ponerse buzo
phrase, idiomInformal
A Mexican Spanish slang term. Browse all Mexican slang.
What it means
To sharpen up; to pay close attention. Buzo alone functions as an adjective meaning alert or streetwise.
Literally: To become a diver.
Examples with translations
Ponte buzo, que aquí roban carteras.
Keep your wits about you, they steal wallets round here.
Es bien buzo para los negocios.
He's very sharp when it comes to business.
Where it comes from
Buzo means 'diver'. The link to alertness is disputed — one account points to divers' need for constant vigilance, another to an unrelated older slang sense of 'clever'. We have not found a source that settles it.
Other forms
- Similar terms:
- ponerse trucha, abusado