Güey

1. Mexican slang (very informal), which generally translates to "guy, man, dude". 2. The correct spelling of the popular "wey", which seems the Americanized form of the word. In Mexican Spanish, the letter W is not native and very seldom used, save for foreign words. Güey became quite popular in mid-80's Mexico, and it continues to be used quite frequently. In general, it's not an offensive term, although in it's original conception it may have been intended to be derogatory. The word may have derived from "buey", which is an ox, and in general, considered to be a dumb, stubborn, and stupid animal. Hence, in the original context, güey may have been used to describe someone with such ox-like qualities. E.g.: "¡Esté güey (buey) no sirve para nada!" - "This guy (ox) is good for nothing." Later, the term came to be used to address others, particularly men. E.g.: "¿Qué onda güey?" - What's up dude? Notice that in Spanish the umlaut is used over the letter u (ü), in conjunction with the letter g, to create a gw/w sound. Over time, either because of laziness, Americanization of certain Spanish words, or Beck's "Perdedor" (loser), "güey" became "wey". Although incorrect in spelling, the meaning remains the same: guy, dude, man.