merda
What does “merda” mean in English?
This means 'shit' and can describe something of poor quality. It literally translates to 'excrement.'
Literally “excrement”
You might hear it as an exclamation similar to 'shit!' in English, often used to express frustration or disappointment. It's commonly understood across Italy.
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Related Italian words
merdoso
3/5 · VulgarIt means something is nasty or of poor quality, often used to describe situations or things. Literally, it translates to 'shitty.'
merdaio
3/5 · VulgarIt refers to a filthy mess or a disastrous situation. The literal translation is 'shit heap,' which captures the essence of something being a total wreck.
merdata
3/5 · VulgarIt refers to a nasty act, a mess, or something worthless. The literal translation is 'shit thing,' which captures the unpleasantness of the term.
cagare
3/5 · VulgarIt means to shit, used as a coarse verb in everyday language. It literally translates to 'defecate.'
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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 (CC-BY-4.0). Editorial content © Swear Atlas.