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What would be some equivalents for this in Mexican/Argentine Spanish?

Oh man, that’s really cool.

Oh man, that sucks.

Maaaan, I’m jealous!

I can only think of “qué + adjective” and “dios” but I’m sure there’s plenty more.

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jacoballens
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  • Ay, ... e.g. Ay, estoy tan celoso. If you want something more slangy, you could try Híjole but that will sound weird if you are a bare beginner. – aparente001 Jun 05 '19 at 03:16
  • I thihk this is going to be really complicated as there are a lot of slangish composition for this, like the use of wey in mexico or wea in chile or ostias in spain – Mike Jun 05 '19 at 03:56
  • You should limit this question to a specific region. i.e @aparente001 says to use hijole but that would only work in Mexico and I'm not even sure it will work on all of Mexico but if you use that in Colombia you would look like a complete idiot. I could think of at least 3 or 4 different expressions used in 3 or 4 different regions of Colombia. For your "jealous" example we could have Uy, Upa, Epa, Joda, Coño, Pucha, Parce, Viejo, among others. – DGaleano Jun 05 '19 at 13:15
  • @DGaleano - You don't even have to leave Mexico to look like a complete idiot saying híjole -- if a raw beginner uses it, that would be enough. – aparente001 Jun 05 '19 at 13:48
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    Voting to close as too broad. – aparente001 Jun 05 '19 at 13:48
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    can you narrow your question to a specific place or country, otherwise we'll have to close this question? Thank you ! – Mike Jun 05 '19 at 19:52
  • done! sorry for the confusion! – jacoballens Jun 06 '19 at 01:07
  • @jacoballens - Thanks. I've retracted my close vote. – aparente001 Jun 08 '19 at 22:37

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Since you say that you can think of “qué + adjective” and “dios” as alternatives, I think that you don't really care to refer to a person but just express surprise.

For Mexico:

¡Ay wey!,... [Most similar to "Oh, man"]

Chale, parece que va a llover. [Has a negative connotation. Slang]

¡Ay Dios!,... [Literal translation of "Oh, God"]

Híjole,... [Widely used]

No mames wey,... [Rather impolite but widely used]

No manches,... [A simmered down version of "no mames" that is not so impolite and is also widely used]

¡Ay cabrón!,... [Impolite rather harsh word, widely used]

Wow,... [Anglicism, widely used]

Órale,...

¿Qué pedo wey?,... [The litteral translation is "What fart dude?" It can be used to express surprise, usually with a negative connotation. It can also be used as a greeting.]

¡Ah, caráy¡,.../¡Caráy¡,.../¡Ah, que caráy¡,...

¡Carajo!,... [Has a negative connotation]

¡Me lleva el/la...¡, [Followed by a nonsensical noun or like: tostada, tren, chingada (swearing), carajo, la que me trajo. It has a negative connotation]

Caramba,... [not widely used]

"Ah, chinga,..." [quite impolite]

Bonus:

¡Ay, ay , ay!, [Not really used in Mexico but in the US. It is thought to be a Mexican expression, nevertheless I have never heard anyone use it in Mexico. It does appear in the lyrics of some Spanish songs and in the very well known "Ay, ay, ay, canta y no llores" Mexican song.]

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Arjuna Deva
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    I would guess that of all these, "¡Ah, caráy!" would be the most common one among people who try to keep their language safe for all listeners. What do you think? – aparente001 Jun 08 '19 at 22:38
  • Yes, alongside with "¡Ay, Dios!", "híjole" and "wow". Órale, although also safe, tends a tiny bit towards being slang. – Arjuna Deva Jun 09 '19 at 11:02
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It is heavily location-based. Probably every country has its own way of saying 'oh, man'. It depends in the country where you are basically. The answers above had provided with different expression so I'll just say that you have to be a little careful with those because, as I've said, depends deeply on the location.

If you use an expression from another country it will probably sound really off. I'm from Chile and we usually say 'oh, weón'. If we hear 'oh, tío' or 'órale wey' we probably gonna think you're mocking Spaniards or Mexicans (respectively).

Chrollo
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Personally, I translate "man" in that context/usage as "tío"

tío, a

  1. m. y f. coloq. U. como apelativo para designar a un amigo o compañero..

So I would translate your examples as

Tío, eso mola un montón

Tío, eso es una mierda/un fastidio

Tío, qué envidia!

You could use "jo tío" for emphasis if you wanted to (jo, jolín, and jolines are a sort of minced oaths in Spanish).

Of course "tío" has many equivalents. First that come to mind are "tronco" or "colega" (See ¿Cómo ha llegado “tronco” a ser sinónimo de tío / colega / amigo?).

I would not favor translating "Oh man" as anything with "dios". I would use it if the original included "Oh God" or "oh gosh" (or the like). Similarly, I would not use "qué + adjective" unless I was translating "so + adjective ("so annoying!", "so cool") or the like.

For an expression starting with "oh man" I would try to keep a similitude translating "man" as "tío".

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Diego
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    @DGaleano - I didn't know this was used in Spain! But I can assure you it's extremely common in Mexico. I have no idea about Argentina. – aparente001 Jun 08 '19 at 22:34
  • @DGaleano - Oh, did your comment mean "Híjole" will be understood in Spain by many people who are familiar with Mexican television programs? – aparente001 Jun 10 '19 at 02:13
  • "Tío" is not used in Argentina in that way. Only for relatives/family. :-) – Pablo H Sep 27 '21 at 17:28
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The Argentine form of "Oh man" is definitely prefixing "Boludo!" Then you have "qué copado", "qué cagada", and I can't think of anything for the third one.

Diego Mijelshon
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  • Do Boludo and copado have meanings that would prevent one from using these with one's future mother-in-law at the first meeting? I would think that cagada wouldn't fit on such an occasion! "Man" is certainly informal but no one would ever find it offensive -- so I think answers here need to make the distinction clear. – aparente001 Jun 08 '19 at 22:35
  • Boludo is definitely not a word to use with your mother in law or your boss. Qué cagada is fine IMO, but you can replace with qué macana. – Diego Mijelshon Jun 08 '19 at 22:45
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    To avoid the mild swearing in "boludo", I'd say "che". "Che, qué bueno" / "che, qué mal" / "che, qué envidia". Still, I wouldn't use it with your mother in law or your boss. In that case maybe "uh" or their name. – Mariano Ruggiero Jun 22 '19 at 08:31
  • @MarianoRuggiero that works. And I think Che is acceptable in both contexts these days. – Diego Mijelshon Jun 22 '19 at 12:45
  • "Boludo" is very often used at the end of sentences. As for the 3rd sentence, I think people don't say that? Surely not "estoy celoso/a", and probably not "qué envidia"... – Pablo H Sep 27 '21 at 17:32
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Oh man! es Hombre! (en serio, usado como exclamacion)

Oh man, that’s really cool.: Hombre que (here depending on the country: Mexico: Padre!, Peru: Paja!, etc etc)

Oh man, that sucks. Hombre! que mal!

Maaaan, I’m jealous! Hombre! que envidia!

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KansaiRobot
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Also we can use "¡Vaya!" or "¡Vaya, pues!" to convey the surprise factor, as in "¡Vaya! ¡Qué bonito coche!" ("Oh, man!That's a nice car!").

Fjor
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