Last updated on April 15, 2024 by Shannon
Ok, Central America, you win. I lay prostrate at your feet and am willing to surrender to your charm, your eccentricities, and even the downright ridiculous phrase that seems to be the mantra of Latin America: más o menos.
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Literally translated, the phrase más o menos means “more or less” in English, but in a cultural context, it says so much more about the countries that use it. And understanding when and how locals use más o menos in conversations can save travelers a lot of heartache.
What Does Más o Menos Mean in a Cultural Sense?
My first days in Cuba were frustrating. It seemed to me that más o menos meant: “I-can-tell-you-whatever-I-want-even-if-I-know-I’m-wrong-as-long-as-I-slap-on-a-más-o-menos. The fact is, this is a staple expression in most countries where Spanish is the primary language, not just Cuba.
From Bogotá to Barcelona, this versatile idiom is used to express approximate measures, mild agreement, or a state of mediocrity.
In places like Spain, Mexico, Argentina, and most other nations in Central and South America, you hear it sprinkled into conversations like a secret spice offering an exotic flavor to those from countries where things are a bit more, well, precise.
Not only does más o menos act as a linguistic bridge in this disparate cultures, but it also provides an intriguing lens into the attitudes and philosophies that shape these Spanish-speaking societies.
Más o Menos Situations and What They Mean
I fought Central America for the longest time—and that’s just not like me. I’m an “experienced” traveler right? I love new cultures and I’ve learned not to judge new places solely through the eyes of my Western upbringing, but yet, sometimes, there’s just something in me that rebels.
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Like the fact that I wear a watch. I like things to run on time. Call me type A, but if you say, “Be there in 20 minutes,” I’ll be on time, waiting for you 20 minutes later. And so, if that estimation of a two hour cab ride is really just a product of a fantastically imaginative guess—five-and-a-half hours later—I’m justified in being frustrated right?
Not necessarily.
At least not within cultures that offered those estimations with a más o menos caveat tacked on!
Trust me, traveling in Mexico is not the time to think in absolutes. Mexican notions of distance can be as stretchable as a piece of warm taffy. The route might be more circuitous than you’d expect, so add a buffer to your travel time if you ever hear a más o menos tacked onto an estimation.
Travelers like me will find this fun idiom woven into conversations in other ways that can be insightful, comical, and sometimes even culturally enlightening.
Picture yourself in a bustling Mexican mercado, surrounded by an intoxicating mix of fragrances from sizzling street food stalls. You ask the vendor, “Is this salsa spicy?” and he replies with a playful más o menos.
Beware! Cultural awareness is your friend here. In this context, particular when you factor in the tone of delivery, más o menos means “prepare for some heat.” Mexicans have a high tolerance for spice; their “somewhat spicy” could very well be “tears-running-down-your-face hot.”
And let’s jump to Old Town Havana in Cuba, steeped in the aroma of cigars and the sounds of lively salsa music. You’re intrigued by the local artwork and ask a passerby if a particular art gallery is worth visiting.
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You get an easy smile and a quick, “Más o menos,” thrown over his shoulder as he walks away. Cubans, who often express themselves through dance, music, and art, have high aesthetic standards.
Más o menos speaks volumes about local tastes and what they consider exceptional or just ordinary—in this case, the gallery is probably run-of-the-mill. Más o menos was more of a quiet insult to the gallery than outright shade, but overall, it wasn’t doing it any favors.
What We Learn from New Cultures
India taught me a lot about travel—it’s a bootcamp for travel in many ways. One key lesson: Surrender to the experience. Other travelers are often fascinated by the fact that I’ve traveled to India.
For those who haven’t been yet, I tell them they’ll hate the travel experience if they’re not willing to let go of control and preconceived notions. To love traveling India, you have to surrender to the country, the people, and the total experience.
Each new country I encounter has its own little quirks—and it’s often these quirks, be it a phrase, a food, or a mentality, that I most love and remember once I leave.
And for me, in Mexico and Cuba, and now my home in Spain, it’s the mas o menos phrase that I’ve actually come to love.
In fact, I really love it, and here’s why: Precision is not important, rather it’s the quality of the tale, the gist of the conversation, or your best guess that’s perfectly acceptable.
Más o menos is a masterclass in cultural nuances, teaching you to read between the lines while also compelling you to engage more deeply with the land and its people.
When telling a story in these parts of the world, I have the freedom to either grossly exaggerate or massively deadpan my tale. As long as I end it with a big grin and a más o menos, it’s really not a lie right? Because I’m telling the truth, more or less. 😉
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