Level: Pre-Intermediate | TOPIK 2–3
Level: Beginner to Intermediate [Approx. TOPIK Levels 2–4]
(Swear words will not appear on the TOPIK exam.)
In the animated film 아가미 (Gill), Kang Ha (강하), voiced by Kang Haneul, has one seriously foul mouth.
씨발, 새끼, 꺼져…
But that doesn’t mean he’s simply a rude guy.
I feel that the roughness of Kang Ha’s speech (말투가 거칠다) reflects the situation he finds himself in.
Kang Ha has a painful family background, and he seems to be constantly on edge. Perhaps because of that, even the smallest thing can make that tightly stretched emotional thread suddenly snap. Despite the kindness he has inside, harsh words come flying out of his mouth.
So this time, I’d like to introduce just a few of the many Korean swear words and insults (욕) that may help you better understand Korean dramas and movies 💡
※ This article contains Korean 욕—swear words, insults, and vulgar expressions—in their original form. They’re introduced here not for you to use yourself, but purely as vocabulary to help you understand the nuances when watching Korean movies and dramas😆
Korean 욕 You Should Know [Beginner–Intermediate]
When you watch Korean dramas and movies, you’ll hear plenty of expressions that would never appear in a textbook.
English subtitles may translate several of them simply as “damn,” “shit,” or “asshole,” but in Korean, each word has a different level of vulgarity and aggression.
| Expression | Rough meaning | Vulgarity | Aggressiveness toward someone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 아이씨 | Ugh / Damn it | ★★ | ★ |
| 씨발 | Fuck / Fucking hell / Shit | ★★★★★ | ★–★★★★★ |
| 새끼 | Bastard / Jerk / Asshole | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 개새끼 | Fucking asshole / Son of a bitch | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| 빌어먹을 | Damn / Goddamn / Wretched | ★★★ | ★★★ |
| 처먹다 | Stuff one’s face / Fucking eat | ★★★★ | ★★★ |
| 꺼져 | Get lost / Fuck off | ★★ | ★★★★ |
| 이 자식 / 저 자식 | This bastard / That bastard | ★★ | ★★★ |
| 개자식 | Asshole / Bastard | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 놈 | Guy / Bastard / Jerk | ★★ | ★★–★★★ |
| 개소리 | Bullshit / Nonsense | ★★★ | ★★★★ |
What’s important here is that more ★s don’t necessarily mean stronger aggression toward another person.
For example, shouting 씨발! to yourself in frustration and saying 씨발놈아! directly to someone are completely different in terms of aggression—even though both contain 씨발.
On the other hand, 꺼져 doesn’t contain anything inherently sexual or obscene, but when you say it directly to someone, it can be extremely harsh.
The Unforgettable “빌어먹을 물고기 새끼” in Gill
One line that especially stuck in my head while watching 아가미 was:
빌어먹을 물고기 새끼
(bireomeogeul mulgogi saekki)
Literally, it’s something like:
“You damn fish bastard.”
“You goddamn fish.”
빌어먹을 means something like “damn,” “goddamn,” or “wretched.”
And the key word here is 새끼.
Originally, 새끼 is also an ordinary word meaning the young or offspring of an animal.
But when it is used to insult a person—or sometimes even a thing—you’ll hear expressions such as:
이 새끼
this bastard / this asshole
저 새끼
that bastard / that asshole
미친 새끼
crazy bastard / fucking lunatic
개새끼
fucking asshole / son of a bitch
That last one with 🐶(개) is a particularly strong insult.
Now, 물고기 새끼 could literally mean “a baby fish” or “the offspring of a fish.”
But here, because it comes together with 빌어먹을 (“damn / goddamn”), it clearly means something closer to:
“You damn fish.”
“You goddamn fish bastard.” 🐟
What Does 처- Mean in 처먹다?
Another thing worth knowing if you want to understand Korean dialogue more easily is 처-.
Take the ordinary verb:
먹다 = to eat
Add 처-, and you get:
처먹다 = to stuff one’s face / to fucking eat
It becomes a very rude and crude way of referring to the action.
You’ll see the same pattern in expressions like:
처마시다
to guzzle / to fucking drink
처자다
to sleep your ass off / to lie around sleeping
처웃다
to sit there laughing like an idiot / to fucking laugh
English translations depend heavily on context, but the important point is that 처- makes the speaker sound rough, contemptuous, or aggressive.
Subtitles sometimes translate these simply as “eat,” “drink,” or “sleep,” so once you know 처-, it becomes much easier to notice just how rough a character’s speech really is.
