In this educational guide, we put 46 Bad Amharic Words You Should Know (For Context, Not Conflict), insults, and casual put-downs that are commonly used in daily conversation, and media.
Our goal is to equip learners with the knowledge to understand the full context of a discussion, decipher the mood, and protect themselves from misunderstandings, not to encourage the use of these terms.
The following article focuses on understanding and discussing difficult situations that can arise between people. We want to be clear that every person must take full responsibility for every word they say and every action they take.
The bad words or similar content mentioned in this article are not intended to harm or insult anyone. Rather, they are meant to help you understand the negative feelings these words create, allowing you to comprehend the language better and more accurately.
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ቦቅቧቃ (Boqbuaqa) – Coward, fearful person (implies lack of backbone).
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ፈሪ (Feri) – Coward, easily scared person.
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ዝርጥርጥ (Zirterit) – Weak-willed, someone easily swayed, or who easily gives up.
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ፈሳም (Fesam) – A person who is dirty, unhygienic, or weak/cowardly (often used as a harsh general insult).
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ቅዘናም (Qizenam) – Coward, someone who is easily scared or terrified.
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ደንቆሮ (Denqoro) – Stupid, ignorant, dull-witted person.
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ደደብ (Dedeb) – Moron, idiot, very stupid person.
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ሌባ (Leba) – Thief.
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አጭበርባሪ (Acheberbari) – Swindler, scammer, deceitful person.
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ንፍጣም (Nifit’am) – Someone with a running nose; used as an insult to imply they are childish or unkempt.
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ቀርፋፋ (Qerfafa) – Slow, sluggish, lazy person.
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አስቀያሚ (Asqeyami) – Ugly, repulsive, disgusting.
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ውሸታም (Wushetam) – Liar.
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ቀጣፊ (Qet’afi) – Liar, fabricator (one who makes up stories).
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ዶማ (Doma) – A blunt axe; used metaphorically to call someone dull or utterly stupid.
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ከብት (Kebt) – Livestock/cattle; used to call someone ignorant, uncultured, or brutish.
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አህያ (Ahiya) – Donkey; used to call someone foolish or extremely stubborn.
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ውሻ (Wusha) – Dog; used as an intense and highly derogatory insult.
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ጠማማ (T’emama) – Twisted, crooked; used to describe a bad, malicious, or morally corrupt person.
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ገብጋባ (Gegbaba) – Gluttonous, excessively greedy for food.
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ስስታም (Sistam) – Stingy, miserly person.
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ስግብግብ (Sigbigib) – Greedy, avaricious.
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ራስ ወዳድ (Ras Wedad) – Selfish.
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ጥጋበኛ (T’igabegna) – Arrogant, disrespectful, haughty (often implying their arrogance comes from being full or satisfied).
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ክፉ (Kifu) – Evil, malicious, bad.
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የማይረባ (Yemayireba) – Worthless, useless (describing a thing or person).
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የማትረባ (Yematireba) – Worthless, useless (feminine form, often more intense).
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ልክስክስ (Likisikis) – Messy, unkempt, scruffy; also refers to a person with a bad habit like stealing small things or collecting junk (scavenger).
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ሰነፍ (Senef) – Lazy.
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ሆዳም (Hodam) – Glutton, someone who eats too much or is excessively focused on food.
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ጅብ (Jib) – Hyena; used to describe a greedy, selfish, exploitative person (one who “eats” other people’s money or eats excessively).
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ጨቅጫቃ (Cheqcheqa) – Nagging, quarrelsome, argumentative person.
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ቆሻሻ (Qoshasha) – Dirty, filthy; can be used metaphorically for a morally repulsive person.
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ሙሰኛ (Musenya) – Corrupt person.
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ቅሌታም (Qilet’am) – Disgraceful, scandalous, someone who causes shame; similar to ወራዳ.
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ወራዳ (Werrada) – Base, despicable, vile, low-class.
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እርጉም (Irgum) – Damned, cursed (often used like “damn you”).
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ምቀኛ (Miqenya) – Jealous, envious person.
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ረባሽ (Rebash) – Annoying, disruptive, disturbing person.
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ነገረኛ (Negereña) – A bad person who spreads malicious communication between people or groups, causing a quarrel or rift (a troublemaker/slander-monger).
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ገደል ግባ (Gedel Giba) – Go to hell; literally “enter the ravine” (a very common curse/dismissal).
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የሞተ (Yemote) – Dead (masculine form).
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የሞተች (Yemotech) – Dead (feminine form).
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የሞትክ (Yemotek) – You dead! (masculine, a harsh insult, implying worthlessness or intense dismissal).
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ደካማ (Dekama) – Weak, feeble.
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እርባና ቢስ (Irbana Bis) – Meaningless, pointless, worthless, good-for-nothing.
