AN ESSENTIAL PHRASEBOOK · THE ONLY ONE YOU REALLY NEED

Fart-
Ography: How the World Says Fart

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The Fartographic Method

Fartography is silly.

The research isn’t.

Languages are messy. Words change between countries, cities, generations and families. A textbook translation may be technically correct while sounding completely ridiculous to a native speaker.

So we don’t just ask, “What is the translation of fart?”

We ask:

What do people actually say?

Where possible, Fartography checks words and expressions with native speakers, dictionaries and linguistic sources, records regional differences, and distinguishes between formal language, slang, children’s words and expressions.

If we get something wrong, please tell us.

Fartography is, like language itself, a work in progress.

🇨🇳
放屁
Stop 19
China
Mandarin
放屁
/FANG pee/
IPA /fâŋ pʰî/
🗣️ Everyday
Translation
Fàng = to release; pì = flatulence. Also an exclamation meaning 'Nonsense!'
In a Sentence
谁放屁了?
"Who farted?"
💨 What people actually say
放屁 (fàng pì) — 'to release gas.' Also the standard way to say 'that's nonsense.'
👶 The kid word
臭屁 (chòu pì) — 'stinky fart,' also means someone who's smug.
🤬 The rude version
你放屁! — 'You're talking rubbish!' Far more common as an insult than a report.
🎩 The polite version
排气 (páiqì) — 'to expel air.' Hospital language.
🗺️ Regional variations
Cantonese says 放屁 too but pronounces it fong pei; Taiwanese Hokkien has pàng-phuì.
📖 Literally speaking
放屁 = 'to let out gas.'
🧐 Fartology
The character 屁 combines 尸 (body) over 比 — a body doing something in pairs. Chinese calls a smug person 臭屁, literally stinky-fart.
⚠️ Use with caution
Saying 你放屁 to someone is calling them a liar. Not a joke among strangers.
Cultural Note
The dual meaning of fàng pì — literal fart and expression of total dismissal — means 'what you just said is fàng pì' functions on two levels simultaneously.
Efficient. The same word dismisses both bad ideas and digestive incidents.