Spanish · Frustration (Traffic, Bureaucracy, Life)
Valió madre
bah-LYOH MAH-dreh · /ba.ˈljo ˈma.ðɾe/
It's ruined / it's all gone to hell
3/5 Watch your audience
genuinely rude; friends only, never at work
Literally
"It was worth mother"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
The moment something breaks beyond saving: "ya valió madre" = it's toast, it's over, write it off. The plan, the phone, the whole weekend — all can "valer madre." Vulgar upgrade: "valió verga." Clean-ish version for company: "ya se echó a perder."
Heard in the wild
Se mojó la laptop. Ya valió madre la presentación.
The laptop got wet. The presentation's toast now.
Where it lands
Mexico (universal)
Quick answers
- What does "Valió madre" mean?
- In Spanish, "Valió madre" means "It's ruined / it's all gone to hell". Literally it's "It was worth mother". The moment something breaks beyond saving: "ya valió madre" = it's toast, it's over, write it off. The plan, the phone, the whole weekend — all can "valer madre." Vulgar upgrade: "valió verga." Clean-ish version for company: "ya se echó a perder."
- Is "Valió madre" offensive?
- It's genuinely rude — a 3/5 (Watch your audience) on the Punch-o-Meter. Fine among friends, never at work or with people you've just met.
- How do you pronounce "Valió madre"?
- Say it "bah-LYOH MAH-dreh" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ba.ˈljo ˈma.ðɾe.
Related in Spanish
¡Me lleva la chingada! meh YEH-bah lah cheen-GAH-dah I'm so screwed! / For fuck's sake! Está cabrón ess-TAH kah-BROHN It's intense / rough / seriously impressive Me vale madre meh BAH-leh MAH-dreh I couldn't care less / I don't give a damn Ni modo nee MOH-doh Oh well / nothing to be done / it is what it is ¡Qué hueva! keh WEH-bah What a drag / ugh, I can't be bothered Estar hasta la madre ess-TAR AH-stah lah MAH-dreh To be fed up / sick and tired — or packed full
The same idea, elsewhere
Via concepts like "What a mess".
- French Bordel ! What a mess! / Chaos! — also 'what the hell' as an intensifier
- German Scheiße! Shit! / Damn! — the all-purpose German expletive
- Greek σκατά Shit! / Crap! — and 'garbage / terrible' for anything low quality.
- Italian Che casino! What a mess! / What chaos!
- Japanese めちゃくちゃ A total mess / all messed up (or: super, as an intensifier)
- Korean 어떡해 Oh no / what do I do?! — the national noise of small panic.
- Polish masakra A disaster / unbelievable / total carnage — the all-purpose 'this is insane.'
- Portuguese Merda! Shit! / Crap!
Reviewed by native speakers. Rate it differently? Tell us what we got wrong.