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Learn Croatian Swear Words: Swear Like a Croatian Guide (Part I)
Warning: Content May Offend
I wrote a piece for an expat blogging writing competition about Croatian swear words back in 2014; well, Croatian phrases, actually. I had some great feedback from it (& it even won a gold medal), so I thought I’d share it with you all.
It seems that (most) Dalmatians love to shorten words, sing, and, as I have come to learn: swear, and swear a lot! Below are a few phrases you’ll find handy here in Dalmatia. Just a word of warning, a few might offend, so apologies upfront if you find yourself blushing at these Croatian swears.
If you want to know some general everyday phrases, we have a learn Croatian guide and language tips that may help you! But, if you want to learn how to swear in Croatian, read on for just a handful of some Croatian swear words translated for your pleasure.
Nemoj me jebat
Not the most polite of the phrases you’ll hear, but trust me, you will hear it. Maybe not heard in the shopping center or any formal situations, but if someone tells a tale that seems too incredible to believe, you’ll hear the other person say nemoj me jebat. To keep this PG, it’s essential to use your imagination a little. Dalmatians like to swear, so keep that in mind. You should know that you’d use this phrase when you’d want to say, “are you serious?” in English. But it translates to do not f*ck with me. You get the idea. If not, reach out to me, and I’ll explain.
Čaću ti jarca
Do you have stubborn kids? You may want to keep this one handy, as it’s primarily used when your kids are stubborn mules. Although I still can’t see why, as it’s a terrible phrase. It means f*ck your goat, Father. That’s right, you heard it correctly; he just mentioned your father and a goat in that way. Sometimes it’s best not to say some of these phrases but rather know what they mean when you hear them, which is one of them. Swearing in Croatian could get you some weird looks – so be warned.
Boli me kurac
Oh dear, here we go again. Of all of the Croatian swear words, this is the one that my wonderful Dalmatian husband repeats regularly, and furthermore, it contains words that I cannot type exactly. I told you Dalmatians loved to swear – did I not? You’d say this phrase when you simply do not care about what the person is telling you or what is happening around you. However, the literal translation makes zero sense to that use at all. It means that you have pain in your nether regions of the manly kind. As I said, it makes no sense, but trust me, if you met my husband or his Dalmatian friends, you’d need to know that phrase.
If you like, a slightly more polite version is boli me ona stvar which translates to, that thing hurts me, and once again, makes no sense. However, it’s used for saying, I don’t give a damn.
Kako da ne
The literal translation is how yes no. Which, of course, means nothing obvious. I heard this a few times before I realized that it simply means, of course…NOT.
Katastrofa
Catastrophe. With the same meaning in English, this Croatian swear word is not used for an ACTUAL catastrophe. It’s instead used to exaggerate your point (full explanation here). You’ll hear this in the coffee shop, at your friends’ house, and your 80-year-old Baba (Grandmother) will say it when the wind is blowing, as Croatians have an irrational fear of the wind, like the Bura. DDon’tpanic. IIt’snot actually anything to worry about—nothing of any kind. Ništa (nothing) to see or worry about. Feel free to use it as an exaggeration to highlight how you feel when you arrive at the bakery and you retold that they just sold the last Krafna of the day – katastrofa!
Ne mogu više, hvala
If you plan to visit your Croatian family and friends here in Croatia for a meal, it’s wise to ensure that you do not eat a big meal leading up to your visit. Your Croatian friends and family will throw food at your left, right, and center- especially the older ones. The same goes for drinks. You’ll have to try all of the season’s finest offerings no matter how much you say you’re longer hungry. Hungry or not, the food and drinks will keep on coming. Inevitably you’ll reach the point where you will fear that undoing the button on your pants won’t be enough and that you may actually explode. At this point, you can reach for the phrase Ne mogu više, hvala! Which means you can’t take anymore. Do not overuse this phrase or use it after only one slice of cake and a rakija, as they may not believe you.
