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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/31384
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Fake swear words are a staple, particularly in otherworld fantasy and science fiction. But most of the fake swear words that I can think of are real words, just not ones that are typically used as swear words. This is fairly realistic to real life, too. If you think about it, the word 'bitch' doesn't have any intrinsically scatological, sexual, or blasphemous meanings and is simply an ordinary word to which negative connotations have been attached.

**Examples:**  
"Rust and Ruin!" from Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson. 'Ruin' is the name of a malevolent god, and metal has magical importance. 'Rust' and 'rusting' are common swears on their own.

"Hell's Bells", "Stars and Stones", and "Empty Night" from the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. No idea what the phrases mean, but Butcher has indicated that they are significant.

"Shards" and "Shells" from The Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffery. Both refer to dragon eggs.

"Figs" is used in The Widdershins Adventures by Ari Marmell, but that's a quirk of main character, which is explicitly addressed in story. Everyone else uses regular swears.

The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan has an [entire dictionary](http://wot.wikia.com/wiki/Swearing_and_Insults).

Then there are many swears which simply replace "God" with the deity of choice of the world.

* * *

If you do want to use an untranslated swear, I think that the best methods are to lampshade its lack of translation, or to include enough other untranslated words so that it doesn't feel out of place.

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer uses "D'Arvit", but the first time it is used it is accompanied by a footnote reading "There is no point translating that word as it would have to be censored." You don't need a narrative comment, but if there is a character around who doesn't recognize the word (and can't find anyone who is willing to translate it) you can add a bit of humor while justifying the word's untranslated state.

Watership Down by Richard Adams includes an entire insulting phrase in the rabbit language, but by that point the rabbit language had been pretty thoroughly scattered through the novel, enough that if you care to it's possible to translate the phrase in its entirety.

Original score: 9