Untranslatable wordSocialGerman

Backpfeifengesicht

Meaning: A face that is just begging to be slapped — someone so smug you can't help the urge.

Literally: Slap-face

Origin: German Backpfeife ('a slap') + Gesicht ('face'); said with exasperated humor.

More German untranslatable words

  • Schadenfreude The guilty little pleasure of taking satisfaction in someone else's misfortune.
  • Fernweh An aching longing for far-off places you've never been — the opposite of homesickness.
  • Weltschmerz The weariness and sadness you feel when the world as it is falls painfully short of the w…
  • Torschlusspanik The anxious fear that time is running out — that the gates of opportunity, youth, or life…
  • Kummerspeck The weight you gain from emotional eating — the extra pounds that accumulate during heart…
  • Fremdschämen The vicarious embarrassment you feel for someone who is doing something cringeworthy — ev…

Explore another collection: Tongue Twisters

Tricky phrases to practice out loud, from languages around the world.

Browse all tongue twisters →

Keep exploring

Explore all untranslatable words →