# Your favorite non-English curse words? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 17, 2000, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796 "2000-08-17T22:41:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/21 "2000-08-18T07:31:37Z")
There’s a german phrase I heard of once- and I will definatly get this completely wrong- something like “lessen sie unficken” - get yourself refucked. I.e. you’re such a waste of space, let you’re parents start over at the beginning. Witty yet crude. I like it. ---
**Author:** ![Doctordec](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cdc98d/32.png) [@Doctordec](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctordec)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/22 "2000-08-18T14:07:06Z")
Brachy… > [@](#): > > Voi nyt saatana. (If I dropped my mallet on my toe.) Thanks for the correct spelling. I’ve always just said it and never knew how it was written. ---
**Author:** ![SwimmingRiddles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SwimmingRiddles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SwimmingRiddles)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/23 "2000-08-18T14:53:39Z")
I used to know how to say “You are a monkey-face” in about 6 languages. Unfortunately, only the most impressive one remains, Indonesian. I have no idea how to spell it, as it was taught to be by an Indonesian friend. It sounds like: “KAHRmoo BAAAARMooka MooonYET.” The rs are all rolled. I also used to know some other choice words in Indonesian, but have forgotten them. The funny part is that my cousin randomly married an Indonesian woman after dating for about 4 months or something, and I have yet to meet her. When I do, you can bet she’ll be surprised by my greeting! 🙂 And, of course, I know multiple German ones. But I say some of them with an Austrian accent, as I worked with Lippizans for a while, and that’s what you scream at them when they are being all stalliony, and some of them in a proper German accent, as I learned them when I was over there. I can’t spell any of them, however. ---
**Author:** ![Rock-n-Rolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/22d042/32.png) [@Rock-n-Rolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rock-n-Rolga)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/24 "2000-08-18T15:33:43Z")
Great replies here - I’m really cracking up at all of 'em, as well as taking copious notes! **Swiddles** (I can call you Swiddles, right?): Just imagining your first meeting with your cousin’s wife…heeheeheeheee! Thanks for the good contributions, y’all! Anyone got more to add? Off to cuss up a storm around some nice Finnish and Swedish guys tonight, Olga P.S. Suomi Finland PERKELE! (That’s right, gotta roll those R’s!) ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/25 "2000-08-18T15:34:26Z")
> [@](#): > > sed domi maneas paresque nobis > novem continuas fututiones. > verum, si quid ages, statim iubeto: > nam pransus iaceo et satur supinus > pertundo tunicamque palliumque. Catullus 32, 7-11. But please remain at home and prepare for me nine fuckings, one after another. If you want to do this, order it quickly: my belly’s full and I’m lying on my back, popping out of my pants. If only y’all paid attention in Latin class…🙂 MR ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/26 "2000-08-19T00:19:14Z")
I work with a guy that speaks Polish. He’s always saying “coourva” [sp!!] - loooong o sound and a slightly rolled r. I have my guesses as to the meaning, but it sounds cool no matter what. ---
**Author:** ![Lucretia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/13edae/32.png) [@Lucretia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucretia)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/27 "2000-08-19T02:22:06Z")
Saupreiss - A Bavarian term meaning “Bastard Prussian”, the equivalent of an American southerner saying “Damn Yankee”. (To the Bavarians, _all_ Germans living north of Munich are Prussians) ---
**Author:** ![Myrr21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Myrr21](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrr21)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/28 "2000-08-19T21:05:53Z")
> [@](#): > > Sacrebléu literally translates to sacred blue. The color of the french for a long time was [and still might be] blue. I believe that Sacrebleu is an alternate form of SacreDieu, Sacred God; think of the way people say “Judas Priest”. It doesn’t mean anything per se, but has a connotation. My personal french fave is “salope”…bitch ---
**Author:** ![silent\_rob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@silent\_rob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silent_rob)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/29 "2000-08-19T21:47:10Z")
Well, as fun as all of the French swear words are that are translations of our French words, all of the really bad ones are religious. My boss’ first language is French, and he still counts and swears in French. So, from hearing him I had figured that a certain word was very bad. Then, in a class in high school, some of the students were asking a teacher to tell them some French swears. He said no, and I chimed in that I knew one (besides **“Merde”** , which is an expression in theater like “Break a leg.”) He asked me what it was, and I replied, “ **Tabernac**.” He then jokingly said, “Get out.” Basically _tabernac_ means tabernacle, as in what you would find at the front of a church. Okay, now this is kind of a funny story as to how I know that **doma** (sorry if I offended some of you) is a bad word in Chinese (Cantonese specifically, I think). My friend worked at a Chinese restaurant, and one of the guys would always call him a **loma** : “Get the meat _loma_, wash this _loma_, go over there _loma_.” Finally, my friend got really tired of it and asked him what the hell a “loma” was. The guy replied, “I cannot tell you for you are loma.” Drove my friend nuts. Anyway, I asked a couple of my friends about it (one speaks Cantonese, and two Mandarin) when reminded of it when we were at a Chinese restaurant. My one friend said, “Try saying **doma** , loud.” I started saying it, and my other friend said, “You probably don’t want to say that to loud.” Apparently it is very bad, something akin to “mother-f\*\*ker”. My other friend there also worked there, and explained how some of the older people that worked there didn’t approve of swearing. When I told the story they all laughed there heads off. As you could have guessed, he just changed the d to an l. ---
