What does “妈的” mean in English?
This is a short exclamation similar to saying 'damn' or 'fuck' in English. It literally translates to 'mother's,' but it's used more as an expression of frustration or anger.
Literally “mother's”
You'll hear it as a quick outburst, often in response to annoyance. It carries a similar weight to 'damn' but can feel a bit stronger depending on the context.
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Related Chinese words
屌
4/5 · Strongdiǎo
This term literally means 'penis' but is often used as a vulgar intensifier in slang. It can express strong emotions or emphasize a point.
鸡巴
4/5 · Strongjī ba
This is a very crude term for 'penis' in Mandarin. It's among the most vulgar ways to refer to male genitalia.
他妈的
4/5 · Strongtā mā de
This is a strong exclamation or intensifier similar to 'fucking' in English. It literally translates to 'his mother's,' but that's not how it's used in conversation.
放屁
3/5 · Vulgarfàngpì
It means 'fart' in the literal sense, but it's also used to dismiss someone's words as bullshit.
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About this data
Swear Atlas is a source-attested, AI-curated reference — not a native-speaker-certified dictionary. Meanings and the 1–5 Burn Rating are approximate editorial assessments that vary with context, region, tone and speaker. Inclusion of a word does not constitute endorsement of its use.
The literal gloss is a short editorial translation to show word-for-word sense, not an etymological claim.
“Sounds like” is an English-friendly approximation of how the word sounds, not an authoritative pronunciation. Where shown, the romanisation is a conventional Latin-script transliteration of the original spelling.
Term attested via LDNOOBW, 4troDev/profanity.csv, Viddexa SafeText (CC-BY-4.0, MIT). Editorial content © Swear Atlas.