European Terms and Slang
by Shadows of Europe Authors
Term | Meaning/English Translation |
aufgemotzt (adj) | cybernetically enhanced |
bulle (pl. bullen) (n.) | Cop (lit. "bull") |
depp (n.) | Idiot (Bavarian slang), derogatory |
flocken (n.) | Nuyen, money (lit. "flakes") |
geil (adj.) | Wiz, cool |
hauer (n.) | Ork, derogatory |
Herr Schmidt (n.) | Mr. Johnson |
kon (pl. kons) (n.) | Corp (corps) (short for konzern) |
krank (adj.) | Sick |
netz (n.) | Matrix |
penner (n.) | Squatter |
pfaffe (n.) | Member of the Cloth, derogatory |
piste (n.) | The Autobahn |
strassenzauberer (n.) | Street sorcerer |
umnieten (v) | Gun somebody down |
Wumme (n.) | Gun |
Austrian/German
abbrannt (adj.) | Out of cred |
abzwickter (n.) | Dwarf |
adabei (n.) | Face |
anblasen, angstraat, antschechert (adj.) | Drunk |
baggage (n.) | Rabble |
bluatwiesn (n.) | Area for gang fights |
damisch (adj.) | Mad |
das ist mir blunzen (exp.) | I couldn't care less |
dillo, trottel, depp, dol, dodl (n.) | Idiot |
faschieren (v.) | To kill someone |
fiaker (n.) | Rigger |
galerie (n.) | Viennese underworld |
geil (adj.) | Cool |
glacéstrizz (n.) | Leading gangster who doesn't have to get his hands dirty |
gschaftlhuber (n.) | Fixer |
Doktor Nowak (n.) | Mr. Johnson |
haberer, spezi (n.) | Chummer |
hackler (n.) | Worker; also shadowrunner |
hackn (n.) | Job |
häfen (n.) | Prison |
hin (adj.) | Dead |
holzpyjama (n.) | Coffin |
inspector, kieberer (n.) | Policeman |
pallawatsch (n.) | Job gone wrong |
puffen (n.) | Gun |
pülcher (n.) | Shadowrunner |
randsteinpflanze (n.) | Prostitute (lit. "curb plant") |
riegel (n.) | Troll |
sandler (n.) | Homeless person, squatter |
saumagen (n.) | Ork |
schleich (n.) | Black market |
servas (exp.) | Hello |
stanzen (v.) | To fire someone; to set a killer on someone; to kill someone |
tschik (n.) | Cigarette |
zwirnblader (n.) | Elf |
Czech Republic/Czech
BeTLík (n.) | BTL addict |
bouchacka (n.) | Gun |
burzoust (n.) | High society person, derogatory |
chlap (n.) | Chummer |
datový otrok (n.) | Dataslave, corporate decker or other data processing employee |
fetiamen (n.) | Talismonger (lit. "fetishman") |
fizl (n.) | Cop |
hlavoun (n.) | Corporate executive |
kamos (n.) | Chummer |
kaeft (n.) | Business, crime |
kjámoa (pl. Kámo) (n.) | Chummer |
led (n.) | IC, security software |
mokrá práce (n.) | Wetwork |
motogang (n.) | Go-gang |
nádrátovaný (adj.) | Wired |
oblek (n.) | Suit, straight citizen |
odálit (exp..) | Buzz off, go away |
Pan Jonáa (n.) | Mr. Johnson |
pasa'k (n.) | Fixer, also pimp (lit. "shepherd") |
podnik (n.) | Corporation |
podsveti (n.) | The shadows |
polda (n.) | A cop |
sejmout (v.) | To kill |
vílák (n.) | Elf, derogatory |
vykopnut, vyhozen (adj.) | Dumped, involuntarily ejected from the Matrix |
zlatadata (n.) | Paydata |
France/French
arrangeur (n.) | Fixer |
asperge (n.) | Elf, derogatory (lit. "asparagus") |
baltringue, blaireau, branquem cave (n.) | Punk |
bordel (n.) | Brothel |
bordel! (exp.) | Holy drek! |
bourré (adj.) | Drunk |
buter (v) | To kill |
came (n.) | Drug or merchandise (often illegal) |
camé (adj) | Junkie |
canné (adj) | Dead |
chié! (exp) | Drek! |
coffrer (v) | To arrest, capture (lit. "to put in a case") |
conseiller (n.) | Fixer (lit. "advisor") |
costard (n.) | Suit, corporate agent |
cousin (n.) | Snitch (for cops), chummer |