**Author:** ![Doobieous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/da6949/32.png) [@Doobieous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doobieous)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/30 "2000-08-20T07:03:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SwimmingRiddles \* > \*\*I have no idea how to spell it, as it was taught to be by an Indonesian friend. It sounds like: “KAHRmoo BAAAARMooka MooonYET.” \*\* Probably: karmu barmuka munyet ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/31 "2000-08-20T07:48:31Z")
Doobie, thanks. Now I know what those punks on the bus were saying. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![KJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b2d939/32.png) [@KJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KJ)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/32 "2000-08-20T09:10:40Z")
My favorite foreign word of all time is: _sheckladecker_ I don’t know if that’s the offician spelling, but according to my stepdad, it’s yiddish for “condom.” Okay, maybe it’s not such a bad word, but it’s got a nice poetic beat to it, and here’s the kicker: Literally translated, it means “penis hat.” And I’ve only been taking Spanish for a year, but I already took the time to learn phrases like “Tú eres muy feo, y tu pene es muy pequeño.” ---
**Author:** ![magpie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magpie)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/33 "2000-08-20T15:59:22Z")
==== icelandic ==== He’s full of shit - Hann er rugludallur Eat shit - Éttu skít Eat shit and shut up - Éttu skít og þegiðu Damn - Helvítis ==== french ==== va te faire foutre - i forget what this means. i think it means “go to hell” or “go get fucked.” ==== inuit ==== anaq - shit 🙂 magpie ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2000, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/34 "2000-08-21T00:01:42Z")
Polish: (phonetically) doo’pah - ass put sah’wee moe-yah doo’pah - kiss my ass pee’ tahk - penis (slang) mauwee (like Maui) peetahk - little dick I used to know some Ethiopian, but I’ve forgotten it all. Let me tell you, no one curses like an Ethiopian, the words even _sound_ mean. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2000, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/35 "2000-08-21T01:01:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ChiefWahoo \* > \*\*I used to know some Ethiopian, but I’ve forgotten it all. Let me tell you, no one curses like an Ethiopian, the words even _sound_ mean. > \*\* I remember a “Doonesbury” strip from the mid-80s, when “We Are the World” came out. Jimmy Thudpucker offered a word in actual Ethiopian, and the Ethiopian observer said something like “It’s not a nice thing to call your sister.” Oh, well. Robin ---
**Author:** ![johnpastor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5e9695/32.png) [@johnpastor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpastor)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2000, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/36 "2000-08-21T01:02:11Z")
**German: Scheißliche Tür** - shitty door. Said by a student teacher who ran into it entering the classroom. All the students had been trained to return her greeting, so most of them repeated it and started laughing as it sunk in. ---
**Author:** ![TheThill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheThill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheThill)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2000, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/37 "2000-08-21T13:15:01Z")
Sorry, noone says _Schweinehund_ anymore except in silly war movies. And _Scheisskopf_ isn’t exactly popular either. For more authenticity try _Arschloch_ or _Arschlecker_. Germans do like to talk about their behinds. As for the door incident, unfortunately _scheisslich_ doesn’t really exist. More common would be _Scheisstür_ as _Scheiss-_ can be added to nearly any noun to make it shitty. Another good one is _Kotzbrocken_ meaning “a piece of puke”, and used to mean well, assholes. Try that one to get yourself in trouble, but not to worry, most Germans usually first resort to withering looks before getting directly violent, giving you time to bail. ---
**Author:** ![TheThill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheThill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheThill)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2000, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/38 "2000-08-21T13:19:03Z")
Oops, I should have realized that umlauts are not readily accessible at my current location. That should be an u-umlaut or _Scheisstu"r_ or if you like _Scheisstuer_. I won’t even attempt the beta-s unless you want _ScheiBtu"r_. Okay, genug Scheisse… ---
**Author:** ![Tomcat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Tomcat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tomcat)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2000, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/39 "2000-08-22T11:26:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Smeghead \* > \*\*I work with a guy that speaks Polish. He’s always saying “coourva” [sp!!] - loooong o sound and a slightly rolled r. I have my guesses as to the meaning, but it sounds cool no matter what. \*\* A lot of Slavic languages have this one. In Czech its “Kurva” with a rolling ‘r’. Basically can be used as whore or prostitute. Calling a woman this is a good way to get her brother’s to hunt you down with hockey sticks. The counter cuss word for men is “Hyzl” (Hi-Zel) for bastard, asshole, etc. “Pichu” (pee-chew) is cunt. They have an idiom that even guys can say “Mam v pichu.” which translates as “I have it in my cunt.” but can be used like ‘fuck off, it doesn’t matter.’ or ‘You’re full of shit, I don’t care, leave me alone.’ The one I like is “Sakra” (Sah-Kra)which is nice not because it means anything (it doesn’t have a translation, like “oh jeez” or “Hrumph”) nasty, but it rolls off the tongue and you can say it anywhere and everyone knows your pissed-off, but even grannies use it. And friends here use “Ty volej” ‘you ox’ and “Ty krava” ‘you cow.’ But only used within the same sex and mostly friendly, because otherwise its really rude. Seeya- -T ---
**Author:** ![Yankee\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/7ea924/32.png) [@Yankee\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yankee_Blue)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2000, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796/40 "2000-08-22T14:53:34Z")
gavno - shit in Russian. drek - shit in Yiddish mierda - shit in Spanish . . . hey, I see a trend here [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-non-english-curse-words/29796.md?page=3)