Finnish
10 Finnish swear words you'll actually hear
A traveller's shortlist of Finnish expletives, insults and exclamations — what they mean, and how strong they are.
Every language swears differently. This guide collects 10 Finnish expressions you're genuinely likely to hear — from mild exclamations to properly strong stuff — and explains what each one actually means, not just its dictionary translation.
Burn Ratings are an approximate, cross-language heuristic. Context, region, tone and who's speaking all change how a word lands. Treat these as a guide, not gospel.
- 1hitto 2/5 · Coarse
Mild exclamation roughly like damn. Milder than the strongest Finnish swearing.
Full entry → - 2
- 3kusta 2/5 · Coarse
Literally “urinate”. Coarse verb meaning to piss. Also figurative in expressions about failure.
Full entry → - 4paskanmarjat 2/5 · Coarse
Literally “shit berries”. Exclamation dismissing something as nonsense. Can be humorous.
Full entry → - 5persaukinen 2/5 · Coarse
Literally “open-arsed”. Broke; having no money. Informal description, potentially disparaging.
Full entry → - 6haista paska 3/5 · Vulgar
Literally “smell shit”. Hostile dismissal roughly like fuck off. Directed insult rather than a literal request.
Full entry → - 7helvetisti 3/5 · Vulgar
Literally “hellishly”. Vulgar intensifier meaning a lot or extremely. Strength depends on audience.
Full entry → - 8hevonpaska 3/5 · Vulgar
Literally “horse shit”. Bullshit or complete nonsense. Dismissive figurative use.
Full entry → - 9juosten kustu 3/5 · Vulgar
Literally “pissed while running”. Something done carelessly or very badly. Fixed idiomatic description.
Full entry → - 10kusettaa 3/5 · Vulgar
To deceive or con someone; also to feel a need to urinate. Interpret from context.
Full entry →