give a fuck

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡɪvəˌfʌk/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Verb

give a fuck (third-person singular simple present gives a fuck, present participle giving a fuck, simple past gave a fuck, past participle given a fuck)

1. (idiomatic, vulgar, chiefly in the negative) To care; to give a shit.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:care

   • 2010, Tim Minchin (music), “The Pope Song”‎^[1]:

     And I don't give a fuck if calling the pope a motherfucker / means you unthinkingly brand me an unthinking apostate.

   • 2016, Tim Carvell; Josh Gondelman; Dan Gurewitch; Jeff Maurer; Ben Silva; Will Tracy; Jill Twiss; Seena Vali; Julie Weiner, “Retirement Plans”, in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, season 3, episode 15, HBO, Warner Bros. Television:

     We did some very rough estimates, and, with 35 employees contributing just $6,000 a year, after 30 years, half a percent could add up to roughly a million dollars! That number was so high you’ll never guess what happened: Janice in accounting actually gave a fuck! I’m serious! She’s a changed woman now!

   The committee doesn't give a fuck about this issue, but you know what, I give a fuck!

Derived terms

• give a flying fuck
• zero fucks given

Translations

give a shit — see give a shit