꺼져 Isn’t a “Dirty Word,” but It’s Still Very Harsh
꺼져!
is another expression you’ll hear constantly in Korean dramas and movies.
Kang Ha says it to Gon as well.
It means:
“Get lost.”
“Go away.”
“Fuck off.”
Depending on the context, the closest English equivalent can be Get lost. or Fuck off.
Unlike 씨발, it isn’t an explicitly obscene word, so its “vulgarity” level by itself isn’t especially high.
But say it directly to someone’s face, and it becomes very aggressive.
When understanding Korean 욕, it’s important to look not only at whether a word itself is “dirty,” but also at who it is directed at and how it is being used.
Is 아이씨 the Same as 씨발?
You’ll also often hear:
아이씨!
in movies and dramas.
It can sound like “aissi!” or “aish!” and is sometimes written as IC online.
It means something like:
“Ugh!”
“Damn it!”
“Jeez!”
However,
아이씨 < 씨발
They are definitely not the same.
씨발 is far more explicit and vulgar. 💦
아이씨 is commonly used as a relatively mild expression of irritation or frustration.
By the way, I also wrote about a Kang Haneul comment that was supposedly misunderstood as something related to 씨발—and somehow the whole show ended up running with that misunderstanding.
이 자식, 저 자식, 개자식
자식 originally means “child” or “offspring.”
It comes from the Sino-Korean word 子息.
However:
이 자식!
You bastard! / This asshole!
저 자식
That bastard / That asshole
When used this way, it becomes a rough and insulting way to refer to someone.
And then there’s:
개자식
which means something like:
“Asshole.” / “Fucking bastard.”
It has a similar function to 새끼, although 새끼 generally sounds even more vulgar and crude.
One interesting thing about Korean is how perfectly ordinary words can turn into insults depending on their tone and the words they’re combined with.
And just to be clear: if you mean “that gentleman’s son” or “this gentleman’s son,” do not say 저 자식 or 이 자식. 😂
The correct expressions would be:
저쪽 아드님
the son on that side / that gentleman’s son
이쪽 아드님
the son on this side / this gentleman’s son
놈 and 넘
놈 is another word you’ll hear all the time in dramas.
나쁜 놈
bad guy / bastard
미친 놈
crazy bastard / crazy guy
이놈
this guy / this bastard
It’s close to words like “guy,” “jerk,” or “bastard,” and its intensity can range from relatively mild to very aggressive depending on the context.
Online, you may also see 넘, a spelling that reflects the way 놈 is sometimes pronounced in casual speech.
지가 Is Not a Swear Word
Because it often appears in rough arguments, 지가 can sound as though it might be another swear word.
But basically:
자기가 → 지가
It is a colloquial contraction.
For example:
지가 뭔데?
Who the hell does he think he is? / Who do you think you are?
지가 해놓고…
After doing it himself… / He did it himself and now…
지가 itself is not a dirty word.
It’s simply a colloquial form that often appears in blunt speech or in situations where someone is criticizing another person.
개소리 하고 있네 | “What a Load of Bullshit”
개소리 literally means “dog sound,” but as slang it means:
“bullshit”
“nonsense”
“a load of crap”
So:
개소리 하고 있네.
means something like:
“You’re talking bullshit.”
“Listen to the crap you’re saying.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
It’s a pretty rough expression.
Compared with the similar 헛소리 (“nonsense”), 개소리 sounds much more vulgar and aggressive.
And:
뭔 개소리야?
would be something like:
“What kind of bullshit is that?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
Here, 하고 있네 does not simply mean “you’re doing/saying that.”
Depending on the context, it can carry a tone of disbelief, contempt, sarcasm, or mockery.
It isn’t literally an F-word, but it’s a very common expression in aggressive arguments in Korean films and dramas.
Clementine’s Note 🍊
This might be the first time I’ve seen Kang Haneul play a character who fires off this many 욕 one after another.
The theme of 아가미 (Gill) has absolutely nothing to do with swearing, of course, but hearing one swear word after another in Haneul’s voice felt surprisingly fresh—and became an unexpected extra way for me to enjoy the film. 🤭
After all, 욕 feels like just about the last thing you’d associate with Kang Haneul.
And because this is animation and we can’t see his face, I think it also helped me separate the character a little from Haneul’s naturally kind-looking face and simply take in Kang Ha’s roughness as it is.
Kang Ha has complicated feelings toward Gon. He’s constantly tense, emotionally wound tight, and even the smallest thing can make him suddenly snap.
It also made me wonder whether Haneul himself ever gets tired or wound up after continuously expressing anger for a performance, even when it’s only acting.
That’s something I’d love to ask him someday.