Lots of Mandarin insults involve eggs, turtles and mothers.

The 10 most-used swear words in China, ranked from nuclear to Grandma-safe. Tap “Hear it” to hear each one, or tap a red bar to reveal a word.

1. 1
   cào nǐ mā操你妈 TSOW nee MAHF*** your mother.
   Nuclear ▶ Hear it
2. 2
   shǎbī傻逼 SHAH-beeStupid c***.
   Nuclear ▶ Hear it
3. 3
   cào操 TSOWF***.
   Very rude ▶ Hear it
4. 4
   tā mā de他妈的 tah MAH duh“His mother’s.” Damn it.
   Rude ▶ Hear it
5. 5
   húndàn混蛋 HWUN-dahnBastard (muddled egg).
   Rude ▶ Hear it
7. 6
   wángbā dàn王八蛋 WAHNG-bah-dahnTurtle egg. Bastard.
   Rude ▶ Hear it
8. 7
   niúbī牛逼 nyoh-BEEAwesome (literally cow c***).
   Rude ▶ Hear it
9. 8
   gǔn滚 GWUNGet lost. Roll away.
   Mild ▶ Hear it
10. 9
    kào靠 KOWDamn! (softened cào)
    Grandma-safe ▶ Hear it
11. 10
    bèndàn笨蛋 BUN-dahnStupid egg. Dummy.
    Grandma-safe ▶ Hear it