Is Swearing in a Second Language Less Meaningful? – Turning Dutch

Swearing in a second language can be an absolute minefield. That delightful little quirk of human language that brings a mix of shock, humour, and sometimes a bit of relief. But what happens when we step outside our native tongue and hurl a curse in a second language?

Max Verstappen: “As soon as I went into qualifying, I knew the car was f—ed” 

Max Verstappen is the Marmite of the sporting world, you either love him or hate him. He recently created a stir with the FIA swearing in English during a press conference to describe his car. The Formula 1 driver has been punished with an order to do community service, something it seems Verstappen has no intention of doing. He threatened to quit the sport completely and the incident has become quite the row within the world of Formula 1, with other drivers stepping in to have their say, as well. Hamilton, when talking about the punishment, was heard uttering, “That’s just f—— stupid.” Nah, I made that up, but you know he uttered it away from the cameras.

I am not going to weigh in on whether it’s ok to swear during a press conference. But what is interesting is that Verstappen swore in a second language. So his ‘what’s all the fuss’ reaction may be partly attributable to this fact.

Swearing in a Second Language

Swearing in a second language can often feel less impactful or meaningful. If you grow up in another country then a curse word in your new country doesn’t feel taboo like the swear words you grow up with do. This phenomenon relates to emotional distance; when you express strong feelings in a language that isn’t your native tongue, the words usually carry less weight because they lack the deep personal connection and cultural context of your first language. They are just sounds with no attachment. And therein lies the problem.

A Gateway to Culture

First, let’s acknowledge the cultural weight of swearing. Swear words are a part of every language in the world (except Esperanto, apparently). In any language, curse words are often deeply rooted in history, tradition, and social norms. When you swear in a second language, you’re not just throwing around random words; you’re engaging with the culture that birthed them.

Swearing in Dutch

For instance, in Dutch, calling someone a klootzak (literally “testicle bag”) doesn’t just sound funny; it carries a hefty punch, embodying a certain flair that’s uniquely Dutch. However, other Dutch swear words can feel incredibly uncomfortable as they often relate to diseases.

An example is kankerlijer, which literally means cancer sufferer. You may hear kankerzooi thrown about if someone drops something or something goes wrong, meaning a ‘cancerous mess’. I mean, seriously. ‘Het is kanker weer,’ is also a phrase you may hear a lot, which literally means, ‘it is cancer weather,’ i.e. the weather isn’t great…..

But cancer isn’t the only disease the Dutch like to swear with: tering is another popular swear word, translating to tuberculosis. If somebody directs a krijg de tering at you, then they are hoping you will get tuberculosis. Notably, you can use tering to describe something incredibly positive – such as ‘het was teringleuk‘ (it was tuberculosis fun).

Tyfus is aso common. Literally typhus. You can use this in the same way as tering, as in krijg de tyfus, but you can add tyfus to pretty much any other (derogatory) word and form an insult.

And the Dutch don’t restrict themselves to diseases of the past, they move with the times and so you may hear AIDS being used to insult you too, for example.

Swear Words are Cultural

There are many other Dutch swear words, non-disease related, but before this turns into a lesson in Dutch swearing, my point is that swear words in Dutch are vastly different from those in other languages. In fact, is there any other language in the world that swears with diseases? I don’t know, but it’s certainly not common. Back to my main point, swear words are cultural.

When you can swear correctly in a second language, in the right context, the right environment, without causing insult, then perhaps you know you are fluent in that language. Perhaps.

Swearing in a Second Language is Funny. Right?

Hands up who delighted in learning swear words in language classes in school. When you have those first French, Spanish or German lessons, the first thing you want to learn is invariably how to swear in that new language. What a power to utter swear words that mean absolutely nothing to you. And how funny swearing in a second language is too. Including for the natives listening to you.

And The Dutch Like Swearing in a Second Language Too

So, back to Verstappen dropping the F-bomb. If you have lived in the Netherlands for any length of time, you will know that the use of the F word, as well as shit, is prevalent. Kids use these words ALL THE TIME, and think nothing of it. I grew up in a landscape of swear words being frowned upon, always bleeped out, and explicit music wasn’t played on public radio. When I moved to the Netherlands I heard the F word being used far more than I ever had in England. It’s almost a stop word here. It’s on the TV, on the radio. It is a word that has come out of the mouths of people I would not have expected to hear it from. Because it is that, a word. With little meaning to the Dutch utterer.

So in that context, when Verstappen swore during a press conference, it arguably meant less to him because he was swearing in a second langauge. If Verstappen had uttered, “As soon as I went into qualifying, I knew the car was a kankerzooi,” then that’s a whole different discussion and community service helping in a local hospice would certainly be a fair punishment.

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