Foul language (Advanced): Common swear words and phrases

💬 Quel + noun means "What a ...!". The same pattern gives Quel dommage ! "What a shame!".

🇫🇷 Between close friends, mon con "my idiot" can be affectionate. From a stranger it is an insult.

💬 In con the n is silent and the vowel goes through the nose (kohn). In conne the n is pronounced fully (kon).

💬 It often just means "that's a shame" or "that's silly", as in C'est con, j'ai raté le train "Too bad, I missed the train".

💬 The -ard ending makes con stronger and more insulting. It is aimed at men.

🇫🇷 A harsh insult for a man. For a woman, the matching form is salope, which is even more explosive.

🇫🇷 This is one of the harshest insults in French. Learn to recognise it, not to use it.

🇫🇷 A very strong insult, often heard in fights or very aggressive speech. This is not casual banter unless the speakers are being deliberately extreme.

💬 En stands for "about it" and goes before the verb. A softer version is Je m'en fiche "I don't care".

💬 Careful French would say Je n'en ai rien à foutre. In speech the ne almost always disappears.

💬 Here foutre simply replaces faire "to do". Saying Qu'est-ce que tu fais ? gives the neutral version.

💬 The words literally say "give me the peace". The polite version is Laisse-moi tranquille "Leave me alone".

🇫🇷 This is a fight-starter. Expect a confrontation if you say it to a stranger.

💬 Gueule is the word for an animal's mouth, which is why it's rude when used for a person. La bouche "mouth" is the normal word.

🇫🇷 This is everyday and inoffensive. You can say it at work or to your family without raising eyebrows.

🇫🇷 It is milder than the English suggests, closer to "I've had it up to here". It's fine in casual company.

💬 Craindre normally means "to fear". In casual speech, ça craint just means something is bad or sketchy.

💬 The opening em sounds like "ahn", so the phrase comes out roughly as (tu mahn-mair-d). The word is built on merde.

💬 For a woman the word becomes emmerdeuse.

🇫🇷 It is very common among colleagues and friends for anything tedious. It's still too crude for a meeting with your manager.