celda me hizo notar que estamos frente a una marea roja."

Marea roja (literally "red tide") is the Mexican euphemism for describing when several women in the same space menstruate in sync. The entire episode revolves around this premise: The men start a "stained bracket" pool betting on female reactions. It's dark humor, very specifically Mexican, that the show sustains for half an hour without crossing into something unforgivable.

En sus días

Scene: Episode 6. Lucio asks tactfully during the men's betting pool: "¿Te ha puesto un boleto del Necaxaxivas a que Vigayla esté en sus días?"

En sus días is the polite euphemism Mexicans use to talk about menstruation without naming it. It lives in the same universe as "marea roja" but with a slightly more formal register: It works in offices, families, and situations where saying "le bajó" would sound too blunt. In La Oficina it shows up as part of the tacit vocabulary the men of the office try to master and visibly fail.

Al chile

Scene: Episode 1. Jero is on the phone negotiating with an employee after the certification disaster, finally cutting to the point: "Ya, al chile. Dime, ¿De cuánto va a ser el chingadazo?"

Al chile means "talking straight" or "no BS" in Mexican Spanish. It's the signal that the conversation just got serious and it's time to drop the protocol. When a Mexican starts a sentence with "al chile," what follows is the unfiltered truth. Jero uses it to announce that the negotiation is about to move into the transparent phase, which is almost always also the most expensive one.

Día de pinta

Scene: Episode 7. Memo comments casually as he returns to the office after skipping out for the day: "Bueno, mi día de pinta tampoco estuvo mal, ¿eh?"

Día de pinta is the day you skip work with no warning and no justification. The phrase comes from Mexican school slang ("irse de pinta" = to skip class) and survives into corporate life with the same rebellious spirit. Memo confesses his día de pinta with a lightness that suggests it isn't the first time he's done it and won't be the last.

Chela

Scene: Episode 7. Memo tries to flirt on Flirty after his emotional crisis with Sofi: "Oye, si andas libre este fin de semana, ¿Te gustaría salir a tomar unas chelas?"

Chela is the go-to Mexican word for beer. It comes from "cerveza," shortened and transformed with affection. Going out for a few chelas is the most universal Mexican plan there is, from neighborhood cantinas to Saturday rooftops. Memo drops it in his Flirty message because it's the least threatening, most casual, and most Mexican thing you can propose on a first date.

Why La Oficina México is a linguistic treasure

What makes this adaptation special is that the writers didn't just translate the jokes from the American Office. They changed the DNA of the language. Jerónimo Ponce talks like Mexican bosses actually talk: With fear, with ego, with phrases borrowed from the cantina and the boardroom at the same time. Aniv speaks like any Mexican assistant living between blind loyalty and pure cynicism.

Every episode brings new vocabulary. That's why this article is the first in a series: We're going to cover all 10 episodes of season 1 as we digest them. La Oficina México is probably the best free Mexican Spanish course available on streaming.

If you like the show and want to document slang you catch along the way, upload it to Hablaaa. Together we'll build the dictionary Jerónimo Ponce III so desperately needs.

This guide gets updated as new episodes of the season come out. If you catch a word or phrase we haven't documented here, add it to Hablaaa so it becomes part of the La Oficina dictionary.