Dutch profanity
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Dutch profanity can be divided into several categories. Often, the words used in profanity by speakers of Dutch are based around various names for diseases. In many cases, these words have evolved into slang, and many euphemisms for diseases are in common use.
Additionally, a substantial number of curse words in the Dutch language are references to sexual acts, genitalia, or bodily functions. Religious curse words also make up a considerable part of the Dutch profanity vocabulary. Aside from these categories, the Dutch language has many words that are only used for animals; these words are insulting when applied to people. English terms often complement the Dutch vocabulary, and several English curse words are commonly in use.
Because of the prominence of the diminutive in the Dutch language, most nouns used in Dutch profanity can also be said or written in their diminutive forms.
The words listed here are mostly used in the Netherlands, not in the Flemish part of Belgium where Dutch is also spoken.
Profanity which involves diseases are commonly used in the language.
| achterlijk | Achterlijk ("retarded") had been used as a word to denote mentally disabled people in the past. It is commonly used as an insult. A humorous variation, "achterlijke gladiool" ("retarded gladiolus"), was first lexicalized in 1984. |
| debiel | Debiel ("incapable" or "infirm") is a term for people with a developmental disorder. It is commonly used as an insult. |
| downie | Downie has the same meaning as the English "downy", referring to people with Down's Syndrome. |
| idioot | Idioot means "idiot". Also used in Afrikaans as equal to "idiot". |
| kanker | Kanker means "cancer". It can be used as a strong expletive, as an adjective or as an adverb. Krijg de kanker ("get cancer") is used as an insult. In slang, it can also have a positive meaning. For example, kankerlekker can mean "extremely good tasting" or even "very attractive". Even when used this way in its positive meaning, the word can still be considered very offensive and its use is strongly discouraged. "Kanker" can be paired with nearly any insult to intensify it. The word is sometimes shortened to its historical euphemism K, or in slang kk or kkr. |
| kankerlijer | Kankerlijer means "cancer sufferer". It is a strong insult: an example of its legal status can be found in a 2008 court case, in which using the word kankerlijer to insult a police officer was cited as a serious offense. |
| klere | Klere is a slang word for cholera. It can be used as an expletive, as an adjective or as an adverb. Kolere is a common variation. |
| klerelijer | Klerelijer is a slang word meaning "cholera sufferer". It is used as an insult, and roughly analogous to "motherfucker". |
| kolere | Kolere is a slang word for cholera. It can be used as an expletive, as an adjective or as an adverb. Klere is a common variation. |
| krijg de... | To wish a disease upon someone, the words krijg de... ("catch the...", "get the...", "contract the...") are typically used. Examples include krijg de tering, krijg de tyfus, krijg de kanker, krijg de pest, krijg de takke, krijg de klere, krijg het lazarus and the more euphemistic (but more old-fashioned) krijg de ziekte. In standard Dutch, the article is superfluous or incorrect in these phrases, and consequently "de" and "het" are only paired with disease names in context of profanity. |
| lazarus | Lazarus is a euphemism for leprosy. Krijg het lazarus ("catch the leprosy") is uncommonly used as an insult. It is more often used as slang for getting very drunk, comparable to "shitfaced". |
| lijer | Lijer (literally: "sufferer") is a noun and suffix. It is correctly spelled "lijder", but the "d" becomes silent in slang. It is used both as a standalone insult and in combination with diseases, such as kankerlijer, klerelijer, pleurislijer, pokke(n)lijer, takkelijer, teringlijer and tyfuslijer. |
| mongool | Mongool ("mongoloid") is a common insult, referring to Down syndrome. Its diminutive mongooltje is often used as a somewhat more neutral or affectionate term for people with Down syndrome, although it is not considered politically correct. Kankermongool ("cancer-mongoloid", idiomatically "fucking retard") is a common variation: see kanker. Some people use mogool. Also frequently used in Afrikaans. |
| minkukel | Minkukel is a neologism introduced by a famous Dutch comics writer, Marten Toonder. It is incorrectly used to denote somebody with a small (minor) brain or low IQ. According to the writer it is actually a positive quality, as a lack of pretence and ego. |