défourailler (v.) | To draw a gun and fire like crazy |
dessouder (v) | To kill (lit. to "un-weld") |
entuber (v) | To swindle (lit. "to put in a tube") |
flic (n.) | Cop, derogatory |
flingue, pétoire (n.) | Gun |
flinguer (v) | To shoot, fire a weapon; to injure, kill |
gargouille (n.) | Cop, derogatory (lit. "gargoyle") |
guillotine (n.) | Wetwork |
La Haute (n.) | Nobility, derogatory (lit. "the high") |
Les Sang-Bleus (n.) | Nobility, derogatory (lit. "the blue bloods") |
mago (n.) | Magician |
mec, pote (n.) | Chummer (lit. "guy/bloke," "friend") |
médor (n.) | Cop, also a common dog name, derogatory |
Monsieur Dupont (n.) | Mr. Johnson |
mortel (adj) | Lethal, also very cool |
on est mal (exp) | We're in trouble |
ombre (n.) | Shadowrunner (lit. "shadow") |
pègre (n.) | Organized crime |
pez (n.) | Cred, money |
raide (adj) | Drunk, dead, without money (lit. "rigid") |
refroidir (v) | To kill (lit. "to ice," cool down) |
ruskof (n., adj.) | Russian (and by extension, all Vory), derogatory |
sulfateuse (n.) | Automatic weapon |
tank (n.) | Heavily cybered shadowrunner |
taupe (n.) | Infiltrated spy (lit. "mole") |
tige, crayon (n.) | Credstick (lit. "stem/cigarette," "pencil") |
tox, toxico (n.) | Junkie |
Italian Confederation/Italian
Azzeccagarbugli (n.) | Fixer (lit. "knot untier") |
baciapile (n.) | Churchgoing conservative Catholic |
basta (exp.) | Enough, "end of discussion" |
dio cane (n.) | A Catholic (lit. "god dog"), derogatory |
capo (n.) | Mob lieutenant (lit. "chief") |
ceffo (n.) | Ork or troll, derogatory |
centri sociali (n.) | anarchist or left-wing communes common in GeMiTo and Mezzogiorno |
colpire il ghiaccio (exp.) | To deck (lit. "spike the ice") |
colpo (n.) | Run or mission (lit. "a hit") |
denaro (n.) | Hard cash |
largo (n.) | Thug/muscle |
morbida (adj) | Sexy woman (lit. "softy"), derogatory |
notte brava (exp.) | A night on the town, also a tough run (lit. "a hard night") |
padrino (n.) | Mob Godfather |
palo (n.) | Infomonger, originally slang for a "lookout" |
picciotti (n.) | Made man, Mob footsoldier |
prete (n.) | Conservative, old-fashioned priest, derogatory |
razzo (n.) | Rigged vehicle (lit. "rocket) |
sacerdote or prete (n.) | Priest; prete has currently fallen from common usage and is seen as derogatory meaning conservative old-fashioned style priest. |
sbirro (n.) | Cop, derogatory |
Schumo (n.) | rigger or escape driver (derived from "Schumi" aka Michael Schumacher, the Ferrari driver, who's seen as the second-coming in Italy. Really.) |
strega (n.) | Traditional witch or streetwitch |
Tendopoli (n.) | huge shanty towns and tent cities found in the GeMiTo barrens |
ultima parola (exp.) | The last word, the bottom line |
Poland/Polish
bojownik (pl. bojownicy) (n.) | AK guerrilla (lit. "freedom fighter) |
chorągiew (n.) | Go-gang |
czarodziej (male)/czarownica (female) (n.) | Spellcaster |
czerwoni/czerwone psy (n.) | Russians, derogatory (lit. "reds/red dogs") |
glina (pl. gliny) (n.) | Cop |
klamka (n.) | Pistol (lit. "handle") |
kosiara (n.) | Automatic weapon (lit. "mower") |
koszałek (pl. koszałki) (n.) | Dwarf |
Kowalski (n.) | Mr. Johnson |
moskal (pl. moskale) (n.) | Russian |
partyzant (pl. partyzanci) (n.) | Liberation Army volunteer (lit. "partisan") |
rybokrata (pl. rybokraci or rybokrats) (n.) | Rybi_ski regime government official (lit. "fish-o-crat") |
