estar cheles

Literally, “to be white”. Presumably originated from flour or lime unloaders in Metapán, as these materials would cover them in white powder by the end of the unloading process.^[1]

• IPA^(key): /esˌtaɾ ˈt͡ʃeles/
• Syllabification: es‧tar che‧les

estar cheles (first-person singular present estoy cheles, first-person singular preterite estuve cheles, past participle estado cheles)

1. (idiomatic, El Salvador, of two or more people) to be quits; to be satisfied with the fulfillment of the responsibilities, obligations or promises agreed with other people; to have no debts, responsibilities, obligations or promises left to fulfill.

   Synonym: quedar cheles

   Ya te pagué el dinero que te debía, ¿estamos cheles, verdad?

   I just paid you the money I owed you, we are quits, right?

• “estar, o quedar, cheles dos o más personas”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10