Živjeli
This is an essential phrase if you plan to share a drink with a local. Before you take the first sip of your local wine or the heart-stopping Croatian brandy known as rakija, you’ll need to shout ŽIVJELI!!! Which is Croatian for cheers! The pounding of the glass also accompanies it on the table, and THEN you may take your first mouthful.
So there you have a few phrases that you’ll hear in Dalmatia, and if the Dalmatians you meet are like my family, they’ll love you even more if you say one back – be careful who you tell them to!
We’ve got a stack of suggestions if you are traveling to Croatia. Here are just a few:
Learn Croatian Online
We’ve been taking weekly Croatian language Skype lessons for some time now with our teacher, who provides excellent service. She is currently taking on new students, so if you’re interested in learning or improving your Croatian, now is the time.
Learning Croatian one-on-one with a language teacher via Skype. You can learn at your own pace, you have the flexibility of taking the lessons in the comfort of your own home, and you have your very own teacher to help you along the way.
JEBALO TI SLON OCA! 🙂
What about: krvi ti isusove
bogati
jeben ti mater
I just stumbled on this page by pure accident. All I can say is it’s the TOTAL TRUTH from the get go. My Baba who was born in Croatia before it was even called Yugoslavia back in the very late 1800’s. I was fortunate to meet my 2 great uncles. One who lived in our town for a while and ran a card room in the 60’s. Yes you heard all the Slav men cursing constantly (and smoking those cheap ass cigars). Maybe that’s why I’ve got the foulest mouth ever (sounds good to me). I am a Dobra/Santich by blood and my family came from and are in Prvic Luka.
Jebem ti sunce
I am a born Australian.
I met my Croatian boyfriend, when I left Home at Seventeen he was 6 months older
Than me. He left home too. His Parents were to strick . We met lived together until I turned 21 yrs we Married against his Parents and my parents Wishes.
We have Three Children, 6 Grandchildren and Two Great Grandsons.
We were with each other for 58 years.
And I lost him Six months Ago.
Wonderful Husband.
Teta, sorry for your loss.
Lovely. You got it all right. Except that none of those are swears, fighting words, all of those phrases are just a part of the everyday friendly conversation. What you need is the swear phrases Croats (yes, Bruno is right: inhabitants of Croatia are Croats) use when they are angry, when they cuss at somebody, lol. Croats use words like f*ck, c*ck, and c*nt, as helping words. I am sure whoever taught you phrases you described can also teach you how to combine those words to actually offend someone 🙂
*looks at picture*
“LEARNING HOW TO CURSE LIKE A CROATIAN.”
“Croatian” is an adjective of or relating to Croatia, its people, or their language. As a noun, it’s the language itself—not the people. “Croat” refers to a native or inhabitant of Croatia.
Why can the links to the other two parts get it right but not the picture of the first part of the guide? I’d suggest revising the picture—unless you don’t have the original and it’s too hard to find software that can do it without mangling the whole thing.
CF 0.
On occasion I heard my Dad say things. He was born in Croatia. I once. met man from there,and
and asked him what somethings meant. His comment was “Your father was a very bad .man.”
ahhaha, swearing is so Croatian, your Dad was not bad!
Sorry buddy but there isn’t any swear words here some valid points made but if you want real Croatian cussing I’ll make your page get billions of visits, my father and the rest of my family including myself swear constantly and the shit that comes out of our mouths will make your mothers vomit Orin to the kuhinja(kitchen) and grab the wooden spoon and smash it against your mouth in a way your future grandchildren will feel
And your dead Baka come back to life to just rip your ear off your head for the fuckery coming out of your mouth! Trust me cause if not, idi u picku materinu i jebi supak svoj!
otkad sam bio mlađi moja baka uvijek će vikati “peas datu mataraija” ja ne znam kako to napisati im samo 13, a ja sam čuo toliko riječi iz mog Baka. lol
It means “pizda ti materina” it’s basically the same as “picka ti materina” and it means your mother’s pussy
I am 65 years old, I now know the meaning of the swear words my mother (English) learnt from my Father (Croat) (Both decease now and at peace) which confirms my belief they were wonderful human beings of their time and of mine
I will!
