estar bravo / ponerse bravo

to be angry / to get angry

(literally: to be fierce, boastful, or stormy)

Although in school you may have learned enfadado/enfadarse (Spain) or enojado/enojarse (LatAm), step off the plane in Colombia and you realize that when people are pissed off, they’re usually bravo.

Example 1
Ok, pero no te pongas bravo, simplemente me estoy expresando.
Ok, but don’t get pissed off, I’m just expressing my opinion

Example 2
Una tipa venia toda brava y por detrás llegó el novio. La abrazó y le dio un ramo de rosas. ¡Yo casi lloro!
A chick walked up all angry and behind her came her boyfriend. He hugged her and gave her a bouquet of roses. I almost cried!

This use of bravo can be found from Mexico to Colombia, but it doesn’t look like it has traveled much further south (and is definitely not said in Chile or Argentina.)

estar puto

to be pissed off

(literally: to be male whore)

Example
Por la forma que me contestó se notaba que estaba puto.
You could tell from the way he answered me that he was pissed off.

Meanings elsewhere: womanizer (Nic), homosexual (Bol), male prostitute (Mex, etc)

está del putas

it’s f**king awesome

(literally: it is of the whores)

This seemingly grammatically incorrect saying is Colombia’s answer to Spain’s de puta madre.

mueco / mueca [adj]

missing a tooth or teeth

policía acostado

speedbump

(literally: a lying-down policeman)

Ahh the old ‘sleeping cop’ — perhaps the most visual Colombianismo and without a doubt one of my favorites since my first month in Colombia.

Elsewhere: tope (Mex), badén (Sp), lomo de burro (Arg), rompemuelle (Bol&Per)

jincho / jincha [adj]

wasted

el parche

group of buddies / ‘crew’ / ‘the gang’

(literally: patch)

Example
¡Que buen parche anoche en el cumple de Andrés!
What a great crew last night at Andres’ bday!

estar tragado

to be crazy for / in love with

(literally: to be swallowed)

Example
Hace mucho tiempo estuve tragado (y llevado del berraco) de una niña de la U.
*A while back I was head over heels (and completely f****d) over a girl at the university.*

emberracar / emberracarse

to piss off / to get pissed off

In other words, to become berraco. Yes, yet another word that comes from the Spanish word for male pig or boar.

Example
¿Por qué cree que el tipo se emberracó tanto?
Why do you think the guy got so pissed off?

patonearse

to wander / stroll around

(root: pata [paw])

Example 1
Se nota que no les ha tocado patonearse entregando hojas de vida, porque los papas les consiguen trabajito.
You can tell that they’ve never had to walk the city turning in CVs, because their parents get them jobs.

Example 2
Uno se patonea la sede tratando de conseguir un testimonio y todo el mundo responde que claro, que se enteraron de lo que pasó.
You can wander around the campus trying to find witnesses and everyone says that of course they’ve heard what happened.