A small public transit bus in Colombia and Ecuador, smaller than a regular bus but always just as packed and with the same music blasting at full volume. The buseta is the people's collective taxi.

A sweater or any warm knit garment in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. While most of the Spanish-speaking world says "suéter," Andean countries go with chompa, a word that sounds as cozy as the item itself, especially useful in the cool mountain highlands.

Feeling intense secondhand embarrassment from someone else's ridiculous or inappropriate actions. It's that discomfort you feel when someone does something so cringy you're embarrassed for them.

The color brown in Mexico, named after coffee because that's what brown looks like. While other countries say 'marrón,' Mexico sticks with 'café' for the earthy tones.

A gossip, someone who loves talking about other people's lives and spreading private information that is not theirs to share. The chismoso is the unofficial neighborhood reporter who always knows everything first, exaggerates half of it, and tells everyone else before you even find out yourself.

An exclamation used to shoo cats away from wherever they've decided to plant themselves. In Ecuador and Peru, zape is the sound you throw at the cat to get it off your stuff, it rarely works.

To find creative ways to get money or solve a difficult situation with what you have. This is a hallmark of Latin American resourcefulness.

A nosy person who gets into everything that's none of their business and always wants to know what everyone else is doing. The metiche can't help it: if there's gossip, they're there; if there's someone else's problem, they're there too.

A stomach ailment caused by overeating, bad digestion, or eating something that didn't sit right. In Latin American folk medicine, empacho is treated with traditional massages and herbal remedies.

An apartment or flat inside a building in Colombia, Venezuela, and the Caribbean. It's the same thing as 'departamento' in Mexico, different word, same concept of vertical living.

A girl's fifteenth birthday celebration that marks her symbolic transition from childhood to womanhood, a big deal across Mexico and much of Latin America. Think a waltz with chambelanes (escorts), a princess gown, months of planning, and a party that rivals a wedding.

To mop the floor with a wet cloth or mop in Mexico, the mandatory step that follows sweeping. To leave the floor shiny like a mirror so your mom doesn't scold you.

A sports field or court where you play soccer, tennis, basketball, or any sport. Used across all of Latin America. In Argentina, "cancha" also means having real world experience or street smarts, someone with "cancha" has been through it all and knows how to handle any situation.

To wish for luck or hope something goes well, accompanied by the gesture of crossing the index finger over the middle finger. Used across the Spanish-speaking world for those moments when you have done everything you can and all that is left is to hope for the best.

A warm blanket or comforter you wrap yourself in during cold nights. In Mexico, the cobija is practically a survival tool from November through February.

An expression meaning stay alert, pay attention, wake up and stop being distracted. In Colombia and Ecuador it's the standard way to tell someone to get sharp before something happens.

To be broke, completely tapped out without a single cent in your pocket in Ecuador. It's the most direct Ecuadorian way to say you're busted and your wallet looks like a desert until the next paycheck.

A baby or newborn, the most tender and ancestral way to refer to a little one in the Andes. It comes from Quechua and is used with pure love in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and Chile.

Curly, tangled, or super voluminous hair that refuses to be tamed. In Colombia and Ecuador, "motoso" describes wild, untamed hair that has a mind of its own, the kind you wake up with after sleeping on it wet and no amount of brushing or product will fully fix.

A sweet cake made for celebrations, birthdays, and parties. In Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, "pastel" is the standard word for what English speakers call cake. No birthday is complete without one, and the tradition of pushing the birthday person's face into it is practically a law.

A Peruvian, Mexican, and Latin American verb for drinking beer, going out for chelas with friends. Comes from "chela" (beer) turned into a verb with full conjugation. "Vamos a chelear" means let's go drink beers, "estamos cheleando" means we're in a round. A youthful word, universal in the region, heard in any weekend conversation among friends.

A lazy person who has zero motivation to do anything. It's one of the most universal insults in Spanish, used across nearly every Latin American country to describe someone who just won't get off the couch or put in any effort. Think of it as calling someone a total slacker or bum.

A raw fish dish marinated in lime juice that's Peru's national pride, though half the continent makes their own version. Peru and Ecuador have been fighting forever over who invented it.

The very Latin American skill of making your biweekly paycheck stretch all the way to the next one. It means budgeting carefully, prioritizing every expense, and hoping nothing unexpected comes up. The most practiced sport of the average salaried worker.

In Peru and Ecuador, a thief, especially one who pickpockets or steals in public spaces like markets or streets. Comes from the verb "chorear," which means to steal in local slang.

An anglicism adopted in Ecuadorian, Mexican, Colombian, and Chicano Spanish to mean friend, buddy, trusted brother. Pronounced as in English but inserted into Spanish speech with total naturalness. "Qué tal brother" is the standard greeting between young men in Ecuador. Also written "broder" when hispanized. A universal word among urban Latin youth.

Awesome, cool, something really great that makes you feel good in Colombia and the Caribbean. When something is bacano, it's worth it, you loved it, and you'd recommend it to anyone without hesitation.

A private security guard or watchman, especially one stationed at a building entrance, parking lot, or private property. Borrowed from the English "watchman" and widely used across Peru, Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia, and Paraguay as the everyday term for this job.

A person with bad habits, dishonest, or annoyingly picky and demanding. In Ecuador and Colombia, a 'mañoso' is either the vendor who sneaks extra charges into your bill, or the child who refuses every food on the plate. Both are equally exhausting.

An earthquake or ground tremor that in Mexico, Chile, and Peru is just part of daily life. People in seismic zones learn to tell the difference between a minor shake and a serious one.