Korean · The Essential Kit
씨발
ssibal
sshee-BAHL · /ɕ͈i.bal/
Fuck / fucking hell — the load-bearing Korean curse.
aimed at a person, will start something
Literally
"(from a verb for having sex; roughly 'fucking')"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
The cornerstone. 씨발 is Korea's F-word — an all-purpose detonation for pain, rage, and disbelief, and the root of a whole family (씨발놈, 씨발년 aimed at people; 씨발 alone at the universe). Here's the calibration lesson: in a culture that runs on hierarchy and public composure, just saying it out loud in mixed company marks you, and saying it AT someone is a genuine fight — hence the 4 even for the standalone version. Koreans soften it constantly: 씨 (ssi) is the clipped fuse, 아이씨 the everyday sigh, and 씨발 → "시발" → "ㅅㅂ" in text. Learn to recognize the whole ladder; deploy the bottom rungs — the full word only ever at the universe, never in mixed company, never at a person.
Heard in the wild
씨발, 지갑 놓고 왔어.
Fuck, I left my wallet behind.
Where it lands
South Korea (universal); the most common strong curse in the language
Quick answers
- What does "씨발" mean?
- In Korean, "씨발" means "Fuck / fucking hell — the load-bearing Korean curse.". Literally it's "(from a verb for having sex; roughly 'fucking')". The cornerstone. 씨발 is Korea's F-word — an all-purpose detonation for pain, rage, and disbelief, and the root of a whole family (씨발놈, 씨발년 aimed at people; 씨발 alone at the universe). Here's the calibration lesson: in a culture that runs on hierarchy and public composure, just saying it out loud in mixed company marks you, and saying it AT someone is a genuine fight — hence the 4 even for the standalone version. Koreans soften it constantly: 씨 (ssi) is the clipped fuse, 아이씨 the everyday sigh, and 씨발 → "시발" → "ㅅㅂ" in text. Learn to recognize the whole ladder; deploy the bottom rungs — the full word only ever at the universe, never in mixed company, never at a person.
- Is "씨발" offensive?
- Yes — very. It rates 4/5 on the Punch-o-Meter (Fighting words). aimed at a person, will start something. Read the usage note before you even think about it.
- How do you pronounce "씨발"?
- Say it "sshee-BAHL" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ɕ͈i.bal.
Related in Korean
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
- Greek γαμώτο Damn it! / Dammit!
- Italian Cazzo! Fuck! / Damn! / The all-purpose Italian curse.
- Japanese くそ Damn! / Crap! / Shit!
- 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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