Finally, a fb post I can get behind.
Love to read your blog and enjoyed the comments.
However have to make a remark about your explaining the expression ZIVJELI.
It is correct all the way but the part about the pounding the glass on the table is considered to be a gesture with an origin of ustasjki nazim if accompanied with making the form of a U on the table and is therefore considered a strong political statement. Better beware to do that!
Where did we say make a U? Please, always gotta be one hater trying to bring it down.
And my personal favorite “Pas mater”!
I moved from Southern Illinois to Chicago right out of college. I was always fascinated with other cultures and especially women of other cultures. I dated 2 Croatian and one Serbian girl as well as a sprinkle of sistas. The white girls were all 1st generation and I loved talking to their parents about their background, how they got to America, etc… My 1st Croatian gf’s father (who was from Splint) helped me put in a new bathroom in an apartment his daughter and I were living in around 1998/99ish. One of his “off-the-boat_ friends helped. Right or wrong, spend about 6 days doing an install like that with 2 heavily drinking Croatian old times and I’ll guarantee you’ll learn Croatian quickly.
A small anecdote, when she’d get a headache, she’d say glava boli. I was watching Force 10 from Navarone for the probably 900th time one day and in the scene where they’re signaling the plane at night, and it turns out to be the Luftwaffe instead of USAAF/RAF, one of the soldiers was hit and you can hear him say, “glava boli!” For some reason I was so proud of myself for knowing what it meant. I also found it neat that “glava” in some form, is the same in many Slavic languages, ie, Russian is golova, Polish is glowa….
I know that I could probably copy and paste but since this is your site, is there any way that you would speak the swear word, so we can hear what it sounds like, just like a dictionary has a word, then a sound button. It would be super to hear how it should be properly pronounced in a Croatian dialect? Yeah, great idea, eh. 🤔
How many of you followers agree with me? 👍🏼
Thanking you in advance, because I know it’s extra work, if you choose to do it.
Today’s generation swears far to much. I grew up without hearing one word of swearing around me. Men Swore in private playing cards not in front of women and children.
Oh yeah, not so much now. My 4-year old gets taught how to say some :O
Haha, so true, must start practicing for next year.
I don’t have to ,married to one ,only have to listen to him when he is in his shed working .
If not abused…I will be yelling…I just saw a site that said I’m not yelling I’m Croatian…roll on 2018! xx
I am on to this today…this is awesome!! xx
This is nothing!where is jebem ti mater,pas mater and all kind of animals in combination with mother?
haha…and where is the whole list of gods,saints and animals!!!
That was for beginning…I guess ?
I stumbled upon your website while looking for a recipe for a soup I loved while visiting family in Croatia a few years ago.
I just have to say thank you!! I laughed so much.. my dad is from Neviđane and I grew up listening to so many of these phrases. I often used to ask him what they meant but he would just smile and say don’t say them to your mother. love it!! Love your whole website.
Hi Juanita, your opening sentence up to soup had me in stitches and look where you ended up.. Just quietly both my parent were born in NEVIDANE (Otok Pasman) is your dads name Ljubo , Loui? If so know him very well . Here is one for the rest of you .. MAJKU TI JEBEM or JEBEM TI MAJKU either way just as affective. Mums the word.
“Da” in “kako da ne” doesn’t translate to “yes” but to “to”, so it’s much more like “how to no/not”, and it means just “of course”, not “of course not”, unless one is trying to be sarcastic.
Source: I’m Croatian
Well, that’s not how our Croatian family use and explain these swears so I guess we have to just agree to disagree Choban.
Kako da kazem translates: How to say
Kako da pjevam translates: How to sing
Kako da znam translates: How to know
So
Kako da ne translates: How to not
Keep em coming.
My mother used a lot of these when I was growing up. I remember them fondly, even if I never even understood what they meant when I was younger. I do remember some more, harsher ones, though.
Wanna speak like a native Croat, all you need to know is right here 😉
Lonely Planet taught me a great one I’ve never heard in real life – jebem ti sve po spisku. Everyone on your list of nearest and dearest.
