Guanabee Glossary: Parar Bolas

If you’ve ever asked a Mexican whether it’s cold enough for a chaqueta or asked a Cuban to pass a bollo at dinner, you’ll know that Latino slang terms can vary from country to country, region to region, generation to generation, a reality that often results in embarrassing situations. Guanabee Glossary is our attempt to teach you Latino slang and save you from looking like a weird-ass fool in mixed company. Enjoy it, cabrones.

parar bolas

[pa-rarr bo-las]

A lovely Colombian phrase used to mean “to bring to attention.” The literal translation would be something like “perk up one’s testes.”

Discusiones sobre toreadores siempre me hace parar bolas.

Talk of bullfighters always makes my balls stand at attention.