Work in progress! Native speakers are still checking every phrase. Spot something off? Tell us.
cursing.in curse like a local

Polish · Endearments & Brush-offs

spadaj

SPAH-die · /ˈspa.daj/

Get lost / buzz off — the medium-firm brush-off.

2/5 Bar-safe

coarse but friendly; fine among acquaintances

Literally

"fall away (imperative of spadać)"

Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.

How to use it

The everyday "buzz off": firm, rude-ish, but nowhere near the pierdolić register — think "get lost" delivered with an eye-roll. This is the standard first-line rejection of the persistent bar creep ("spadaj, mówię poważnie" — buzz off, I mean it), and it's fully understood as final. Bar-safe 2. The escalation ladder when spadaj doesn't work: "odwal się" (back off), then "odpierdol się," then security. The jokey variant "spadaj na drzewo" (go fall on a tree) softens it to banter.

Heard in the wild

Spadaj, nie jestem zainteresowana.

Buzz off, I'm not interested.

Where it lands

Poland (universal)

Quick answers

What does "spadaj" mean?
In Polish, "spadaj" means "Get lost / buzz off — the medium-firm brush-off.". Literally it's "fall away (imperative of spadać)". The everyday "buzz off": firm, rude-ish, but nowhere near the pierdolić register — think "get lost" delivered with an eye-roll. This is the standard first-line rejection of the persistent bar creep ("spadaj, mówię poważnie" — buzz off, I mean it), and it's fully understood as final. Bar-safe 2. The escalation ladder when spadaj doesn't work: "odwal się" (back off), then "odpierdol się," then security. The jokey variant "spadaj na drzewo" (go fall on a tree) softens it to banter.
Is "spadaj" offensive?
It's on the mild end — 2/5 (Bar-safe) on the Punch-o-Meter. coarse but friendly; fine among acquaintances.
How do you pronounce "spadaj"?
Say it "SPAH-die" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ˈspa.daj.

Related in Polish

baran BAH-rahn Idiot / blockhead — the barnyard 'you idiot.' spierdalaj spyehr-DAH-lie Fuck off / piss off. wypierdalaj vih-pyehr-DAH-lie Get the fuck OUT — spierdalaj with a direction and extra violence. frajer FRY-ehr Sucker / mug / mark — someone who lets himself be played. lamus LAH-mooss Loser / lame-o — the internet generation's put-down. cykor TSIH-kor Chicken / coward.

The same idea, elsewhere

Via concepts like "Get lost".

how to say "Get lost" →how to say "Shot down" →

Reviewed by native speakers. Rate it differently? Tell us what we got wrong.