These are tame for Croatians. I know MANY more
jebo te ko te napravio 😀
jebo te kruh 😀 😛
I was expecting more. Those were mild and real Croatians say a heck of a lot worse!
I still suspect swearing makes up at least 70% of the spoken language and is therefore the key to speedy fluency
I must add “……pas mater” That’s a common one. If you manage to translate that, I’m buying you a beer 🙂
jebo ti pas mater – is that fuck your dog mother?
or a dog will fuck her?
The tense is kind of undefinable, the other one is closer, good job 🙂
Mind if I add another, very popular one; picka ti materina The more I think, our language is really colorful Btw, beer’s on me on the very first occasion
my grandfather, first gen croatian -american, ALWAYS said “jebo ti pas mater”! he rarely got flustered or mad. don’t remember him swearing in English, but when he said this I knew it wasn’t good.
2 years ago, when I visited croatia, i was curious to the translation -pap wouldn’t tell me. i asked a tour guide….she giggled & blushed. that was enough for me!
I’ve finally found it! My new favorite blog! Totally on point with all of these. I could think of so many more. A couple of really good ones I’ve heard… “jebo ti prasac mater u dupe!” AND “jebala te opcina!”
A czech man I know, who lived in Croatia for a time, told me that in Croatia cussing is an art form. Totally.
Nawwww thanks Martina – yes it’s a sport here, that’s for sure 😀
How about translating please
hahahahahaha this is funny!!! I love your blog, just found it accidentally. Keep doing what you do, it’s so cool to read about our everyday life and customs, because we don’t look at it that way as you do. We don’t know how many things are strange to you (and all foreigners).
This really made me laugh!
And no, Croatians are not morons as someone said. We are just direct and more out there than other nations. This is our culture. The same goes for Serbians and Bosnians. We don’t look at cursing as a big thing because everyone talks like that and more often it’s being said as a joke. It’s more of a buzzword, than an actual curse. 9 out of 10 times you use it as a joke, that 1 time you use it to express anger/frustration/whatever…
And then you have the concatenated ones… jebitisvojumilumaterutripickemilematerinejebimateruguzicuretaju.
But this is more introduction to juicy intermediate level 😉
And then you have the concatenated ones… jebitisvojumilumaterutripickemilematerinejebimateruguzicuretajudabilijeba.
But this is more introduction to juicy intermediate level 😉
I think you didn’t mention one curse that so common in almost every situation of someones life.. ahha
MRŠ / MARŠ – it literally means “go” but in a bad way, when someone makes you sth bad then you say i.e. MRŠ U PIČKU MATERINU ( go to your mother’s pussy – yuck i know…)
and it can also be a very good RESPONSE to a curse, so if someone’s f*** ur mother be free to respond with MARŠ
we also have ĐUBRE – it’s live stock’s shit, but used for a bad person
You can’t go past “jebate pas mater” or “ajde u kurac”.
They are guaranteed at any family function.
My grand mother told me goomna in your gotchas eedie dama was you shit in your pants go home
As a South African home-owner in Stari Grad, Hvar I have heard a lot of these swear words so many times. Best of all is even the smallest of children use them as well – with no reprimands whatsoever
LOL..
🙂
Yes, it’s kinda hard expect kids not to emulate grownups…
But anyway, Croatians are notoriously politically incorrect and this is one of those things…
Btw. how long does the whole trip SA-Hvar takes?
I guess ~1 full day.
I’ve traveled long-haul a lot, but never had 11h flight without jet-lag.
🙂
One of the first Croatian words my husband taught me was “dosta” (not sure if I got the spelling right). It means “enough” and was what you told any well meaning Teta, Nona, etc as they tried to get you to eat third and fourth helpings of food. Not sure if it’s Croatian or more Istrian.
Ohhh yes, I should add that tip in also. That was my first way I learned it. It’s Croatian and is easier than ne mogu vise that is for sure. Does it work?
