# Non-US Dopers: in your language or dialect, how do you describe “talking shit” or “talking smack”? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 7, 2025, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572 "2025-07-07T00:03:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2025, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/21 "2025-07-08T16:19:01Z")
> [@xtenkfarpl](#): > > I’d agree that ‘slagging off’ seems a close UK relative, though that usually means to a third party rather than face to face. That’s made me think of another one, possibly. ‘Bitching about someone.’ As in, complaining about someone else who isn’t present. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2025, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/22 "2025-07-08T19:49:10Z")
> [@xtenkfarpl](#): > > Is it perhaps a regional thing? Does it imply saying it to someone’s face, or talking about them to a third party? I usually think of it as doing it to someone’s face. If two people are about to get in a fight, they will talk shit. The intent is to demean and probably intimidate a little. The shit-talking is usually exaggerated bravado. This type of language is not meant to be taken literally except as an implicit threat, although often the shit-talking is just shit-talking, and could be an attempt to save face when you actually have no intention of getting violent with someone. People who are outmatched often talk shit. Which is why I think it’s referred to as “shit.” I have no idea if it’s regional. I’m from Michigan and I’m willing to bet anyone from Michigan would know what it meant. > [@iamatractorboy](#): > > ‘Bitching about someone.’ As in, complaining about someone else who isn’t present. In the US, it could be that context, or it could also be complaining about anything. Can bitching about something generally be referred to as complaining about anything in the UK? Or does it have to be about another person? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2025, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/23 "2025-07-08T19:57:10Z")
> [@xtenkfarpl](#): > > In UK English, “talking shit” would usually mean you are spouting nonsense or rubbish, I think. Yeah, more or less synonymous with ‘talking bollocks’ ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2025, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/24 "2025-07-08T21:32:22Z")
> [@xtenkfarpl](#): > > Is it perhaps a regional thing? Does it imply saying it to someone’s face, or talking about them to a third party? It’s a common idiom for me. I hear it more in the “talking shit behind one’s back” sense than the “saying it to someone’s face” sense, but both are quite common. I’m not aware of it being particularly regional, but in case it’s relevant, I’m Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2025, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/25 "2025-07-08T22:17:47Z")
_Talking trash_ or _Running your mouth_ is heard around here. _Talking shit_ is commonly known, in playgrounds and bars. You know the upscale places 🤔. ---
**Author:** ![keeganst94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a6a055/32.png) [@keeganst94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keeganst94)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/26 "2025-07-09T01:14:59Z")
Talking shit, but also jawing at someone, chirping them, or giving them chin music. Although around here talking shit can have two different meanings; talking shit _to_ or _at_ someone means you’re insulting them in a more aggressive way that might lead to a fight; talking shit _with_ someone means it’s playful banter, between friends. All the other terms I mentioned are closer to the first meaning. ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/27 "2025-07-09T08:44:43Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > > [@iamatractorboy](#): > > > > ‘Bitching about someone.’ As in, complaining about someone else who isn’t present. > > In the US, it could be that context, or it could also be complaining about anything. Can bitching about something generally be referred to as complaining about anything in the UK? Or does it have to be about another person? Hmm, having thought about it, I think it could be used more generally. You might ‘bitch about’ a task that you hate doing, for example. So maybe it’s not the best equivalent. ---
**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:** [July 21, 2025, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/28 "2025-07-21T01:31:17Z")
I like “rapping crap”. I do _not_ like wrapping crap, however. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/29 "2025-07-25T04:12:05Z")
I would actually say “having a go”. As in “Are you having a go at me?” or “He was having a go at me”. I’m probably showing my age as well as my location (melb.aus) ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/30 "2025-07-25T12:55:36Z")
‘Having a go’ sounds right for British English too. I would say there’s a distinction between that and ‘slagging off’ as follows:- Having a go at someone: directly to the person Slagging someone off: much more likely to be to a third party, i.e. behind the subject’s back. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/31 "2025-07-25T13:02:13Z")
I think that “taking the piss” is similar to “”giving someone shit.” IMHO, giving someone shit can be playful teasing, while talking shit is more overtly hostile. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/32 "2025-07-25T13:51:51Z")
I love English. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/33 "2025-07-25T14:26:02Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > I think that “taking the piss” is similar to “”giving someone shit.” Or “busting balls”. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/34 "2025-07-25T14:29:49Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > I love English. I’ve never heard that used in this context. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/35 "2025-07-25T14:55:56Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > “jy praat strond” Interesting. The exact same thing in Swedish is “prata strunt.” At times the West Germanic languages seem further apart from their northern cousins, at other times, such as this, they seem to be dialects and not separate languages. ---
**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/36 "2025-07-25T19:20:58Z")
> [@iamatractorboy](#): > > Having a go at someone: directly to the person Yes, in UK parlance. In fact it might mean either a direct insult or challenge, almost certainly leading to a physical confrontation. By that time if I saw it I’d be “Three steps towards the door”, of course… ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/37 "2025-07-25T19:58:13Z")
A good old football song which seems to have died out these days:- “Come n 'ave a go if you think you’re 'ard enough!!” ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/38 "2025-07-25T21:40:45Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > I would actually say “having a go”. As in “Are you having a go at me?” or “He was having a go at me” Also “starting” which is roughly equivalent to talking smack. As in “are you startin’?” ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2025, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/39 "2025-07-26T06:43:38Z")
I haven’t heard that in UK parlance (but of course a weary “Don’t start…” isn’t uncommon) ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2025, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572/40 "2025-07-26T17:17:19Z")
‘Starting on someone’ was a thing back in the 90s when I was at school. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-us-dopers-in-your-language-or-dialect-how-do-you-describe-talking-shit-or-talking-smack/1020572.md?page=3)