срать (srat')

sratʲscatological

What does срать (srat') mean? срать (srat') is a Russian moderate that translates to “to shit / to not give a shit” in English.

to shit

01

"to shit / to not give a shit"

The vulgar verb for defecating, but its figurative uses are more common. 'Мне срать' (I shit on it) means 'I don't care at all' — stronger than 'мне похуй' in some dialects, weaker in others. 'Насрать' (to shit on something) means to completely disregard.

'Мне насрать на его мнение' (I don't give a shit about his opinion). Said with demonstrative indifference.

Context

  • Casual conversations with friends
  • Informal settings where profanity is accepted

Avoid

  • Professional or formal settings
  • Job interviews, meetings, or customer-facing situations

Cultural Context

Not classified as мат (the four-root system), but definitely vulgar. This distinction matters in Russia — since the 2014 anti-mat law, words like 'срать' technically remain legal in media while 'хуй'-derived equivalents don't. The line between мат and merely vulgar language is a genuine legal question in Russian courts.

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2 / 5insult

идиот (idiot)

ɪdʲɪˈot

idiot

Same word, same meaning, borrowed from Greek via French like its English counterpart. But in Russian it has a literary weight that the English version lacks — Dostoevsky's novel 'Идиот' (The Idiot, 1869) gave the word a philosophical dimension. Prince Myshkin is the 'idiot' — genuinely good in a world that considers goodness stupid.

3 / 5exclamation

ёпт (yopt)

jopt

fuck / shit

A truncated exclamation — essentially the first syllable of 'ёб твою мать' bitten off at the moment of impact. It's what comes out when you stub your toe and don't have time for the full phrase. Technically still мат, but its brevity makes it feel slightly milder — like how 'sh-' cut off is softer than 'shit.'

4 / 5compound insult, character attack

долбоёб (dolboyob)

dəlˈbɐjɵp

dumbfuck / moron / idiot

Idiot; stupid person; someone who 'fucks logs' (долбить = to chop/peck).

4 / 5animal metaphor, gendered slur

сука (suka)

ˈsukə

bitch / traitor / snitch

Bitch (female dog); treacherous person; prison informant.

2 / 5insult

кретин (kretin)

krʲɪˈtʲin

cretin / moron

Another medical-term-turned-insult, borrowed from French like its English equivalent. In Russian, it sits at roughly the same severity as 'дебил' but sounds slightly more educated — the kind of insult an academic uses when they want to call someone stupid without sounding low-class themselves.

4 / 5exclamation, sexual

ёбаный (yobanyy)

ˈjobɐnɨj

fucking / goddamn

The all-purpose Russian adjective for expressing frustration, derived from 'ебать.' It works exactly like English 'fucking' as a modifier — 'ёбаный компьютер' (fucking computer), 'ёбаный дождь' (fucking rain). The word itself has a satisfying three-syllable weight that makes it feel more substantial than a quick exclamation.

3 / 5insult

чмо (chmo)

tʂmo

loser / pathetic person

A crushing insult meaning someone is pathetic, worthless, and socially beneath contempt. The word sounds as unpleasant as its meaning — the 'чм' consonant cluster is inherently harsh in Russian. A чмо isn't even worth getting angry at; they're pitied and dismissed.

2 / 5insult

дебил (debil)

dʲɪˈbʲil

moron / idiot / retard

Originally a clinical psychiatric term (дебильность was the mildest form of intellectual disability in Soviet classification), now a common insult meaning 'idiot.' The clinical-to-insult pipeline is the same as English 'moron,' 'idiot,' and 'imbecile' — all former medical terms repurposed as abuse.