Croatian and Istrian are the same language… and believe it or not we do understand each other very well, although some regions do have funny accent…
Oh many I am pissing myself laughing these. Thanks for that laugh.
Just a general comment…The language you talk about is Serbo-Croatian. Serbian and Croatian are just two variants of the same language. Much like British and American English.
Really? That’s your comment?
I don’t get it why so many Serbians have this need to convince all other nations around them that they are actually Serbs, speaking Serbian language and rest of such nonsense?
Never seen any other nation doing something similar…
No, they are not.
Neither are the phrases.
No…Croatian and Serbian are different languages. Kaj ne?
They certainly do not use latin alphabet soo… if u ask aaany Croatian citizen, you’ll get an answer like this : Ne uspoređuj me sa srbinom ni pod razno ( do not compare me with a Serb “neither under different”- again makes no sense)- especially Dalmatian :’D
“Razno” in this context I would translate not as different but rather as miscellaneous. – “Do not compare me with the Serb not even under miscellaneous.” Although the meaning is the same, miscellaneous just points out to this difference we feel a little bit better. 🙂
Does anyone know what
MUSTNAFREZIA means-/
My Mom would say this when us kids would ask what’s for dinner — we always thought it meant NOTHING
But I can’t find anything on it.
Please help
Not a Croatian word, sorry
My husband, father-in-law and MOTHER-in-law are always saying “jeban ti miša!” Which I think literally translates to “f*ck your mouse”. They use it when we would typically say “shoot” or “shit.” My mother-in-law is the sweetest lady on the planet and I would never expect her to swear but I’m told it’s a Croatian thing.
Typo – I meant “jebem ti miša”
hehe,don’t forget…Jebe’mu mater when something goes wrong or Nemoj Jebat (no shit?)….yap too much of swearing and these are just the light versions of it.Better not to hear the real ones 🙂
No “k vragu”?
YIKES!
Pushe me Cududts
??? what does that mean?
i think it’s meant to be “Puši mi kurac” or “Popuši mi kurac”
literally translated “Suck my d***”
Mostly used without ANY sexual meaning or context, one of the strongest swear words out there. Often it starts a fight 😉
Btw, those last phrases are not swear words or curses. You got them right but ….
just saying
My Zagreb born husband always talks about a phrase that means “your mother’s vagina” It seems to be a swear word like an exclamation. Seems odd to me! His godfather often starts of sentence with basically “f*ck me…” And has apparently done so for years! It’s weird how swearing is very accepted! And that fear of the wind! Shutting door to stop the lovely draft in 40 degree Zagreb heat makes me want to swear!!
Baaaaahhhahaaa yes, I want to swear about that darn wind also. I love the swearing especially when they say the goat one to my son. I giggle inside every time.
aha! My dad always says that in anger. Don’t know how it’s spelled but it’s along the lines of “Piche ti materina.” It’s the best.
Pička ti materina!
This was the first thing my grandmother taught us as young kids.
We weren’t allowed to learn the language as my mother used it as a way to have private conversations with her mother in our presence.
We grew up calling our grandmother STARA CRAVA which is what our mother called her. I was 15 before she told us it means OLD COW. smh.
Bahahahahahahahha oh many I think that is HILLARIOUS!! THanks for sharing that.
Beware of “propuh” (again not sure of my spelling)
My first visit to the very WARM Adriatic coast, I was desperate for a fan!
Ha ha ha! Fans are so not allowed. When we purchased one we were given ‘that look’!
Ha, ha, ha! So true! According to Croatians propuh (light breeze) is the cause of all disesases known to them, from cold to meningitis… that includes breeze from AC as well. Most of the households actually have ACs, but they are rarely in use because of terrible propuh!
Interesting but “Ćaću ti jarca” (never heard for that) means “…your father goat ( fu*k is omitted, like {fuck} your father goat ).
“that thing hurts me, and once again makes no sense. ” It have sense but you must try to think little more apstract.
KAKO DA NE: “The literal translation is how yes no” It can be but also can be translated as “How not to” ( literal: “HOW TO NOT” ).
