Cholera bierze
Listen
What it means
Literally “cholera takes (it/you).” A mild expletive expressing frustration, anger, or surprise — “damn it,” “hell,” “what the devil.” Variants: “cholera wie” (the devil knows), “cholera wzięła” (damn it all).
Vocabulary
- cholera — cholera / devil / damn (expletive)
- brać — to take
Grammar note
'Cholera' is used as a euphemism for the devil. 'Bierze' is third person singular present. Can be used with accusative: 'cholera cię bierze' (damn you).
Cultural context
A very common mild curse in Polish — stronger than 'kurczę' but not as vulgar as actual profanity.
Beginner
Noticed a typo, a wrong translation, or anything that doesn't look right? We'd love to fix it — just let us know via the contact page. Thank you!
More Polish idioms
- Literally "one's whole life flew past before the eyes," this phrase describes the vivid, involuntary …
- Literally "for an example," na przykład is the standard Polish phrase for "for example" or "for …
- Literally "in the last/recent times," ostatnimi czasy is a common temporal phrase meaning "lately," …
- Literally "in the manner of Judas," this adverb describes acting in a treacherous, backstabbing way …