Despacito, meaning slowly, is a hit song by Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi and features Daddy Yankee. Released in 2017, this Spanish-language song went to the top of the charts internationally. This post explains the lyrics vocabulary and grammar in detail.

Despacito lyrics

¡Ay!
Fonsi, DY
Oh, oh no, oh no (oh)
Hey yeah
Diridiri, dirididi Daddy
Go!

Sí, sabes que ya llevo un rato mirándote
Tengo que bailar contigo hoy (DY)
Vi que tu mirada ya estaba llamándome
Muéstrame el camino que yo voy

Yes, you know I’ve been looking at you for a while now
I have to dance with you today (DY)
I saw that your gaze was already calling me
Show me the way I’m going

Oh, tú, tú eres el imán y yo soy el metal
Me voy acercando y voy armando el plan
Solo con pensarlo se acelera el pulso (oh yeah)

Oh, you, you’re the magnet and I’m the metal
I’m getting closer and I’m putting together the plan
Just thinking about it makes my pulse race (oh yeah)

Ya, ya me estás gustando más de lo normal
Todos mis sentidos van pidiendo más
Esto hay que tomarlo sin ningún apuro

Yeah, I’m liking you more than usual.
All my senses are asking for more.
This has to be taken without any rush.

Despacito
Quiero respirar tu cuello despacito
Deja que te diga cosas al oído
Para que te acuerdes si no estás conmigo
Despacito
Quiero desnudarte a besos despacito
Firmar las paredes de tu laberinto
Y hacer de tu cuerpo todo un manuscrito (sube, sube, sube)
(Sube, sube) Oh

Slowly
I want to breathe your neck slowly
Let me whisper things in your ear
So you’ll remember if you’re not with me
Slowly
I want to undress you with kisses slowly
Sign the walls of your labyrinth
And make your body a manuscript (up, up, up)
(Up, up) Oh

Quiero ver bailar tu pelo
Quiero ser tu ritmo (uh oh, uh oh)
Que le enseñes a mi boca (uh oh, uh oh)
Tus lugares favoritos (favoritos, favoritos baby)
Déjame sobrepasar tus zonas de peligro (uh oh, uh oh)
Hasta provocar tus gritos (uh oh, uh oh)
Y que olvides tu apellido (dirididi Daddy)

I want to see your hair dance
I want to be your rhythm (uh oh, uh oh)
I want you to show my mouth (uh oh, uh oh)
Your favorite places (favorite, favorite baby)
Let me go past your danger zones (uh oh, uh oh)
Until I make you scream (uh oh, uh oh)
And make you forget your last name (dirididi Daddy)

Yo sé que estás pensándolo (eh)
Llevo tiempo intentándolo (eh)
Mami, esto es dando y dándolo
Sabes que tu corazón conmigo te hace bam bam
Sabe que esa beba ‘tá buscando de mi bam bam
Ven prueba de mi boca para ver cómo te sabe
Quiero, quiero, quiero ver cuánto amor a ti te cabe
Yo no tengo prisa, yo me quiero dar el viaje
Empezamo’ lento, después salvaje

I know you’re thinking about it (eh)
I’ve been trying for a while (eh)
Mommy, this is giving and giving
You know your heart with me makes you bam bam
Know that baby is looking for me bam bam
Come taste my mouth to see how it tastes
I want, I want, I want to see how much love you have
I’m in no hurry, I want to go for the ride
We start slow, then wild

Pasito a pasito, suave suavecito
Nos vamos pegando poquito a poquito
Cuando tú me besas con esa destreza
Veo que eres malicia con delicadeza
Pasito a pasito, suave suavecito
Nos vamos pegando, poquito a poquito (oh oh)
Y es que esa belleza es un rompecabezas (oh no)
Pero pa’ montarlo aquí tengo la pieza (slow, oh yeah)

Little by little, soft, soft
We’re getting closer, little by little
When you kiss me with such skill
I see that you’re malicious with delicacy
Little by little, soft, soft
We’re getting closer, little by little (oh oh)
And that beauty is a puzzle (oh no)
But to put it together, I have the piece here (slow, oh yeah)

Despacito (yeh, yo)
Quiero respirar tu cuello despacito (yo)
Deja que te diga cosas al oído (yo)
Para que te acuerdes si no estás conmigo
Despacito
Quiero desnudarte a besos despacito (yeh)
Firmar las paredes de tu laberinto
Y hacer de tu cuerpo todo un manuscrito (sube, sube, sube)
(Sube, sube) Oh

Slowly (yeah, me)
I want to breath your neck slowly (me)
Let me whisper things in your ear (me)
So you’ll remember if you’re not with me
Slowly
I want to undress you with kisses slowly (yeah)
I want to write my signature on the walls of your labyrinth
And turn your body into a manuscript (up, up, up)
(Up, up) Oh

Quiero ver bailar tu pelo
Quiero ser tu ritmo (uh oh, uh oh)
Que le enseñes a mi boca (uh oh, uh oh)
Tus lugares favoritos (favoritos, favoritos baby)
Déjame sobrepasar tus zonas de peligro (uh oh, uh oh)
Hasta provocar tus gritos (uh oh, uh oh)
Y que olvides tu apellido

I want to see your hair dance
I want to be your rhythm (uh oh, uh oh)
I want you to show my mouth (uh oh, uh oh)
Your favorite places (favorite, favorite baby)
Let me go past your danger zones (uh oh, uh oh)
Until I make you scream (uh oh, uh oh)
And make you forget your last name

Despacito
Vamo’ a hacerlo en una playa en Puerto Rico
Hasta que las olas griten “Ay, bendito”
Para que mi sello se quede contigo (báilalo)

