матерщи́на

Матерщи́на refers to speech that is full of strong profanity, especially the traditional Russian obscene vocabulary known as мат. The word itself is neutral in tone and is commonly used when talking about language or someone’s manner of speaking, for example when complaining that a person swears a lot or when discussing the presence of profanity in films, music, or everyday conversation.

It is not itself a swear word, so it can be used safely in neutral or even formal discussion. However, it describes very coarse language, and the expressions it refers to are considered highly vulgar and are normally avoided in polite conversation.

Learners will most often encounter матерщи́на in conversations about behavior (“he uses a lot of матерщи́на”), in journalism, or in discussions of Russian language and culture.