Like how NOT to DO something, which makes more sense. 🙂
No, that’s not right. “Kako da ne?” means “Of course” or “Obviously” (literal translation: “How not?”). You might tell someone something, they might express surprise and question the veracity of what you’re saying, and you say: “Kako da ne?”
My qualification: native Croatian speaker.
LOVE this piece (and the comments)! I hear “Kurva” on a near daily basis in London – usually from the mouths of Polish workmen 😛 Ahhh the international swear word!
Kurva in Croatian means whore, bitch etc… I’m not 100% sure but I think it means pretty in Polish.. or it was a different word, can’t really remember 😀
Regarding “boli me kurac”:
In Croatian colloquial vocabulary, the
word “kurac” (a vulgar word for penis) often means “nothing” or denotes
negation, much like the word “fuck” sometimes does in English (as in “I
don’t give a fuck”, which is as close a translation for the phrase as
there is). Example:
“Imaš duvan?” (“Do you have a smoke?”)
“Imam
kurac.” (Literally “I got dick” – incidentally, this sentence would
function in English as well, though probably not everywhere.)
As for
“boli me kurac” (“my dick hurts”), it means figuratively being in no
pain at all, the pain in question not being physical but emotional, i.
e. not caring about something in the slightest.
by a Dalmatian
“Oću kurac” literally “i want the dick” but it means ” hell no”
“Sudac jebem ti mater” literally “Referee id fuck your mother” it means “ref, id fuck your mother” 😀 ( mostly used at the football stadiums)
I live in Croatia and I have to say that half of these (Živjeli, for instance) aren’t even cuss words at all.
I can enlighten you, if you have the stomack for it.
In short, some new (hardcore) ones:
Kurac – d*ck
Kurva – prostitute/hooker
Drolja – slut
Peder – fa.g
Pička – c*nt
Jebanje – To F*** someone
Jebi se – F*-You
Odjebi – F*-off
Popuši mi – Suck it
Mater ti – Your mother…
Pičkica – same as ‘pička’, only deminutive, mostly associated with cowards
Šupak – a$$ho!e
And some soft(er) ones:
Budala – stupid/fool
Idiot – same as in English
Mutavac – mute/with speech impedament
Glupan / glupača – male and female term for stupid person
Kuja – bitch (as in bad woman)
Gad – bastard (as in bad man)
As I gather, the word “cunt” corresponds to “pizda” while “pička” corresponds to “pussy”. “Pussy” denotes a coward or a pushover while the word “cunt” is more in line with words like “jerk”, “douchebag”, “prick” or even “asshole” – in broad terms, an inconsiderate person.
Other than that, “pička” is a derogatory word for a woman, but not based on any personality trait (like kuja) but gender alone. It may also refer to an attractive woman. Finally, of course, both “pička” and “pizda” denote an actual vagina.
Also “picka” is used for good looking woman.
Dobra picka – good picka
Picka ipo – picka and a half
Cool what’s” devil on ice “my grandma would say it and I can’t remember
I know the word-for-word translation would be vrag na ledu – but what the phrase might be? Not sure.
There are a few curses with devil in it…
for example
vrag te odnija – the devil took you (weird if ur not Croatian.. I know)
vrag ti sriću odnija – the devil took your luck
vrag te jebi – it’s usual in northen Croatia (nearby Zagreb) and it means the devil fucks you
There is another one that *should* be on the list above: “Jebo sliku svoju!”. Believe or not, that one is used extensively in Croatia, and means: “(go away and) f**k a photo of yourself” 😀
How rude!!! Giggle, I’l be sure to add that to my list, thanks a bunch for sharing that one Debeli
“kako da ne” does not mean how yes no. The word “da” has other meanings in croatian other than “yes”. “Kako da” can be translated like “how to”
Nemoj me jebat 🙂 We all used to make jokes about “kako da ne” translation to English. But you’re right – word “da” may be translated as “yes” as well as “to” (or “how to” as you said).
