If you want to say the word for “money” in Spanish, you would generally say “dinero” or “el dinero.” However, a fairly common slang term for money is “plata.” And you can easily find a few dozen other terms across the Spanish-speaking world.

Why is money called Plata?

Plata, which literally means "silver", is also one of the most common ways to refer to money (in any form) in American dialects of Spanish. As in English, there are many other ways to call money or certain amounts of money (as in luca for "one thousand currenty units").

Why do Colombians say Plata?

Plata o plomo is a Colombian Spanish slang phrase that translates to “silver or lead.” A person saying the phrase is telling the listener to either accept a bribe (plata, meaning “silver,” a common slang term for money in Colombia) or lose their life (plomo, a metonym for “lead bullet”).