sennik (n.) | BTL (lit. "dream book") |
syndykat (pl. syndykaty) (n.) | Polish organized crime outfit (lit. "syndicate") |
sz-korp (pl. sz-korpy) (n.) | Saeder-Krupp exec (from "szkop," Polish slang for "German") |
wiedźma (n.) | Witch |
weidźmin (n.) | Somatic adept |
Portugal/Portuguese
artilhado (adj.) | Wired |
artilheiro (n.) | Mercenary or samurai, heavy-weapon or wired type |
bronca grossa (exp.) | Big drek, normally a betrayal or frag up |
Baixa (n.) | Downtown |
baptista (n.) | Mafia member |
bófia (n.) | Cop |
buraco (n.) | Safehouse (lit. "hole" as in "hole in the wall") |
Brigada do Reumático (n.) | The heads of the rich and conservative families of Portugal (lit. "rheumatic brigade"), derogatory |
camone (n.) | Rich foreigner (ready to be fleeced). |
cheta (n.) or troco (n.) | Cred, loose change or pocket cash. |
Chico Esperto (n.) | Infomonger or snitch |
chuveiro (n.) | Shooting, guns blazing (lit. "shower") |
criolo (n.) | Afro-European |
cromo (n.) | Someone extremely skillful in something (from "cromo da bola," lit. "soccer card") |
Gambuzino (n.) | Something that everyone has heard about but no one has seen, from local legendary critter |
grunho (n.) | Ork, trog, changeling or metavariant, derogatory |
Kapa (n.) | Kussondulola member |
fino (n.) | Cool! |
Infante (n.) | Lusiada security man |
Luso (n.) | Corper, esp. Lusiada sarariman, also (adj.) Portuguese |
LX(n.) | The Greater Lisbon sprawl (pronounced "ell-shish") |
maquintista (n.) | Vehicle rigger |
molho (n.) | Hand-to-hand combat (lit. "hot sauce") |
navalha (n.) | Street samurai, also bladed weapon |
passador (n.) | Dealer |
patrício (n.) | Fixer |
primo (n.) | Cousin, coll. for friend/chummer |
rewind (n.) | Make a getaway after a run (from the English) |
rippar (v.) | Steal, deck or snatch |
seletah (n.) | Turf or exclusive area for a community |
tasca (n.) | Private bar, one of the many dens in Lisbon |
trolha (n.) | Troll, derogatory |
tuga (n.) | Native Portuguese |
verde (n.) | Cash (lit. "green") |
Zuca (adj.) or xara (n.) | Brazilian immigrant/ex-pat |
XPTO (adj.) | SOTA or just high-tech gear with many features |
xunga (adj. or n) | Runner; someone, something or someplace that is sleazy and disreputable; derogatory |
Scandinavian Union/Danish, Finnish, Norwegian & Swedish
dask (n.) | Money |
bøffe (v.) | To steal |
brekk (n.) | Crime |
gønner (n.) | Gun |
herpe (v.) | To make a run on |
kjømmer (n.) | Chummer |
kverke (v.) | To kill or destroy |
purk/snut (n.) | Cop, security guard |
rapper (n.) | Shadowrunner |
spa (adj.) | Cool |
Spain/Spanish
aduana (n.) | Customs station, also whorehouse/bunraku parlor |
bestia (n.) | Ork or troll, derogatory |
colega (n.) | Friend, chummer |
delgaducho (n.) | Elf, derogatory |
fostiar (v.) | To hit, to do a shadowrun on, also an expletive |
joder! (exp.) | Drek! |
matraca (n.) | Automatic weapon |
tirao (n., adj.) | Low-life |
Senor Fernández (n.) | Mr. Johnson |
Switzerland/French & German
bölimaa, böög (n.) | Metahuman, derogatory (lit. "bug-a-boo") |
bünzli (n.) | Corp-exec |
fätze (n.) | Orks, trolls, derogatory |
finöggel (n.) | Elf, derogatory (from the Italian finocchio = "gay") |
fränkli (n.) | Francs |
härdöpfel (n.) | Dwarf, derogatory (lit. "potato") |
hegel (n.) | Street samurai, cybered person (lit. "knife") |
kolleg (n.) | Chummer |
