"Que Onda?"

Question

When you say "Que Onda?" to a Mexican man should you say "Que onda, Loco"..."Que Onda, Hombre" . Or is it better to say " Que Paso?" or something else I'm just curious how Mexican men greet each other. Thanks so much, Mimi

Answer 1

If you hear that often, my advice is that you try to understand it through context, which is how we learn best. Avoid translations, because different languages perceive reality in a different way.

thanks so much for the quick response.. well im trying to see if a girl would say to a man she likes "Que Onda loco" is that just between men or is it not ladylike? - mikosaka, Sep 5, 2010

Answer 2

If you are talking with a closer friend or between students. It is very common to say ¿Qué onda? (What´s up), an other way to say this is ¿Qué pasó? but, if you are part of a gang or you are in jail you could say ¿Que onda loco? (be careful to use this. it´s a little gross).

Curioso ese uso de Méjico, en España no se usa nunca en ese sentido,se dice "¿qué onda llevas?", que significa ¿de qué vas? - kawalero, Sep 7, 2010

¿Que onda? es un término que usaron los juniors (jóvenes de clase alta) en los 70's "What's the vibe" como dice samdie, y se extendió al lenguaje popular en los 80's debido a un personaje de TV llamado el "Pirrurris" - algarabia, Sep 7, 2010

Answer 3

An erstwhile member was fond of pointing out that "onda" means "wave".. Thus the expression is similar to the once popular (say in the '60s and '70s) "What's the vibe, man?" However, the this expression has fallen out of favor (to be replaced by "What's up?" (or for those who have difficulties articulating consonant clusters, "Wassup?")