قليل الأدب (Qalil al'adab)
What does قليل الأدب (Qalil al'adab) mean? قليل الأدب (Qalil al'adab) is a Arabic moderate that translates to “ill-mannered / rude / disrespectful” in English.
Literal Translation
of little literature/manners
Meaning & Usage
"ill-mannered / rude / disrespectful"
A criticism of someone's upbringing, implying they lack social grace and respect.
Examples in the Wild
أنت قليل الأدب! (You are ill-mannered!)
When to Use It
Context
- Casual conversations with friends
- Informal settings where profanity is accepted
- Direct confrontation (use with caution)
Avoid
- Professional or formal settings
- Job interviews, meetings, or customer-facing situations
Cultural Context
A serious social critique in a culture that highly values politeness ('adab') and proper upbringing. Less vulgar than profanity, but deeply cutting to one's social standing.
More in Arabic 🇸🇦
View all →شرموطة (Sharmouta)
“bitch / whore / slut”
A highly offensive term for a woman, implying she is a prostitute or extremely promiscuous.
زبي (Zubbi)
“my dick / fuck off / I don't care”
The Arabic word for penis in its possessive form — 'my dick.' Functions identically to 'dick' in English: anatomical term, exclamation of frustration, and dismissal all in one. 'Zubbi feek' (my dick in you) is the standard Levantine escalation. On its own, 'zubbi!' is what you shout when you stub your toe or your team concedes a goal.
تلحس طيزي (Telhas teeze)
“kiss my ass”
A vulgar phrase of strong dismissal and disrespect.
كس أمك (Kus ummak)
“motherfucker / fuck you”
Considered one of the most offensive Arabic swear words. It directly attacks a person's mother, which is the ultimate violation of family honor.
كلب ابن كلب (Kalb ibn kalb)
“son of a bitch squared / absolute scum”
Doubling down on the dog insult — you're not just a dog, your father was also a dog. It's the Arabic technique of compounding insults for emphasis: if kalb is bad and ibn el kalb (already in seed) is worse, kalb ibn kalb is the full lineage attack. Your entire family tree is canine. No human was involved at any point.
عرص (Ars)
“pimp / scumbag / bastard”
An insult implying a man is a pimp, or worse, someone who pimps out his own female relatives (a cuckold with no honor).
قحبة (Qahba)
“whore / slut”
The standalone word for whore — while 'ibn el qahba' (son of a whore) is already in the seed file, the word 'qahba' by itself is a direct attack on a woman (or feminizing attack on a man). It's the classical Arabic word for prostitute, appearing in medieval texts, and it has never softened. Across every dialect, qahba retains maximum impact.
كس أختك (Kuss ukhtak)
“fuck your sister”
Wait — 'كس أختك (Kess ikhtak)' is already in the seed file. But this entry notes it's listed with the Lebanese pronunciation 'Kess ikhtak' while the broader Arabic rendering 'Kuss ukhtak' differs in dialect. Skipping this — duplicate detected.