Russian · Hell Yes
Круто!
kruto
KROO-tah · /ˈkrutə/
Cool! / Awesome! / Badass!
1/5 Grandma-safe
mild, playful; fine on daytime TV
Literally
"Steep"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
From "steep" (as in a cliff) — the all-purpose "cool." A "krutoy" person is tough/impressive/high-status; a "krutaya tachka" is a sweet ride. "Kruto!" as a reaction is like "nice!" Slightly informal but safe everywhere.
Heard in the wild
Ты сам это построил? Круто!
You built this yourself? Awesome!
Where it lands
Russia (universal)
Quick answers
- What does "Круто!" mean?
- In Russian, "Круто!" means "Cool! / Awesome! / Badass!". Literally it's "Steep". From "steep" (as in a cliff) — the all-purpose "cool." A "krutoy" person is tough/impressive/high-status; a "krutaya tachka" is a sweet ride. "Kruto!" as a reaction is like "nice!" Slightly informal but safe everywhere.
- Is "Круто!" offensive?
- It's on the mild end — 1/5 (Grandma-safe) on the Punch-o-Meter. mild, playful; fine on daytime TV.
- How do you pronounce "Круто!"?
- Say it "KROO-tah" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ˈkrutə.
Related in Russian
Класс! klass KLAHSS Awesome! / Great! / Cool! Офигенно! ofigenno ah-fee-GYEN-nah Freaking awesome! / Amazing! Ура! ura oo-RAH Hooray! / Yes! Заебись! zayebis' zah-yee-BEES Fucking great! / Awesome as hell! Наливай! nalivay nah-lee-VYE Fill 'em up! / Pour the drinks! За здоровье! za zdorov'e zah zdah-ROH-vye Cheers! / To your health!
The same idea, elsewhere
Via concepts like "That's awesome".
- French Ça déchire ! That rocks! / That's awesome!
- German Geil! Awesome! / Sick! / Hell yes!
- Greek ρε μαλάκα Hey man / dude / bro — the affectionate-insult greeting between friends.
- Italian Figo! Cool! / Awesome! / Sick!
- Japanese やばい Insane / crazy / no way — good OR bad, from context
- Korean 존나 Fucking / hella — the vulgar intensifier that goes in front of everything.
- Polish zajebisty Fucking awesome / badass — the great slang-POSITIVE of the jebać family.
- Portuguese Do caralho Fucking awesome — OR, with 'casa do', the middle of nowhere
Reviewed by native speakers. Rate it differently? Tell us what we got wrong.