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How to Say ‘That's a bad word’ in Mexican Spanish

Esa es una grosería

EH-sah ess OO-nah groh-seh-REE-ah

[EH-sah ess OO-nah groh-seh-REE-ah]

💬 Usage Tip: grosería looks like "grossness" but means a swear word or a rude remark. grosero "rude" describes a person who uses them.

Phrase Breakdown

Esa es

EH-sah ess

That is

'Esa' (that one, feminine) links smoothly into 'es', so it sounds like 'E-sa-es'.

Example

Esa es mi casa.

That is my house.

Words in this phrase

Esa

[EH-sah]

that

Esa points to a specific time already mentioned.

Example

Hay mucha gente a esa hora.

There are a lot of people at that time.

es

[ess]

is

Third-person singular of “ser,” used to describe what something is like.

Example

En la pregunta «¿Cómo es...?», «es» pide una descripción.

In the question “What is ... like?”, “es” asks for a description.

una grosería

OO-nah groh-seh-REE-ah

a swear word / a rude thing

Singular of 'groserías'. It can mean a bad word or a rude act. Stress 'gro-se-RÍ-a'.

Example

Fue una grosería no saludar.

It was rude not to say hello.

Words in this phrase

una

[OO-nah]

a

Feminine singular indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'one.'

Example

Una reclutadora me dio su tarjeta hoy.

A recruiter gave me her card today.

grosería

[groh-seh-REE-ah]

swear word; rudeness

A vulgar word or a rude act; the general term for cursing.

Example

Esa película tiene muchas groserías.

That movie has a lot of swear words.

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