# Curses or oaths you've adopted from literature or movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 14, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524 "2021-01-14T15:28:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/1 "2021-01-14T15:28:21Z")
I was just making an omelet, and much of the egg stuck to the bottom of the pan, which caused me to exclaim “Jesus please us!”. Which is something a character in one of Stephen King’s books once said, though I have on idea which book or which character. But the rhyming oath stuck with me. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/2 "2021-01-14T15:36:38Z")
Another Stephen King quote, this one from _Desperation_. “Don’t call me cookie and I won’t call you cake.” I said this as a sorta non sequitur reply to my gf calling me “Skippy” one day. She immediately got the reference. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/3 "2021-01-14T15:57:56Z")
And yet another SK phrase ; I recently told someone that “2020 can kiss my back cheeks” a la Delores Claiborne. I’ve also been known to call someone “a dirty bird”. Come to think of it, there seem to be a lot of SKisms that creep into my vocabulary. I don’t know if he coined it, but “fuckery” comes up often, as in “what’s this fuckery” or “…or some such fuckery”. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/4 "2021-01-14T16:10:19Z")
I adopted _Kull Wahad!_ (Fuck Me!) and _Mu Zein Wallah!_ (Fuckboi) from _ **Dune** _, _Fracking!_(Fucking) from _ **BSG** _, and _Noy Jitat!_ (God Damn) and _Jitating [XYZ]!_ (Damned [XYZ]) from _ **Pirates of Darkwater** _. Some of those are very loose translations 🙂 And I tend to invoke Hastur and Shub-Niggurath in normal curses rather than “God” ---
**Author:** ![Frazzled](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frazzled/32/3368_2.png) [@Frazzled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frazzled)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/5 "2021-01-14T16:11:25Z")
I frequently say “Lords” from BSG, and occasionally “Lords of Kobol, hear my prayer” when I’m about to attempt something stupid. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/6 "2021-01-14T17:10:46Z")
“Frack” and “felgercarb” from original BSG. “Frell” from _Farscape_ Not exactly a curse, but I like to quote Finagle’s Law from Larry Niven’s stories: “The perversity of the universe tends to a maximum.” “Rackum-Frackum”, I think from either Yosemite Sam or the Tasmanian Devil. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/7 "2021-01-14T17:14:09Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](#): > > I’ve also been known to call someone “a dirty bird”. Come to think of it, there seem to be a lot of SKisms that creep into my vocabulary. I thought “dirty bird” was from George Gobel. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/8 "2021-01-14T17:19:17Z")
From _Johnny Dangerously_: “bastidge” and “farging icehole” (mangled curse words uttered by Roman Maronie) And, from the Star Wars expanded universe books and games: “kriff” and “kark” (both meaning “fuck”) ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/9 "2021-01-14T17:26:29Z")
See a broad who get all booty-eyed, lay’em down and smack’em yack’em ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/10 "2021-01-14T17:36:04Z")
Ratfarts! Especially on the golf course. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/11 "2021-01-14T17:58:51Z")
There are a couple I still use from a commercial for some tooth whitening gum company a few years ago. “What the French, toast?” The pause at the comma is key. “You lint licker!” ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/12 "2021-01-14T18:23:12Z")
“Cakesniffer” from A Series of Unfortunate Events, and “hraka” from Watership Down. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/13 "2021-01-14T18:25:03Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](#): > > Come to think of it, there seem to be a lot of SKisms that creep into my vocabulary. Just don’t start with the “smucking”. (Lisey’s Story) ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/14 "2021-01-14T18:43:29Z")
I think everybody uses ‘Ass-hat’. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/15 "2021-01-14T19:06:28Z")
Sometimes for someone I really dislike I think “the guy sure looks like plant food to me”. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/16 "2021-01-14T19:18:59Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > I think everybody uses ‘Ass-hat’. It would be nice if y’all could include the media source too, so I’m not compelled to google the more obscure ones. I’m well familiar with Ass-hat, but not with its source. Apparently, according to this YT video, the earliest instance of this is from The Outlaw Josey Wales: “I’m gonna kick you so hard, you’re going to be wearing your ass for a hat”. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/zjiYLyKmU7g/maxresdefault.jpg "Where did "asshat" come from? | Pop Lexicon") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjiYLyKmU7g) ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/17 "2021-01-14T19:23:21Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Sometimes for someone I really dislike I think “the guy sure looks like plant food to me”. YES. “Plant food” certainly abounds. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/18 "2021-01-14T19:51:17Z")
“…so fast it’ll make gods blink.” I think that one comes from one of the _Yellowthread Street_ books. It’s generally preceded by some interesting comment, such as when I’m attempting to exit a subway car here and some idiot wishing to board the car cannot be bothered to wait for those of us exiting–mind you, this is nowhere near a slightly occasional instance. Example of usage: I’ll knock you off the platform so fast it’ll make gods blink!" “Znidd suddabit!” This one comes from _Uller Uprising_. Used as a general oath, although, according to the story from which I lifted it, it means “Kill the human!” (The word for ‘human’ in the language referred to in the story is a loan word from English: ‘Son of a bitch’.) Kind of fits in nicely as an alternative for the previous oath in the same situation. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/19 "2021-01-14T19:55:14Z")
“Godfrey Daniels” from W. C. Fields movies. BTW, I’ve been watching “The History of Swear Words” on Netflix. Very informative, and relevant to this thread I think. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2021, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524/20 "2021-01-15T00:34:22Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > “Godfrey Daniels” from W. C. Fields movies. Same here, since about 1970. also Mother Pus Bucket! (Ghostbusters) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curses-or-oaths-youve-adopted-from-literature-or-movies/930524.md?page=2)