"che" South American Spanish

Question

Here's the phrase, the context is that we are in a cinema.

No prendás la luz, che. Seguí con los noticieros. Is it a sort of "don't turn on the light man.." or is it just an interlocution as in "don't turn on the light eh". Thanks for any help. It's from the book Santa Evita.

Answer 1

Good morning.

I got this from the Urban Dictionary:

Che is actually used mostly in Buenos Aires, the capitol. It's not true slang, it's just a word used in Argentina. Slang is more common in the inland regions, like Cordoba. Che means either "hey" or "buddy", or simply "hey, buddy." Che! Me gusto su chaqueta.

and

Its a word used all over Argentina to call a person, similar to "hey". It has no meaning,it is slightly informal, you can use it at the beginning, in the middle, or in the end of any thing you say. "che, estás ocupado?" "hey, are you busy?"

Good afternoon! Thanks very much, very useful. - lagartijaverde, Oct 4, 2010

Just a small correction. "Che" is never used in formal mode, it should be "Che, me gustó tu chaqueta". - 00e657d4, Oct 4, 2010