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Arabic swear words, curses and insults – a list

A list of Arabic swear words and curses. Collected from Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Tunisia and other Arab countries.

Last updated: 2 months ago

WARNING: In this article you will find explicit, graphic language. Furthermore, I strongly discourage any reader – especially non-native speakers – to use any of these !

In daily life, when listening to native Arabic speakers, sadly enough, you will encounter swear words – like in most other languages, of course. It is quite difficult to look them up in dictionaries or even to correctly identify them as insults.

I have compiled a list of frequent Arabic swear words and curse words (Schimpfwörter und Fluchwörter for the German readers).

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In my opinion, it is important to know which words people might throw at you. Thus, it is important to know swear words – but NOT, I repeat, NOT to use them!

I can only strongly underline that people should not use such words – especially, if you are from outside and may harm people's feelings without even knowing it.

How did I compile this list? I have asked friends, listened to street conversation, and analyzed chat language.

Of course such a list can never be comprehensive. It should only give you an idea and some hints to identify situations when people use such strong words.

If you know any other expressions which are used as swear words or curses, please feel free to add them by using the comment section!

Note that many swear words listed under a certain country on this page may also be used in other countries.

About the nature of Arabic swear words

It is usually about sex or animals – that's basically not really different compared to other languages. However, there are some specialties which are related to Arab culture which we will examine now:

Oftentimes, when people want to insult another person, they use words which are related to women:

  • … by insulting a person's mother or sister – because the mother is kind of sacred in Arabic culture.
  • … by using words that describe women's genitals. The most infamous, filthy Arabic swear word is probably “kuss ummak” (kiss immak) which literally means “your mother's vagina“.

Words that accuse men of being feminine

Besides, you will hear swear words that use the following ingredients: people use expressions that describe men as feminine: for example, by accusing them of looking like women or behaving like women. Often this comes down to call other people “gay”.

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Egyptian Arabic swear words

Son of…

Ibn el-Labwa (ابن اللبوة) – son of a bitch

Ya-bn-el-mitneka (يا ابن المتناكة) – son of a bitch

Ibne-sharmouta (ابن الشرموطة) – son of a bitch (whore)

Ibn el-Fash-kha (ابن الفشخة) – son of a bitch


Ars (عرص) – pimp (قَوّاد). Sometimes also in the meaning of jerk (شخص أحمق).

What is the origin and literal meaning of the word ars?

Ars (عرص) is probably one of the most common insults in . What does it literally mean? It is, in fact, pretty difficult to translate. It became infamous recently. When the current leader of the regime, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, seized power in the 2013 coup d'état, a twitter hashtag was trending: “Vote for the pimp” (#انتخبوا_العرص‎).

Now, where does the word عرص come from?
It is an expression that was probably coined during the British colonial period in Egypt. In line with the policies of the English occupier, prostitution in Egypt was a legal and permissible economic activity. Egyptians used the term during the British colonial era to denote a policeman who monitors prostitutes in their profession (حارس الرذيلة).

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Baa' boos (بعبوص) – middle finger

Hanikak (هنيكك) – I will fuck you

Remark: A lot of slang and insults are based on the verb “naak” (ناكَ) in the past or in the : “yaneek” (يَنيكُ). It is a verb, used in several dialects, which expresses “to have sexual intercourse”; vulgar: to fuck someone.


Khawal (خول) – gay

Loty (لوطي) – gay

Ya gazma (يا جزمة) – fuck you! (literally, the word means shoes)

Zebby febo'ak (زبي في بقك) – my penis in your mouth!

Ya zebala (يا زبالة) – you piece of garbage!

Levantine (Syrian and Lebanese) Arabic swear words

Son of…

Ibne-sharmouta (ابن الشرموطة) – son of a bitch (whore)

Ibnel ghahba (ابن القحبة) – son of a whore

Ibnel ahbe (ابن الاحبة) – son of a whore

Ibnel aahra (ابن العاهرة) – son of a bitch

Ibnel balla'a (ابن البلاعة) – son of a cock sucker

Ibnel memhoune (ابن الممحونة) – son of a horny/very slutty bitch


My penis/cock in…

Airi feek (ايري فيك) – my penis in… (often, you will hear the preposition ب). It denotes “fuck you” when someone is dissing a person. Literally, it means “my dick is in you“. It is used in Lebanon and Syria as well. It does not necessarily express an insult. Young people use the expression among friends (usually male only). It is typically only said to men.

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Airi bikhtak (ايري باختك) – my penis in your sister

Airi bimmak (ايري بامك) – my penis in your mother

Airi bsittak (ايري بستك) – my penis in your grandmother

Airi babuk (ايري بابوك) – my penis in your father

Airi betizak (ايري بطيزك) – my penis in your ass

Airi bebzezat ikhtak (بيري ببزيزات اختك) – my penis between your sister's tits

Airi beshafrat kiss immak (ايري ببخش طيزا لامك) – my penis in your mother's asshole


Akroot (عكروت) – jerk

Biddi inkahak (بدي انكحك) – I will fuck you!

Nayik ikhtak (نايك اختك) – Fuck your sister!

Ib'etli ikhtak (ابعتلي اختك) – send me your sister (to fuck her)!

Zebetly likhtak (زبطلي اختك) – Prepare your sister for me to fuck her!

