Bolivian Spanish word
aquí nomás
Meaning: just here / really close
Where it is said: Nomás is not only Bolivian: the Diccionario de americanismos records it, meaning 'only, just', from Mexico to Argentina and Uruguay, Bolivia included.
Start with lesson 1
Greeting at any hour and saying your nameLesson 1, level A0
Start lesson 1How it is used in Bolivia
The classic Bolivian distance softener: it promises 'very close' but can mean ten steps or two aisles. Inside La Cancha, treat it as encouragement, keep the route in mind, and feel free to ask again along the way.
The classic trufi drop-off line, and 'nomás' is pure cochabambino flavour: a little softener that rounds off requests and invitations, 'suba nomás', 'pase nomás', 'aquí nomás'. One tiny word, half the local music.
How locals reckon center distances: in cuadras and in feel. 'Aquí nomás' reassures that it's close enough not to think about, warmth plus geography, not a measurement.
How to use it
Put nomás after aquí and the phrase becomes a soft 'just here'. Its everyday job is getting off a trufi, micro or taxi: name your corner, add aquí nomás, and the driver often answers with the same words. On trufis and micros you can ask to stop anywhere along the route, not only at marked stops.
When someone giving directions says aquí nomás, it means 'it's close'. It is warm and approximate: inside La Cancha, Cochabamba's big market, it can mean ten steps or two aisles.
Examples
Me bajo aquí nomás.
I'll get off just here.
To a taxi driver in Sucre, once the corner looks right.
Pare aquí nomás, maestro.
Just stop right here, maestro.
Maestro is the respectful way to address a trufi or micro driver.
Aquí nomás, casera: todo derecho y al fondo, a la derecha.
Right near here, casera: straight ahead, to the far end, then to the right.
A vendor at La Cancha pointing the way to the fruit section.
Gracias, casera. La como aquí nomás.
Thanks, casera. I'll eat it right here.
At a salteña stand: you'll eat it on the spot, as the vendor expects.
A real exchange
In a trufi in Cochabamba
You
¿Me deja en la esquina, por favor? Aquí nomás.
Could you let me off at the corner, please? Right here is fine.
Driver
Ya, joven. Aquí nomás le dejo, en la esquina.
Sure, dear. I'll drop you right here, at the corner.
Joven is the friendly way drivers address a passenger, whatever their age.
What to avoid
- Do not take aquí nomás as a measurement. When minutes matter, ask for cuadras or a clock time, and ask again along the way.
Good to know
- Register
- Colloquial and friendly, yet polite enough for usted: the trufi driver uses it while addressing his passenger as usted. It sits just as well with tú in La Paz and with vos in Cochabamba.
- Origin
- From no + más, literally 'no more', according to Wiktionary.
- Not to be confused with
- Ahí nomás is not always about place: WordReference gives it as colloquial 'more or less' across Latin America, and as 'very near' only for Central America and Mexico.
Questions people ask
What does aquí nomás mean in English?
'Right here' or 'just here'. Wiktionary notes that nomás after aquí or ahí means 'right, exactly': 'El auto está ahí nomás' is 'The car is right there'.
What does nomás mean on its own?
Mostly 'only, just': the Diccionario de americanismos defines it as 'no más, nada más, solamente'. In Bolivia it can also mean 'as soon as'.
What does así nomás mean?
In colloquial South American Spanish it means 'just like that' (without difficulty) or 'just because' (for no reason), according to WordReference.
Sources
What this page says beyond the chapters of the course comes from these sources.
- ASALE, Diccionario de americanismos: nomásaccessed 21 October 2026
- Wiktionary (English): nomásaccessed 21 October 2026
- WordReference, Spanish-English: nomásaccessed 21 October 2026
Learn it in a real situation
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