Ahhhh this language is so tricky! Just when I think I can figure it out… nope 🙂
A more ‘acceptable’ version of ‘boli me kurac’ can be ‘boli me cosak’. Literally means, the corner hutrs me…makes no sense, but actually means you don’t give a crap about something someone said – without using real profanity 😉
That’s right, literal translation would be “how to no”; a correct one, “how about no?”
Also used as ‘if’. Da sam znala…if I knew.
Pola od ovoga uopce nisu psovke… A i izostavljene su one socnije! 😉
Ajde ne zajebavaj! (Don’t fuck with me around…..sort of…lol!)
‘boli me kurac’ you can say as ‘jebe mi se’ ..’Bog te maza’ is used as a comment to a tale similar to ‘nemoj me jebat’..hahah I’m not proud of how dirty language we have but if you hear old man doing something and makes a mistake he will for sure say ‘jeba te Bog’ wich is one of the worst swears but it is funny to hear in that situation..in Croatian you can use fuck with everything..xD and we are not morons 😉
this is just the very very tip of the ice burg.. actually just a snowflake of what u touched.. the top three r very mild swears.. the bottom 4 r nothin… just everyday kind of phrases.. if ur gonna swear.. go balls out 😉
This makes Croatians seem like morons.
Oh no! On the contrary Sage, its a skill to make a language out of nonsensical sentences. It’s all a bit of fun 🙂
I really liked this article! Nicely written and very interesting.
Hvala / Thanks
Great post! I love learning about different cultures and this is certainly something we all have in common isn’t it?
Naughty, naughty, naughty! What are the odds this will appear in the next LP language guidebook?
I’d take it!
this is great fun Mrs CtD! practice makes perfect! LOL
Love this! Zivjeli! 🙂
Thanks Katarina, if you have a suggestion for Part II let me know.
Thanks Hvala….A friend referred me to your site and it helps a lot
My dad used a lot of Jeba phrases and I would love to know what he was saying even at my old age now. What would be nice is if in parenthesis you included how you pronounce the words. I know most of them but others may not. Great site Hvala Zivjeli
Glad you liked it! I’ll think about doing that if I can find some time (very busy with the house right now). LP iz Hrvatske.
Great post! I love reading about these sorts of expressions and hearing about the almost untranslatable phrases that exist in different languages.
Well done you and I’m loving the language lesson x
Congratulations on the award 🙂 Very funny and interesting post xx
I’m not very good with languages but i love travelling 🙂 well done on your award
well done on your award! congrats! looking forward to the part 2 of your post
Many congrats on the award, well-deserved! As a lover of languages, I have long been infatuated with swear words and colloquial expressions such as the ones you wrote above. They provide invaluable glimpses into a specific culture, and should by no means be disregarded as mere “dirty” words, as they often are by prissy language buffoons. Thanks for this fun list and good luck!
I don’t know if i’m brave enough to say any back – are they big on pronunciation? Well done on your award.
LOOOOOOOL
Congrats on the award my dear and it’s made me chuckle – I might save a couple of those for use on Papasaurus 😉
Josh Ravlich Nathan Quigley Mica N Matt
Swearing with style!
Not really! For someone who does not speak the language to start swearing is frowned upon. It shows a lack of respect. Also there are many mistakes in this post.
– Baba means an old woman (hag), it is generally derogatory. Baka is the word.
– Croatians do not have an ‘irrational fear’ of wind. For centuries we have known the damage hurricane force winds can do – Rip off roofs, uproot trees and sink boats.
– Ne mogu vise: It is impolite to refuse a second helping. Therefore you should take a smaller first serving, then a second. Then you can say you are full.
– Zivjeli. You should look the person in the eyes when you say it. Plus there are more “Croatian” words for cheers.
Perhaps you should research a post for common, polite traditions as opposed to swear words. E.g. a man should always shake the lady’s hand before the man’s.
