what would be the correct way to say 'заткнись'

Question

just for the sake of not giving a complement unintentionally

Answer 1

If I understand your question you know the Russian translations of "shut up", but you are also alluding to the expression of incredulity that often comes with "shut up" in some contexts. You called it "a complement". So, you're trying to avoid this, and convey the main meaning of the expression, i.e. to make someone stop talking.

The good news is that Russian translations such as "заткнись" or "(за)молчи" do not have additional meanings. Заткнись is rather aggressive and/or rude, замолчи or молчи are less aggressive, but still are direct and demanding.

There are many other equivalents such us those in other answers, of course. All of them are of different level of rudeness and aggression, which is difficult to gauge for a beginner Russian speaker. That's why I would try not directly asking someone to shut up in Russian while still learning the basics.

Answer 2

You need to explain the question more, but I'm guessing you just want to say 'Shut up' to some one.

• You can either just say 'заткнись' which means 'shut up'
• Or say 'заткни рот' which means 'shut your mouth'

I personally find the second version more powerful and use it more often.

Answer 3

You could also say:

• Умолкни!
• Замолчи!
• Угомонись!
• Тихо!
• Цыц!

Answer 4

If you want to avoid offence, especially in a group, try asking for attention:

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