Kiss immak (كس امك) – you mother's vagina

Khrinte (خرنتة) – sissy

Firshaye (فرشاية) – oral sex

Muss airi (مص ايري) – suck my cock

Ruh intak (روح انتاك) – Fuck off!

Shrab minne (سراب منة) – Drink cum!

Dahri aleik (ضهري عليك) – I will cum on you!

Tilhas airi (تلحس ايري) – lick my cock

Tilhas beidi (تلحس بيضي) – lick my balls

Tilhas bekh-shi (تلحس بخشي) – lick my ass(hole)!

Kharaya aleik (خرايا عليك) – my shit on you!

Yil'an kiss immak (يلعن كس امك) – damn your mother's vagina!

Qawwad (قواد) – pimp [also, like in Egypt, ars (عرص) is used].

Dayous (ديوث) – pimp


Ya kalb (يا كلب) – You dog!

Ya-hmar (يا حمار) – you idiot! (literally, donkey)

Allah yel'ena'k (الله يلعنك) – Allah damn you!

Yikhreb beitak (يخرب بيتك) – Allah shall destroy your house!

Tunisian Arabic swear words

Barra nayk (بارا نايك) – Fuck you (avery strong insult)

Mossi krary (مصلي كرارزي) – suck my balls

Malhat (ملحات) – bitch

Asba ala Sormek (اصبع على صرمك) Get a penis in your hole (vagina)!

Zaaka (زاكا) – ass

Nouna (ا) – clitoris

Hawi (خاوي) – impotent

Other Arabic dialects

Makwah (مكوه) – ass (in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf dialects)

Jarrar (جرار) – pimp (in Saudi Arabic)

Ayre billi bazzarak (ايري بيلي بزرك) – it is used in the meaning of: screw the one who brought you to life!

Khaneeth el-‘oud (خنيث العود) – fucking asshole (in Bahraini Arabic)

Memsouk (ممسوخ) – gay (in Moroccan Arabic)

Pejorative expressions associated with LQBTQ

shadhdh (شاذ) – sexual deviant

luTiy (لوطي) – sodomite

su7aaqiyya (سحاقية) – sapphist

For effeminate male, there are many insults in colloquial Arabic:

  • mukhannath (مخنث)
  • khaniith (خنيث)
  • khunthaa (خنثى)
  • mista2nith (مستأنث)
  • khawwal (خول) – Egypt
  • manyak (منيك) – Levant
  • banuuti (بنوتي) – Levant
  • jiru (جرو) – Iraq
  • farikh (فرخ) – Iraq
  • zanaana (زنانة) – Iraq
  • zaamil (زامل) – Morocco

The following expressions mean a man who has sex with boys

  • taba3 awlad (تبع أولاد) – Levant
  • qarram (قرام) – Iraq
  • abu al-walad (أبو الولد) – Iraq
  • bizranji (بزرنجي) – Saudi-Arabia
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Seussical
Seussical
2 years ago

Would the intimate phrases be okay to use for consenual intimacy? I’m writing a spicy novel, and the female character speaks arabic.

wiley ramey
wiley ramey
2 years ago

I thought there were expressions which evoke desert animals and generations of curse on descendants Like may the dogs of the desert consume your entrails and and may the dogs evacuate their bowels on your remains ( some more graphic descriptions of your desired fate )

obviouslyyuta@gmail.com
obviouslyyuta@gmail.com
3 months ago

well there are also the less explicit curses used by the elder generation, especially around like young people. Typically consisting of calls of litteral curses and endless suffering.”يلعن ___ ” as in “god curse ____” insert your mom, your sister, you, this anythingor”الله لا يوفقك” as in “may god never help you succede in anything””الله ياخدك” ” may god take you[r life]””يبعتلك حمى /بردية/ وباء” “may [god] he give you a fever/make you sick”and maybe this is just a, my community thing, but this is how we swear.

Last edited 3 months ago by obviouslyyuta@gmail.com
N. Schist
N. Schist
3 years ago

Since I’m somewhat fluent in MSA reading these CERTAINLY made me cringe in mortification lol. It feels like swearing in my own native tongue (which I never do bc it’s… very harsh, to me). English just goes for the Fs but man Arabic is brutal like my language… anyway thanks for compiling this list bc elsewhere I’ve seen really dumb literal translations of Arabic slang and curses. “Make Out in Arabic” comes to mind bc it’s just… Bad. Let’s superimpose English on Arabic and have literal translations of Eng to Arb!! Instead of actually using the regional Ar slang!! As I said, dumb.

Marian
Marian
4 years ago

Jesse, I agree with you!
Moreover, it is courageous to post it. But I can imagine it also must have been a hilarious job to write it. Anyway, I enjoyed it a lot, had a good laugh and I realized that we (the Dutch) are very boring in our way of expressing our fear and anger.
Swearwords may not be politically correct, but the dirt inside sometimes needs to be spit out in order to make room again for some fresh air.
Gerald did a good job to not hide these words in the secret drawer of some old sideboard.

Jesse
Jesse
4 years ago

Thank you so much for putting this together. This can’t have been easy or comfortable to compile. Naturally, theses are not the sort of things I’d say to people, but useful to know when I encounter these terms on the streets or hear them in a movie.

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