Two funny Russian swearwords in which we say ‘you’ but don’t mean ‘you’

Hi everyone, today we are going to talk about bad language! There are two Russian swearwords I want to talk about – «хрен вам» and «фиг вам». They seem like an address to somebody, but they are not. Both these Russian swearwords mean pretty much the same thing – ‘like hell it will happen!’ Or ‘not bloody likely’ in American slang. Let’s check out some examples.

1. — He wants me to work over the weekend? Хрен вам!

2. — I should be back home by 10 o’clock? Фиг вам!

3. — They think they can rip me off 10 dollars? Хрен вам!

4. — We were planning to go to the skating rink but it’s snowing heavily today. Фиг вам, I’m still going!

Nothing personal. Only swearing.

In both these Russian swearwords there is a form of ‘you’ – «вам» («вы»). Literally they mean ‘you’ll get nothing’ or ‘by no means you are going to get anything (it)!’ But it doesn’t mean you are addressing anybody in particular. So if you hear a Russian say «хрен вам» or «фиг вам» while talking to you, don’t get offended, it’s not about you.

So, I hope this article about Russian swearwords is useful. Subscribe to our website and learn more about Russian. Stay tuned!

Free Russian audio lessons online: words, pronunciation, texts. Two funny Russian swearwords in which we say ‘you’ but don’t mean ‘you’