Slowly
Let’s do it on a beach in Puerto Rico
Until the waves shout “Oh, blessed”
So that my seal stays with you (dance it)

Pasito a pasito, suave suavecito (hey yeah, yeah)
Nos vamos pegando, poquito a poquito (oh no)
Que le enseñes a mi boca (uh oh, uh oh)
Tus lugares favoritos (favoritos, favoritos baby)
Pasito a pasito, suave suavecito
Nos vamos pegando, poquito a poquito
Hasta provocar tus gritos (eh-oh) (Fonsi)
Y que olvides tu apellido (DY)
Despacito

Little by little step, softly, gently (hey yeah, yeah)
We’re getting closer, little by little (oh no)
Show my mouth (uh oh, uh oh)
Your favorite places (favorites, favorites, baby)
Little by little step, softly, gently
We’re getting closer, little by little
Until we make you scream (eh-oh) (Fonsi)
And you forget your last name (DY)
Slowly

Lyrics vocabulary and grammar

Despacito

Despacito, the song’s title translates to slowly. This is a diminutive of the adjective despacio (slowly, little by little, gradually).

Sí, sabes que ya llevo un rato mirándote

This line translates to “Yes, you know I’ve been looking at you for a while now”. The verb llevar means to carry or take. However, llevar + time word means “have been doing”.

Tengo que bailar contigo hoy

This line translates to “I have to dance with you today (DY)”. Tener means to have and the expression tener que + infinitive means “to have to”.

Vi que tu mirada ya estaba llamándome

This line translate to “I saw that your gaze was already calling me”. Vi is the the preterite form of ver (to see).

Muéstrame el camino que yo voy

This line translate to “Show me the way I’m going”. The masculine noun camino has several translations including way, path and road.

Oh, tú, tú eres el imán y yo soy el metal

This line translates to “Oh, you, you’re the magnet and I’m the metal”. Tú eres and yo soy are present tense forms of ser (to be).

Me voy acercando y voy armando el plan

This line translates to “I’m getting closer and I’m putting together the plan”. Me voy (I’m going) is the present tense form of ir (to go). Acercando is the present participle of acercar, which means to move closer. Armar means to arm or to put together.

Solo con pensarlo se acelera el pulso

This line translates to “Just thinking about it makes my pulse race”. The expression solo con + infinitive (or con solo) means with only or just.

Ya, ya me estás gustando más de lo normal

This line translates to “Yeah, I’m liking you more than usual”. The verb gustarle a + person means “to like”. Ya has a wide range of meanings including now and already.

Todos mis sentidos van pidiendo más

This line translates to “All my senses are asking for more”. Sentido (senses) is related to the verb sentir (to feel).

Esto hay que tomarlo sin ningún apuro

This line translates to “This has to be taken without any rush”. The expression hay que + infinitive means has, must or needs to be.

Quiero respirar tu cuello despacito

This line translates to “I want to breathe your neck slowly”. The verb respirar means to breathe or to breathe in.

Deja que te diga cosas al oído

This line translates to “Let me whisper things in your ear”. The verb dejar means to leave but another meaning is to let or to allow.

Para que te acuerdes si no estás conmigo

This line translates to “So you’ll remember if you’re not with me”. Para que is a conjunction and means “so that”.

Quiero desnudarte a besos despacito

This line translates to “I want to undress you with kisses slowly”. Quiero is the first-person singular from of querer (to want, to love).

Firmar las paredes de tu laberinto

This line translates to “I want to write my signature on the walls of your labyrinth”. The verb firmar means to sign.

Y hacer de tu cuerpo todo un manuscrito

This line translates to “And turn your body into a manuscript”. Hacer means to make or do. Hacer de + noun means “to turn something into”.

Que le enseñes a mi boca

This line translates to “Show my mouth”. Enseñes is the subjunctive form of enseñar, which means both to teach and to show.

Pasito a pasito, suave suavecito

This line translates to “Little by little step, softly, gently”. Pasito is a diminutive of paso, which means step. Suavecito is a diminutive of suave (soft, smooth, light).

Nos vamos pegando, poquito a poquito

This line translates to “We’re getting closer, little by little”. Pegando is the present participle of pegar, which means to stick or to paste but also means to move closer to in Spanish slang. Poquito is a diminutive of poco (little).

Y es que esa belleza es un rompecabezas

This line translates to “And that beauty is a puzzle”. Rompecabezas means puzzle and is a combination of romper (to break) and cabeza (head).

Pero pa’ montarlo aquí tengo la pieza

This line translates to “But to put it together, I have the piece here”. Pa’ is a shortening of para (for, in order to). This is commonly heard in spoken Spanish. The verb montar means to mount or get on but also means to put together.

Quiero ver bailar tu pelo

This line translates to “I want to see your hair dance”. The masculine noun pelo can translate to both hair and fur.

Y que olvides tu apellido

This line translates to “And make you forget your last name”. Apellido means last name or surname and is related to the reflexive verb apellidarse (to call yourself).

Vamo’ a hacerlo en una playa en Puerto Rico

This line translates to Let’s do it on a beach in Puerto Rico. The -lo in hacerlo is a direct object pronoun meaning it.

Hasta que las olas griten “Ay, bendito”

This line translates to “Until the waves shout “Oh, blessed”. Griten is the subjunctive form or gritar (to scream).

Para que mi sello se quede contigo

This line translates to “So that my seal stays with you”. Sello means stamp but in a figurative sense means signature.

Discover more Spanish songs

• Bailando (Enrique Iglesias)
• La Bamba Meaning, Spanish Lyrics & English Translation
• Bésame Mucho Meaning, Spanish Lyrics & English Translation
• Querida – Lyrics, Meaning & Translation

References

• Despacito (English Wikipedia page)