～てやがる
vulgar contemptuous auxiliary
～てやがる attaches やがる to the て-form of a verb and loads the sentence with anger or contempt toward the person performing the action. Structurally it occupies the slot of いる in ～ている, so it usually describes an ongoing action or state, seen through the speaker's disgust.
English has no grammatical equivalent. Translations lean on tone instead, as in “what the hell is he doing”. The register is extremely rough. It's male-coded, confrontational speech typical of fiction, manga, and arguments, never of polite conversation.
1. Snapping at the listener
Directed at the listener, it turns a neutral question into open hostility.
何を言ってやがる。
“What the hell are you saying?”
- 何（なに）= what
- を = object marker
- 言ってやがる（いってやがる）= are saying (with contempt)
2. Sneering at a third party
It also describes a third person's ongoing action or state with disdain, exactly where neutral speech would use ～ている.
あいつ、まだ寝てやがる。
“That jerk is still sleeping.”
- あいつ = that guy (derogatory)
- まだ = still
- 寝てやがる（ねてやがる）= is sleeping (with contempt)
How to form it
Verb て-form + やがる
- 言う（いう）= to say → 言ってやがる（いってやがる）= is saying (contemptuous)
- 笑う（わらう）= to laugh → 笑ってやがる（わらってやがる）= is laughing (contemptuous)
- 逃げる（にげる）= to run away → 逃げてやがる（にげてやがる）= is running away (contemptuous)
Key idea
～てやがる is ～ている with the speaker's contempt baked into the grammar. Learn it to understand fiction and heated speech, but treat it as recognition-only, not something to produce yourself.
Other N1 grammar
Updated .