inte fy skam

Swedish

Etymology

inte (“not”) +‎ fy skam (“"fie shame" (fie, in the sense of really bad)”)

Adjective

inte fy skam (not comparable)

1. (idiomatic, litotes) great ("not terrible")

   Att bo i den där herrgården vid havet vore inte fy skam

   I wouldn't say no to living in that mansion by the sea ("Living in that mansion by the sea wouldn't be terrible")

2. (idiomatic, litotes) not bad, not to be scoffed at

   Brons är inte fy skam

   Bronze isn't bad

   Vi tänkte beställa pizza, men de hade bara hamburgare. Men det är inte fy skam det heller.

   We were going to order pizza, but they only had hamburgers. But that's not bad either.

See also

• inte illa (“not bad”)

References

• skam in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• fy in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)