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Turkish · Insults

Gerizekalı

geh-ree-zeh-kah-LUH · /ɟeɾizeˈkaɫɯ/

Moron / imbecile

3/5 Watch your audience

genuinely rude; friends only, never at work

Literally

"Backward-brained"

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

How to use it

Heavier than salak/aptal and with a genuinely nasty literal edge (it doubles as the clinical word for intellectual disability), so it lands as "moron/retard" — cutting, and worth avoiding for exactly that reason. Extremely common in road rage and sibling arguments nonetheless. Friends only, and even then it can sting; never at work.

Heard in the wild

Gerizekalı, kırmızıda geçilir mi hiç!

You moron, who runs a red light?!

Where it lands

Turkey-wide; informal

Quick answers

What does "Gerizekalı" mean?
In Turkish, "Gerizekalı" means "Moron / imbecile". Literally it's "Backward-brained". Heavier than salak/aptal and with a genuinely nasty literal edge (it doubles as the clinical word for intellectual disability), so it lands as "moron/retard" — cutting, and worth avoiding for exactly that reason. Extremely common in road rage and sibling arguments nonetheless. Friends only, and even then it can sting; never at work.
Is "Gerizekalı" 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 "Gerizekalı"?
Say it "geh-ree-zeh-kah-LUH" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ɟeɾizeˈkaɫɯ.

Related in Turkish

Amına koyayım! ah-muh-NAH koy-AH-yuhm Fucking hell / goddammit / fuck this Siktir git! sik-TEER GEET Fuck off / piss off Salak sah-LAHK Idiot / dummy Aptal ap-TAHL Stupid / fool Mal MAHL Dumbass / thick / clueless Dangalak dahn-gah-LAHK Blockhead / bonehead

The same idea, elsewhere

Via concepts like "You idiot".

how to say "You idiot" →

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