engueuler
What does engueuler mean? engueuler is a French moderate that translates to “to yell at, to chew out” in English.
Literal Translation
to mouth off at (from gueule — animal mouth)
Meaning & Usage
"to yell at, to chew out"
To scold someone loudly and aggressively. Built from 'gueule' (animal's mouth), the word literally means to use your mouth like an animal at someone. 'S'engueuler' (reflexive) means to have a shouting match. It's crude but widely accepted — even news anchors use it.
Examples in the Wild
'Ma mère m'a engueulé' — my mom chewed me out. 'Ils s'engueulent tout le temps' — they fight all the time. Used about couples, coworkers, parents.
When to Use It
Context
- Casual conversations with friends
- Informal settings where profanity is accepted
- As a spontaneous exclamation
- Direct confrontation (use with caution)
Avoid
- Professional or formal settings
- Job interviews, meetings, or customer-facing situations
Cultural Context
One of those French vulgarisms that's been fully mainstreamed. 'Ils se sont engueulés' (they had a fight) is standard French, used in newspapers and by politicians. The word fills a gap — French doesn't have a clean equivalent for 'to yell at someone angrily,' so this vulgar option became the default.
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Female dog; used as insult toward women.
se barrer
“to get out, to bolt, to take off”
Another crude way to say 'to leave,' slightly less aggressive than 'se casser.' 'Barre-toi' is 'get out of here.' 'Je me barre' is 'I'm leaving.' The word implies leaving quickly, sometimes covertly — sneaking out of a boring party or fleeing a bad situation.
con / conne
“stupid / idiot / asshole (fem: bitch)”
Originally vulgar slang for female genitalia (cunt), now primarily means 'stupid' or 'idiot' in France. The feminine 'conne' is more offensive than 'con'.
crade
“gross, filthy, nasty”
Slang contraction of 'crasseux' (filthy) that became its own word. It describes anything disgustingly dirty — a room, a person, a habit. Less intense than 'dégueulasse' but covers the same territory. The extended form 'cradingue' adds emphasis through its playful suffix.
raclure
“scum, lowlife, bottom-feeder”
What you scrape off the bottom of a pot — the residue, the dregs. Applied to a person, it means they're the lowest of the low, the scum of society. It's a creative insult that paints a vivid picture of worthlessness.
nique
“fuck”
The raw verb form of 'niquer,' used on its own as a crude exclamation or command. Unlike 'baiser,' which has a polite meaning (to kiss) that was slowly corrupted, 'niquer' has always been purely vulgar — borrowed from Arabic and arriving in French already loaded.
chier
“to shit / to annoy”
To defecate; also used in expressions meaning 'to annoy' or 'bore'.
dégueulasse
“disgusting, gross, nasty”
The go-to French word for expressing physical or moral disgust. It covers everything from a filthy bathroom to a politician's corruption scandal. Shortened to 'dégueu' in casual speech, which somehow sounds even more disgusted despite being shorter.