--- title: "no me pela" translation: "She ignores me. He doesn't give me the time of day." type: "word" category: "expression" url: "https://consalsa.app/words/no-me-pela" canonical: "https://consalsa.app/words/no-me-pela" published: "2026-09-08" updated: "2026-09-08" author: "Andrey the Nomad" site: "ConSalsa.App" license: "https://consalsa.app/about" --- # no me pela URL: https://consalsa.app/words/no-me-pela Translation: She ignores me. He doesn't give me the time of day. Pronunciation: /no me ˈpe.la/ Category: expression Region: Mexico Register: casual, a bit deflated, safe everywhere Variants: ni me peló, no me pelan, pélame, no lo pela nadie Literal meaning: Pelar a alguien means to pay attention to them. Negated, it is the flattest way in Mexican Spanish to say you are being ignored. Tone & safety: Safe. It is a complaint about somebody else's behavior, and a mild one - said about a crush, a boss, or a cat. Published: 2026-09-08 Quick answer: - No me pela means she ignores me, he doesn't give me the time of day. - Pelar a alguien means to pay attention to them, so the negative is the standard way to say you are being blanked. - Nothing is being peeled. The plain equivalent is no me hace caso, and pelarse - with the reflexive - means to take off instead. What it means: - Somebody is not giving you their attention and you have noticed. It covers unanswered messages, being talked over, a crush who is polite and nothing else, and a manager who replies to everyone but you. - The tone is deflated rather than angry. It is the sound of somebody reporting a situation they have already accepted, which is why friends answer it with sympathy and a change of subject rather than with a plan. Literal meaning: - Pelar a alguien means to pay attention to them, and the plain-Spanish anchor is hacer caso - no me hace caso is what any Mexican will give you as the first gloss. That is also where the missing positive lives: sí me hace caso is how you say the opposite, because sí me pela sounds odd on its own in the present. - The affirmative does turn up in the preterite though. Ya me peló means she finally answered, or he finally acknowledged me, and it is completely normal. - Where the sense came from is not documented. The usual suggestion is a link to pelar los ojos, opening your eyes wide, which is a real Mexican phrase for paying attention - but that is a plausible story rather than an established one, and it is worth treating that way. How Mexicans use it: - The preterite version carries the sting best. Ni me peló is he did not even acknowledge me, and the ni turns a lack of attention into a small public event. - In dating talk it is the standard word for the thing dating apps produce. Le escribí y no me pela is a complete report, and nobody asks for more detail unless you offer it. - It works upward and sideways too - a boss who does not answer, a landlord who does not call back, a department that does not exist as far as your emails are concerned. Nothing about the phrase is romantic by default. - The imperative is a real move. Pélame, said to a friend scrolling while you are talking, is half a joke and completely normal, and it is one of the few times you will hear the verb without a negative in front of it. Common mistake: - Hearing se peló as a version of this. It is not - pelarse means to take off, so se peló a media fiesta is he slipped out halfway through. The reflexive changes the verb entirely. - Trying to use the present affirmative. Sí me pela is grammatical and understood, but it is not how anybody describes being paid attention to - that sentence is sí me hace caso. The preterite is different: ya me peló, she finally answered, is normal. Examples: - Le escribí desde el martes y no me pela. — I messaged her on Tuesday and she's not giving me anything. - Ni me peló, pasó de largo. — He didn't even acknowledge me, walked straight past. - A mi jefe no lo pela nadie en esa junta. — Nobody pays my boss any attention in that meeting. - Pélame tantito, te estoy contando algo. — Give me a second here, I'm telling you something. Mini dialogue: A: ¿Y qué pasó con la chava del gimnasio? B: Nada. Le escribí el martes y no me pela. A: ¿La dejaste en visto tú primero? B: No, ella ni abre los mensajes. A: Pues ahí muere, ¿no? B: Ahí muere. FAQ: Q: What does no me pela mean? A: She ignores me, he doesn't give me the time of day. Pelar a alguien means to pay attention to them, so the negative means you are being blanked. Q: Does no me pela have anything to do with peeling? A: No. Pelar does mean to peel, and that sense is alive - pélame una naranja - but the attention sense is a separate idiom and context always separates them. Q: What does ni me peló mean? A: He didn't even acknowledge me. The preterite plus ni is the sharpest version, and it usually describes somebody walking past or looking through you. Q: What is the difference between no me pela and se peló? A: Everything. Pelarse, with the reflexive, means to take off - se peló a media fiesta is he slipped out. It is not a form of this phrase. Q: What is the plain way to say the same thing? A: No me hace caso. It is the first gloss any Mexican will give you, and it is also where the positive lives - sí me hace caso, rather than sí me pela. Q: Can you use pelar in the affirmative? A: In the preterite, yes - ya me peló means she finally answered. In the present it sounds odd, which is why the phrase mostly lives in the negative. Q: Is no me pela only about dating? A: No. It works for a boss who does not answer, a landlord who does not call back, or a cat. Dating is just where it comes up most. Q: What does pélame mean? A: Pay attention to me. Said to somebody scrolling while you are talking, it is half a joke and completely normal - and one of the few times the verb appears without a negative. Q: What is the difference between no me pela and me dejó en visto? A: Dejar en visto is specifically left on read, so it needs a message that was opened. No me pela is broader and covers being ignored in person too. Related words: ponchar, ligar, tirar-la-onda, cortar, mala-onda