mandados

Mandados, in common Spanish, refers to tasks or errands that someone is asked to complete. The plural mandados is used widely across Spanish-speaking countries to describe small jobs, chores, or favors to be carried out for another person. The phrase hacer mandados is a routine way to say running errands.

Typical mandados include actions such as going to the bank or post office, paying bills, buying groceries, picking up medication, or delivering items. They can be personal, domestic, or work-related, and are often distributed among family members, coworkers, or friends as part of everyday coordination.

The term also appears in social contexts as a practice of mutual help within communities. People may hire or appoint someone to run errands on their behalf, or teenagers and service workers may be responsible for completing a set of mandados.

Etymology: Mandado derives from mandar, from Latin mandare, meaning to command or entrust. As a noun, mandado denotes something that has been ordered or entrusted to be done, and in colloquial speech it specifically refers to errands or tasks assigned to someone.