This study reports on preliminary findings of two research projects conducted during the 1988-89 and 1990-91 in Cordoba, Argentina, that examined fixed, idiomatic, Spanish-language expressions that are very common, but often ignored, in oral Spanish discourse. Study 1 subjects were 13 university-educated, adults, born in the city; study 2 subjects were from 3 different social sectors: a housing project, an old large lower middle-class neighborhood, and a golf country club. Twenty-five expressions were identified as pragmatic expressions and analyzed according to their ideational content, sequence structure, and speech acts and orientation towards the Gricean Conversational Maxims. Findings on "Bueno" and "Mira" are detailed. Contrary to expectations, results suggest that the highest usage is in the upper class social group. The research is ongoing with a comparison of the choice, use, and frequency with which these expressions are used in daily life. (Contains seven references.) (NAV)