"Maje" (or "mae") in Nicaraguan Spanish

Question

What does the word "maje" (pronounced "mae") mean in Nicaraguan Spanish? Could the word be considered offensive, and, if so, in what contexts is it appropriate to use?

Answer 1

Maje in Nicaragua means something like dude in English. It is used mainly between friends. Women tend to use it less. It is not considered to be offensive but you should not use it in formal meetings or with someone you don't know very well.

Rafael is right, maybe in another countries it might be offensive. But I don't think it would be a big deal to use it in Nicaragua. Never use it to refer to people that deserve respect like your parents, boss or anyone like that.

Hope it helps someone. :)

Answer 2

It is an offensive word in some countries like Honduras and you should avoid using it. However in Nicaragua it is slang for a way to refer to a person, if you want to translate it to English it would probably be "dude".

Answer 3

Costa Rica. En las zapaterias de San José, se asignaba a los "pericos" o aprendices a "majar" el cuero. Por eso se les decía "maje". Esto con el tiempo pasó a designar popularmente a alguien a quien "agarraban de maje" o de "tonto". Luego, el término "maje" pasó a ser un trato coloquial e informal entre "iguales". Por ejemplo para llamar muy informalmente a los amigos. Con el tiempo el término "maje" se contrajo a "mae". Hoy en día los ticos usamos el "mae" para referirnos a un interlocutor o tercera persona en términos y circunstancias sumamente informales, y en situaciones de mucha confianza. Jamás se acepta su uso para tratar a los mayores o personas de respeto. Tampoco para llamar a quien apenas se conoce.

Answer 4

In Costa Rica, mae is a "crutch" word used at the end of a lot of sentences. Similar to the vos used elsewhere in Latin America.

Qué fue lo que dijiste, mae?

Mae, yo sé, mae.

It can mean "you", but it's also used as an interjection, to "complete" a sentence. Definitely slang, but used heavily.