Objective: to understand the meanings that the indirect participant civilians in armed conflict, living in both country and urban areas, have built around the phenomena of violence, peace and armed conflict in Colombia. Method: From a constructionist approach and a hermeneutical method, a content analysis of the information collected was performed in five focus groups in the light of three broad categories (Historic-Cultural Influence, Senses and Events). Results: It is remarked that the meanings about peace and violence are built from the family context and close to it systems such as educational institutions, community, among others. Conclusion: Participants relate the armed conflict with groups outside the law and its polarized ideology about the state, identifying the civilian population as the mostly affected actor. Everyday actions are reaffirmed as possibilities for peace building.