When portrayed in fiction, pirates use various colorful expressions to show anger or frustration. Historically, however, real pirates expressed anger much like anyone else, likely using common sailor's slang and curses of their era.
Calling all landlubbers! International Talk Like a Pirate Day is Sept. 19
Pirate Speak. Abaft - Toward the stern of a ship. Addled - Mad, insane, or just stupid. An "addlepate" is a fool.
⚓ Common Pirate Words and Phrases
Ahoy – A pirate greeting or a way to get someone's attention, similar to “Hello” or “hey!”. Arrr, Arrgh, Yarr, Gar – Pirates slang used to emphasize a point. Avast – Pirate speak for pay attention. Aye – “Yes”
Lousy, filthy, rotten, leprous, flea-bitten, scurvy, stinkin', poxy, weevil-infested, mangy, drunken, bloated, festerin'. Low-down, cowardly, treacherous, no-good, lyin', dastardly, fork-tongued, spineless, accursed, knock-kneed, lily-livered, yellow-bellied, villainous.
"Avast" = If you say it nice and sweetly this means 'stop and listen to me'. Shout it and it's more like saying 'shut up'.
Avast - "Avast Ye!" from the Dutch term for 'hold fast' and means "Stop and pay attention.", like, "Get a load of this."
A collection of our favorite Pirate and Seafaring quotes:
“The seas may be rough, but I am the captain!”
If there is one lesson to be learned from Jack Sparrow, it's a lesson of confidence. Remember this when things get tough — anyone can navigate rough seas if they're a captain.
Pirates tend to speak in short, punchy sentences. Keep it simple and direct. Instead of sayin' “I think we should go over there,” say “Let's go thar.”
Avast is a nautical command meaning to stop or desist. It is an Anglicised version of the Middle Dutch phrase 'hou vast', which translates as hold fast.
Pronounced also as “Yarrr!” and “Arg!”, the word “Arrr!” is traditionally said by pirates when responding "yes" or when expressing excitement.
The pirate accent is "rhotic," meaning that the "r" sound is pronounced strongly, especially at the end of words or before consonants. For example, "car" becomes "carr," and "hard" is pronounced as "hard" with a rolling or strong "r." Practice rolling your "r"s to get that authentic pirate sound.
Gen Z slang uses internet-driven, often ironic terms to describe feelings, people, and situations, with popular examples including "rizz" (charisma), "drip" (style), "bet" (yes/okay), "no cap" (no lie), "bussin" (delicious/good), "mid" (average/bad), and "slay" (to do something exceptionally well). These phrases, heavily influenced by social media and AAVE, allow for quick, expressive communication, often using single words or short phrases to convey complex ideas.
Another word for “weird” is:
Lily-livered: an insult for someone who displays cowardice. Mutiny: a situation in which the crew chooses a new captain, sometimes forcibly removing the old one. Scallywag: an inexperienced pirate, considered an insult. Son of a biscuit eater: an insult.
The Pirate Code (also known as Articles of Agreement) was a set of rules used by pirate crews in the 17th and 18th centuries to maintain order aboard their ships. Despite their outlaw status, pirate codes were surprisingly democratic and strictly enforced.
It doesn't make it more entertaining, or even more "realistic". Pirates didn't even have the F-word around to use.
"Shiver me timbers" (or "shiver my timbers" in Standard English) is an exclamation in the form of a mock oath usually attributed to the speech of pirates in works of fiction. It is employed as a literary device by authors to express shock, surprise, or annoyance.
People with scurvy get too little vitamin C for a long time. In pirate lingo, “scurvy” as in “ye scurvy dog” means disgusting. That's because the worst symptoms were terrible. People with untreated scurvy can't heal their wounds.