Russian · Insults
Заткнись!
zatknis'
zaht-KNEES · /zɐtˈknʲisʲ/
Shut up! / Shut it!
3/5 Watch your audience
genuinely rude; friends only, never at work
Literally
"Cork yourself / plug yourself up"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
A hard "shut up" — you're corking someone like a bottle. Rude and confrontational; the polite version is "zamolchi" or "tishe, pozhaluysta." "Zatknis'" to a stranger is a fight starter. "Zavali" and the mat "zayebis' molchat'" go harder still.
Heard in the wild
Да заткнись ты уже, надоело!
Oh just shut up already, I'm sick of it!
Where it lands
Russia (universal)
Quick answers
- What does "Заткнись!" mean?
- In Russian, "Заткнись!" means "Shut up! / Shut it!". Literally it's "Cork yourself / plug yourself up". A hard "shut up" — you're corking someone like a bottle. Rude and confrontational; the polite version is "zamolchi" or "tishe, pozhaluysta." "Zatknis'" to a stranger is a fight starter. "Zavali" and the mat "zayebis' molchat'" go harder still.
- Is "Заткнись!" 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 "Заткнись!"?
- Say it "zaht-KNEES" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: zɐtˈknʲisʲ.
Related in Russian
Чёрт возьми! chyort voz'mi CHORT vahz-MEE Damn it! / For God's sake! Иди в баню! idi v banyu ee-DEE v BAH-nyoo Get lost! / Buzz off! (gentle) Остынь! ostyn' ah-STIN Calm down / Chill out Понты ponty pahn-TIH Show-off posturing / all flash, no substance Дурак! durak doo-RAHK Idiot / fool Придурок! pridurok pree-DOO-rahk Moron / dumbass
The same idea, elsewhere
Via concepts like "Shut up".
- French Ta gueule ! Shut up! / Shut your mouth!
- German Halt die Klappe! Shut your trap! / Shut up!
- Greek σκάσε Shut up! / Zip it!
- Japanese うるさい Shut up / you're too loud / quit nagging
- Korean 닥쳐 Shut up! — blunt, banmal, and aimed.
- Polish zamknij mordę Shut your trap / shut the hell up.
- Japanese 黙れ Shut up / shut your mouth
- Korean 됐어 Forget it / I'm good / enough — the conversational door closing.
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