{"id":4156,"date":"2022-06-03T16:13:22","date_gmt":"2022-06-03T16:13:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=4156"},"modified":"2022-06-03T16:13:22","modified_gmt":"2022-06-03T16:13:22","slug":"no-mames-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/no-mames-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"No Mames \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Are you looking for a colloquial expression to tell someone there is no way you\u2019re going to do something they request? You could use the Spanish term \u201cno mames<\/em>\u201d to voice your lack of cooperation. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this expression.<\/p>\n

Meaning<\/h2>\n

The expression \u201cno mames<\/em>\u201d is Mexican-Spanish slang for \u201cno way<\/em>\u201d or \u201cnot a chance<\/em>.\u201d There is some reference to it having a vulgar meaning, such as \u2018blow me<\/em>,\u2019 or other worse definitions that we won\u2019t repeat here. However, the offensive descriptions are not the general meaning of the term.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The phrase appears in non-formal conversations between friends where one makes an outlandish request, and the other doesn\u2019t want to accept it. The term is uniquely Mexican. If you travel to Europe and say it to Spanish-speaking people in Spain, they won\u2019t understand what you\u2019re referencing.<\/p>\n

Example Usage<\/h2>\n

\u201cWhat do you mean you want me to handle all that today. No mames, my friend, there\u2019s no way you\u2019re bending me over a barrel because you\u2019re feeling the pressure from management.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no mames that I\u2019m going to agree with that. All the odds stacked in your favor and me left with all the risk in the deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cListen, no, mames, I do that for you. I love you like a brother, but you\u2019re asking the impossible with this. Can\u2019t I do anything else for you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t care what she told you. I\u2019m not doing that, no mames, no way, no how, not ever. Just forget about it and tell her to find someone else for your crackpot show.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy are you still persisting with that. No memes I ever even think about doing that for you or anyone else. Just leave it alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, mames that you get into the building and secure the football before security finds you. If you get caught, that\u2019s on you.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Origin<\/h2>\n

The expression \u201cno mames\u201d is a Mexican-Spanish word meaning \u201cno ways.\u201d The word first appeared in Mexican-Spanish in the early 1990s. If someone asks you to do something you don\u2019t want to do, you could reply with no mames to show them that there is no way they can get you to do what they want.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a definitive statement telling people no. Mames has a root in the Mexican-Spanish verb, \u201cmamar,\u201d which means \u201cto suck.\u201d It may also have some reference to a male body part. So, by telling someone \u201cno mames,\u201d you\u2019re essentially asking them to \u201cbl*w you\u201d or to \u201cgo suck it.\u201d As a result, \u201cno mames\u201d might be considered a vulgar reply.<\/p>\n

The term spread through Southern and western states as Mexican communities integrated into the Californian lifestyle. Actor Diego Luna brought the phrase to public attention by using it in the Conan O\u2019Brien show in 2013.<\/p>\n