What does ‘cutre’ mean in Spain?
In Spain, cutre is a colloquial word for something tacky, cheap, shabby or badly made, like a run-down bar, a low-budget film or a lazy excuse. Said of a person, it can also mean stingy.
Hear it in a real scene
In the Lince app, you hear cutre in a scene from Aquí no hay quien viva, “Unas pinzas cutres”:
«Unas cutres de plástico y otras de madera.» Some tacky plastic ones and others made of wood.
What cutre means
Tacky, shabby, low-quality Colloquial
The core use: a place, object or job that looks cheap, dirty or carelessly done. Un bar cutre, un hotel cutre, unos efectos especiales muy cutres.
Stingy, cheap (a person) Colloquial
About someone who avoids spending money, cutre means “stingy” or “tight”: No seas cutre y deja propina.
Una cutrada — a cheap, tacky thing Colloquial
The noun una cutrada (also cutrez) names something tacky or badly done: Esa decoración es una cutrada.
Where and when you will hear it
Cutre is very common in relaxed speech in Spain, and it is not rude: it describes things more than it insults people. It can even be affectionate, as in a favourite bar that is cutre pero con encanto, “shabby but charming”.
The same word works for one thing or many people: un sitio cutre, una fiesta cutre, unos regalos cutres. In formal writing, people choose words such as de mala calidad or descuidado instead.
Examples from everyday Spain Spanish
- Cenamos en un bar muy cutre, pero la comida estaba buenísima.We had dinner in a really shabby bar, but the food was amazing.
- Qué cutre, ¿no? Ni siquiera han limpiado las mesas.How grim, right? They haven’t even cleaned the tables.
- Los efectos especiales de la peli son cutrísimos.The film’s special effects are super cheap-looking.
- No seas cutre y paga tu parte.Don’t be stingy and pay your share.
- Regalarle una taza fue una cutrada.Giving her a mug was a pretty tacky present.
How to say it
KOO-treh: the stress falls on the first syllable, and the r after the t is a single quick tap.
Frequently asked questions
Is cutre an insult?
Not a strong one. Cutre mostly describes places and things as cheap or shabby; calling a person cutre means they are stingy, which is a mild, informal criticism.
What is the difference between cutre and hortera?
Cutre points to something cheap, shabby or badly made, while hortera means tasteless or flashy. A gaudy outfit is hortera; a run-down bar is cutre.