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Nyckelord

2016
8 Nov

F...ing and blinding - när du får rött kort i engelska!

2016-11-08 18:05
F...ing and blinding - när du får rött kort i engelska!
Det låter coolt i amerikanska filmer, orden är lätta att härma och ta till i svenskan och betyder inte så mycket för oss, men hur okej är det egentligen att svära på engelska inför någon som alltid pratar engelska? Goda råd utlovas!
Chapter 7 - Swearwords
F…ing and blinding – när du får rött kort i engelska!

K – What about swearing Mike, sometimes I use swearwords to really point out when I am serious about something. 
M – Mmm, you should be cautious about that Karina. 
K – If a job is really well done I can say “skitbra” – but how would it be received if I said the same thing in English, “that is a shit good job”.
M – People in Sweden often use the Swedish word “skit” as a way to describe something either very positively or very negatively.
K – Yes, we have “skitdåligt” as in “shit bad” and “shit ugly” as in “skitful”. 
M – It’s funny how you use the word “skit” to describe things this way. Is it a bad swearword? 
K – No, it is almost not a swearword. Actually we often use it instead of the word “very”. 
M – Ah, then you need to be very careful. In English the word to describe the smelly stuff is a proper swearword. And also to my ear, “skitbra” is a contradiction in terms. It doesn’t make sense. 

K – F..k… 

M – Karina! 
K-…Well it is actually not a swearword in Sweden! And it is still not a swearword if you translate it directly to Swedish. That is probably why it is easy to use. We hear it in films and such, but it doesn’t really have any impact – it’s just a word. But what about the word “screw”, is that a swearword?
M – Well, that’s an interesting point. It means the same thing as the f-word but is not really a swearword; therefore it could be used expressively. I might not use it though in front of the Queen!
I think the problem may be that “the F-word” has quite a strong impact if used in English; it is an expletive, a swearword. It isn’t so many years ago that you were committing an offence when using such a word in a public place in Britain. 
K – What would happen if the word just popped out while I’m in a meeting or something?
M – That is absolutely best avoided! 
K – Why?
M – It comes back to what we’ve discussed earlier here on our podblogg.  Just as it’s appropriate to be relatively formal in meetings, I would recommend avoiding the use of any swearwords when making new contacts. You will become more relaxed later on, but don’t be the first one to swear. That is important. Because if you are speaking English as a foreign language to a colleague who is a native speaker; let this person take the lead. After all, if he invited you into his home, you wouldn’t help yourself to a drink without being asked, would you? There is a great risk that you will cause offence – they might see you as a rude individual. And that is not a good start to a professional or personal relationship.

K – Oh, maybe that is why I sometimes hear from my British friends that we Swedes are a bit rude or that we upset people just by being ourselves. I haven’t thought of it that way. To me, words like f..k, s..t, bulls..t, sonofab..ch and d..khead are just words, they don’t actually mean anything and they are fun to use. 

M – Yes, and that is the danger of using swearwords in any foreign language. This is really a cross cultural issue where a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. You know the word and probably what it means but you don’t perceive of the impact it may have on some listeners. You are on thin ice! 
K – Oh, thank you Mike, for explaining that!
M – I am happy to assist.


A very useful hint from Mike:

This is an area to handle with extreme caution, particularly if you are in business situations. You need to adjust to whom you are talking. Never swear in front of women or children, it is not polite. Always remember there is a cross cultural element to swearing. Even if the word has the same meaning in other languages, it may have more or less significance. It is never welcome to cause offence.  
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