This reply is not supposed to be rude, I am just trying to inform you how things are. I see many foreigners come here and leave very quickly because they cannot, or refuse, to fit in.
regards, Nina X
Thanks for stopping by Nikolina. To respond to you, this post was tongue in cheek, it’s not meant to be so serious. There are many ways to say lots of things in Croatian, Zivjeli is just the main one we use, and you might not know, but where we live, almost all of the Grandmothers are known as Baba, in addition to Baka. My post is not meant to be derogatory, at all. In fact if you had read more than this one post you would see that I am learning the language and doing many things to as you say ‘fit in’.
I do like your suggestion for polite traditions, so stay tuned you may just see that written up one day. Wishing you and your family a great New Year.
In the coastal region of Croatia (Dalmatia) word “baba” is not even derogatory as in continental part of Croatia. It’s just dalmatian word for baka.
For example i always called my grandmother in Dalmatia “baba” and that was normal thing to do, but when i first tried to do that with my other grandmother in Zagreb she was really mad.
Happy New Year Nikolina!
Welcome to the 21st Century and the beautiful diversity of Croatian Culture 😀
I don’t find your reply rude at all but boy is it condescending??!!
This is obviously a ‘tongue in cheek’ and light hearted piece meant to make people laugh and smile – certainly had me giggling!!! There a by no means any mistakes in the post at all!
Kudos to Mrs CtD for such a well written and enjoyable post about the everyday stuff :)))))
How did I miss this? Thanks Mirela for kindly standing up for me. I am so very glad that you liked it.
I have to say I totally disagree with your comment and I won’t mention everything wrong that you wrote but just one: “Baba is generally derogatory”??? Are you serious??? Have you ever visited Dalmatia?
If yes please do it again because it seems that you are one of the rare persons who got it all wrong.
Have a nice day!
Domagoj
“E.g. a man should always shake the lady’s hand before the man’s.”
That is little old fashion, no one cares for that anymore.
“Zivjeli. You should look the person in the eyes when you say it. Plus there are more “Croatian” words for cheers.”
Yes but that one is almost ISO standard along with “Nazdravlje”.
All others are very rare used ( i cannot remember any other in fact ).
In Dalmatia, especially the Velebit aria, you really won’t hear the word BAKA for grandma… My grandpa ( DIDA ) was born on Velebit and I lived in Zadar for few years, so I know what I’m talking about… BABA is and old woman, but Croatian is a tricky language… So SJ from your point of view BABA is totally fine!
haha this post is brilliant! and congrats on the award 🙂 x
Congrats on the gold award! Such a funny post 🙂 x
Loved this post, hilarious! There are quite a few brilliant Bavarian phrases, I just wish I could understand more! 😀 PS. Congrats on the win! 🙂
“tako je kako je” is handy. “That’s how it is”, or the currently popular english phrase “it is what it is”.
“Kako da ne” is a joke translation, AFAIK first done by Bosnian comedian group. The real translation is “How [could it be] that [it would] not [be so]”, or “How could it be otherwise”, used as “by all means” or “of course”, or in the (arguably more prevalent) sarcastic sense of “yeah, right, no way.”
Thanks for sharing that Amadan and for also stopping by, hope to see you back here again soon. Have a great weekend.
Wow, congratulations on the gold award! Great post!
OMG, this reminds me of Polish- the words may be different, but we also swear a lot. IN fact it is possible to say a whole long sentence using only swear words and not once repeat yourself. I liked the “Kako da ne”- in Polish we say: “Jak nie jak tak” which means “how no when yes”, meaning “you can do it”- similar but different. Thanks for sharing this list, Croatian seems like a cute language!
Mrs…thank you for bringing fraction of our huge swearing dictionary. But this is way too short list about swearing in Croatia (especially in Dalmatia). It has to bee your husband is very nice and don’t swear at all 🙂
At my first clue…there is lot of dropped expressions like :
“napuši se kurca”, “jeben te blesava”, “pička ti materina”, “jebala ti sebe”, “jebala ti sliku svoju”, “nabijem te na kiticu cvijeća (kurac)”, ” ‘ko te jebe moj tetrijebe”, “pušiona”, “pričaš pizdarije”, “sviraš kurcu”, and much…muuucccchhh more….