röschti (n.) | German Swiss from the SE, derogatory |
schmier (n.) | Cop |
stolle (n.) | Corporate building |
stützlistäcke (n.) | Credstick |
Tír na nÓg/English, Gaelic & Sperethiel
agro (n.) | Firefight | |
Apache (n.) | Rigger, joyrider | |
barrelling (v) | Shadowrunning | |
be dog wide (adv.) | Be vigilant, on the lookout | |
belt (v.) | To hit, strike | |
blow-ins (n.) | Foreigners, derogatory | |
boggin' (adj.) | Polluted | |
buzzies (n.) | Celtic druids | |
claim (v.) | To target for a shadowrun | |
deadly (adj.) | Very cool | |
dodgy (adj.) | Risky, unsafe, borderline illegal | |
Doineann Draoidheil (n.) | Mana storms (lit. "standing storms") | |
Fenian (n.) | IRA member or supporter, sometimes derogatory | |
flog (v.) | To sell on the black market | |
Garda (n.) | Police | |
gouger (n.) | Shadowrunner | |
in-laws (n.) | INLA members | |
lads (n.) | IRA members | |
pixie (n., adj.) | Elf, anything under Tir government influence, derogatory | |
Prionsa (n.) | Danaan family steward (li. "prince") | |
Prod (n., adj.) | Protestant | |
Reach Fuileach (n.) | TRC special forces/assassins (lit. "bloody body") | |
shades (n.) | Police | |
slainte (ep.) | Common drinking toast generally meaning "To your health" | |
snapper (n.) | Human, used by elves, derogatory | |
splash (v.) | To blow up, hit, strike at a target | |
steamed (adj.) | Drunk | |
tirish (adj.) | Tir supporter, anything too Irish or Elven or clichéd, derogatory | |
Tuatha de Danaan (n.) | TNO elves (lit. "the artistic people") | |
whizz (adj.) | Junk, derogatory |
United Kingdom/English
bagger/baggie (n.) | Cop |
baldrick (n.) | Ork, derogatory |
bollocks/bollix (adj.) | Rubbish, bulldrek |
box/boxed (v.) | To kill/dead (respectively) |
cosmic (n., adj.) | Astral |
downtime (n.) | Night |
jam hole (n.) | Hiding place |
Ken (n.) | Corporate worker, derogatory |
morph (n.) | Changeling |
open (adj.) | Crawling with police, unsafe |
nob (n., adj.) | Noble, derogatory |
rags (n.) | Cigarettes, also drugs |
rak/rakking/rak off (n./adj/v.) | Jerk/useless/go away (respectively), derogatory |
sandal (n.) | Druid |
seps (n.) | Americans, derogatory |
sherlock (n.) | Policeman, particularly an investigator or detective, derogatory |
The Smoke (n.) | London |
snag (v.) | To arrest |
snakeboy (-girl) (n.) | Street kid |
spill (n.) | Toxic zone |
spin it (v.) | Get out of here |
The Squeeze (n.) | Lambeth Containment Zone |
Templar (n.) | Oversight Office Operative |
term (n.) | Friend, trusted person |
tuned up (adj.) | Cybered or enhanced by implants |
womble (n.) | Eco-cell or political movement member, derogatory |
wraith (v.) | To kill discreetly, assassinate |
wupert (n.) | Noble, derogatory |
United Netherlands/Dutch
beerput (n.) | Drekhole |
elfje (n.) | Elf, derogatory (lit. "little elf, fairy") |
heks/heksen (n./adj.) | Magician, derogatory (lit. "witch") |
jasje dasje (n.) | Corporate suit, derogatory (lit. "jacket-and-tie") |
kabouter (n.) | Dwarf, derogatory |
Meneer Jansen (n.) | Mr. Johnson |
Para (n.) | Paranoid person, state of mind |
penose (n.) | Underworld |
randstad (n.) | Europort megasprawl (lit. "fringecity") |
smeris (n.) | Cop, derogatory |
vriend (n.) | Friend |
watergeuzen (n.) | Smugglers operating out of the UNL |
witte wieven (n.) | Term for magical anomalies and/or weather disturbances (lit. "white widows") |