ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Mate con malicia

"Mate con malicia" means "to play mate with cleverness" in Spanish.

Mate is a popular South American beverage made from the yerba mate plant. It's drunk through a metal straw called a bombilla from a hollowed-out gourd called a mate.

When someone says "mate con malicia," they mean that they want to play the game of drinking mate in a smart and strategic way. It's like chess, where you think ahead and plan your moves to win.

For example, if you're drinking mate with a group of friends and you see that the person before you doesn't dip the bombilla deep enough into the mate, you can take advantage of that by dipping it deeper and getting a stronger taste of the mate. Or, if you notice that someone in the group always finishes the mate quickly and leaves little for others to drink, you can slow down your sips to make the mate last longer for everyone.

In essence, "mate con malicia" is all about being clever, strategic, and thinking ahead when drinking mate with others.