Polish · 10 phrases
Reactions & Outbursts
The noises Polish makes when reality misbehaves: the vulgar gasp ja pierdolę, the folksy punch-to-the-face surprise of o w mordę, and the church-flavored exclamations that are — counterintuitively, in this Catholic country — the mildest things on the shelf. React like a local and you'll pass for one.
masakra mah-SAHK-rah A disaster / unbelievable / total carnage — the all-purpose 'this is insane.' no co ty! noh TSOH tih No way! / Come on! / You can't be serious. o Jezu oh YEH-zoo Oh God / oh no / oh wow — everyday mild alarm, despite the holy name. o matko! oh MAHT-koh Oh my God / good heavens — mild, homey alarm. obciach OHP-chahkh Cringe / an embarrassment — 'ale obciach!' = how embarrassing. rany boskie! RAH-nih BOSS-kyeh Good grief / for heaven's sake — exasperated dismay, all bark and no bite. o w mordę! oh v MOR-deh Whoa / well I'll be damned — surprise, as if you'd just been punched. rzygać mi się chce ZHIH-gahch mee sheh KHTSEH It makes me sick — disgust, literal or moral. ja pierdolę yah pyehr-DOH-leh Holy shit / un-fucking-believable — vulgar astonishment at the state of things. kurwa mać KOOR-vah MAHCH Fucking hell / goddammit — the emphatic, two-barrel kurwa.