Greek · The Essential Ten
γαμώτο
gamóto
ghah-MOH-toh · /ɣaˈmo.to/
Damn it! / Dammit!
genuinely rude; friends only, never at work
Literally
"I fuck it"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
Your everyday, all-purpose expletive for when things go wrong — the dropped phone, the missed bus, the own goal. Contracted from "γαμώ το" ("I fuck the"), it's the Greek "damn it" and the gateway to the whole γαμώ family (see the construction entry). Coarse but not aimed at anyone, so it stays firmly at a 3: fine among friends and in the bar, not something you shout in a business meeting. Softer near-substitutes when kids are around: "να πάρει" (na pári) or "να πάρει η ευχή" — the Greek "dang it."
Heard in the wild
Γαμώτο, ξέχασα τα κλειδιά μέσα!
Dammit, I locked the keys inside!
Where it lands
Greece & Cyprus (universal)
Quick answers
- What does "γαμώτο" mean?
- In Greek, "γαμώτο" means "Damn it! / Dammit!". Literally it's "I fuck it". Your everyday, all-purpose expletive for when things go wrong — the dropped phone, the missed bus, the own goal. Contracted from "γαμώ το" ("I fuck the"), it's the Greek "damn it" and the gateway to the whole γαμώ family (see the construction entry). Coarse but not aimed at anyone, so it stays firmly at a 3: fine among friends and in the bar, not something you shout in a business meeting. Softer near-substitutes when kids are around: "να πάρει" (na pári) or "να πάρει η ευχή" — the Greek "dang it."
- Is "γαμώτο" offensive?
- It's genuinely rude — a 3/5 (Watch your audience) on the Punch-o-Meter. Fine among friends, never at work or with people you've just met.
- How do you pronounce "γαμώτο"?
- Say it "ghah-MOH-toh" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ɣaˈmo.to.
Related in Greek
The same idea, elsewhere
Via concepts like "Damn".
- French Putain ! Damn! / F***! / The all-purpose intensifier — punctuation, really
- German Scheiße! Shit! / Damn! — the all-purpose German expletive
- Italian Cazzo! Fuck! / Damn! / The all-purpose Italian curse.
- Japanese くそ Damn! / Crap! / Shit!
- Korean 씨발 Fuck / fucking hell — the load-bearing Korean curse.
- Polish kurwa Fuck / damn / shit — the load-bearing word of Polish, and its most common comma.
- Portuguese Porra! Damn! / Fuck! — but mostly used as pure punctuation
- Russian Блин! Damn! / Darn! / Shoot!
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