socio

What it means

1. 1.

   Mate, pal. Both a form of address and a way of referring to a friend, with a strong implication of practical mutual usefulness — a socio is someone who gets things for you.

2. 2.

   In the plural, the network of contacts a person relies on to obtain scarce goods.

Examples with translations

• Oye, socio, préstame el teléfono un minuto.

  Hey mate, lend me your phone for a minute.

• Tengo un socio en la farmacia, él me guarda el medicamento.

  I've got a guy at the pharmacy, he puts the medicine aside for me.

  Note: The sense that matters in Cuba: a socio is a channel, not just a friend.

Where it comes from

Standard Spanish socio, 'business partner' or 'club member', narrowed in Cuban usage to a personal ally. The economic overtone is not incidental — it is the same thinking that produced the pun sociolismo.

Other forms

Similar terms:

asere, consorte