| pest | Pest (literally: "plague", compare "pestilence") can be used as an adjective or as an adverb. The verb pesten means "to bully" (whereas the etymologically related "plagen" means "to tease"). "De pest in hebben" ("to have the plague in") means "to be irritated". The word is sometimes shortened to its historical euphemism P. |
| pestkop | Literally meaning "plague head", a pestkop is someone who engages in bullying. See pest and kop. |
| pleur(it)is | Pleuris, or less commonly pleuritis, is a slang word for tuberculosis (compare tering), originally referring to any form of lung infection. It can be used as an expletive, as an adjective or as an adverb. Krijg de pleuris ("catch the tuberculosis") is also commonly used. As with tering, the phrase "alles ging naar de pleuris" ("everything went to the tuberculosis", analogous to "everything went to hell/shit") is commonly used. As a verb, the word oppleuren (literally "to tuberculosis off") can mean "to fuck off" (compare optiefen under tyfus). |
| pleurislijer | Pleurislijer is a slang word meaning "tuberculosis sufferer". It is used as an insult, and roughly analogous to "motherfucker". |
| polio | Polio is uncommon as a curse word, and is mostly heard in the phrase "heb je soms polio?" ("do you have polio or something?"), which can be used to insult someone's perceived laziness. The Genootschap Onze Taal (Dutch Language Society) has noted a rise in the use of polio as an expletive and adjective in the Rotterdam area, and describes it as a possible alternative to the more severe kanker. |
| pokke(n) | Pokke(n) (correctly spelled "pokken") is a slang word for smallpox. It can be used as an adjective or as an adverb. |
| pokke(n)lijer | Pokke(n)lijer is a slang word meaning "smallpox sufferer". It is used as an insult, and roughly analogous to "motherfucker". |
| stom | Stom (literally: "unintelligent", "dumb", "mute") can be used an intensifier when using curse words. Examples are "stomme hoer" ("dumb whore") and "stomme kut" ("dumb cunt"). stommeling is the person who is considered stupid. |
| takke | Takke (from the French "attaque") is a slang word for stroke. It can be used an adjective or as an adverb. Krijg de takke ("have the stroke") is used as an insult. A common variation is takkewijf ("stroke woman"): see also wijf. |
| tering | Tering is a slang word for tuberculosis. It is short for "vertering" (literally: "digestion"; compare English "consumption"). It can be used as an expletive, as an adjective or as an adverb. Vliegende tering ("flying tuberculosis") is a humorous variation, originally referring to sudden-onset tuberculosis. Krijg de tering ("catch the tuberculosis") is used as an insult. Other words for tuberculosis include TB and TBC, which were historically used as euphemisms, owing to the fact that names of diseases were considered profane. As with pleuris, the phrase "alles ging naar de tering" ("everything went to the tuberculosis", analogous to "everything went to hell") is commonly used. |
| teringlijer | Teringlijer is a slang word meaning "tuberculosis sufferer". It is used as an insult, and roughly analogous to "motherfucker". |
| tyfus | Tyfus is a word for typhoid fever. It can be used as an expletive, as an adjective or as an adverb. Krijg de tyfus ("catch the typhoid fever") is used as an insult. The variation optiefen ("to typhoid off") is analogous to "fuck off" (compare oppleuren under pleuris). Sanders and Tempelaars (1998) note tiefttering ("typhoid tuberculosis") as a variation common in Rotterdam. |
| tyfuslijer | Tyfuslijer is a slang word meaning "typhoid fever sufferer". It is used as an insult, and roughly analogous to "motherfucker". |
| vinkentering | Vinkentering (literally: "finch tuberculosis") is noted by Sanders and Tempelaars (1998) as an expression that is typical in the Rotterdam vocabulary. A noted humorous variation is krijg de (vliegende) vinkentering ("catch the (flying) finch tuberculosis"). |
| ziekte | Ziekte (literally: "sickness", "illness" or "disease") is used in the expression krijg de ziekte ("catch the disease"). It is a euphemism that can be used for various afflictions. Older variations include drinken als de ziekte ("to drink like the disease"). Ziek can also be used as an adjective, much in the same sense that "sick" in English is used. |
References
- Dutch profanity. (2023, January 22). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_profanity
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