Hi Everyone,
My apologies for missing last weeks post. In an attempt to make up for that, here's an extra special word of the week "exploration". My pennance for missing last week.
Euphemism
eu.phe.mism
Pronunciation [yoo-fuh-miz-uhm] –noun
1. the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one thought to be offensive, harsh, or blunt.
2. the expression so substituted: “To pass away” is a euphemism for “to die.”
Thesaurus: euphemism
noun
The use or an instance of equivocal language: ambiguity, equivocation, equivoque, hedge, prevarication, shuffle, tergiversation, weasel word. Informal waffle. See clear/unclear.
Antonyms: euphemism
noun
Definition: polite term
Antonyms: dysphemism
Grammar Dictionary: euphemism
An agreeable word or expression substituted for one that is potentially offensive, often having to do with bodily functions, sex, or death; for example, rest room for toilet, lady of the evening for prostitute. The Nazis used euphemism in referring to their plan to murder the world's Jews as “the Final Solution.
Poetry Glossary: Euphemism
The substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive expression to replace one that might offend or suggest something unpleasant, for example, "he is at rest" is a euphemism for "he is dead."
Word Tutor: euphemism
IN BRIEF: A word or phrase that is used in place of another that is thought to be too strong or unpleasant.
Tutor's tip: The queen spoke with royal "euphuism" (an affected, artificial elegance) but used a "euphemism" (an agreeable word or phrase used in place of one considered offensive or distasteful) to describe her predicament.
Wikipedia: euphemism
When a phrase is used as a euphemism, it often becomes a metaphor whose literal meaning is dropped. Euphemisms may be used to hide unpleasant or disturbing ideas, even when the literal term for them is not necessarily offensive. This type of euphemism is used in public relations and politics, where it is sometimes called doublespeak. Sometimes, using euphemisms is equated to politeness. There are also superstitious euphemisms, based (consciously or subconsciously) on the idea that words have the power to bring bad fortune (for example, not speaking the word "cancer"
Etymology:
euphemism
1656, from Gk. euphemismos "use of a favorable word in place of an inauspicious one," from euphemizein "speak with fair words," from eu- "good" + pheme "speaking," from phanai "speak" (see fame). In ancient Greece, the superstitious avoidance of words of ill-omen during religious ceremonies, or substitutions such as Eumenides "the Gracious Ones" for the Furies (see also Euxine). In Eng., a rhetorical term at first; broader sense of "choosing a less distasteful word or phrase than the one meant" is first attested 1793.
Other common euphemisms include:
* restroom for toilet room (the word toilet was itself originally a euphemism). This is an Americanism.
* acting like rabbits, making love to, getting it on, cheeky time, doing it, or sleeping with for having sex with
* sanitary landfill for garbage dump (and a temporary garbage dump is a transfer station), also often called a Civic Amenity in the UK
* third-party unauthorized use for cracking
* ill-advised for very poor or bad
* pre-owned vehicles for used cars
* A student being held back a grade level for having failed the grade level
* correctional facility for prison
* the north or the six occupied counties for Northern Ireland, which is seen by many Irish people as a term imposed by the British and therefore a profanity
* an athlete favoring a particular (body part) for injuring another corresponding body part -- for example, putting more weight on one's right leg because of an injury to one's left leg
* the big C for cancer (in addition, some people whisper the word when they say it in public, and doctors have euphemisms to use in front of patients, e.g. "c.a." or "neoplasia"/"neoplastic process")
* bathroom tissue, t.p., or bath tissue for toilet paper (Usually used by toilet paper manufacturers)
* custodian or caretaker for janitor (Also originally a euphemism—in Latin, it means doorman. In the British Secret Service, it may still carry the ancient meaning. It does in the novels of John Le Carré.)
* sanitation worker (or, sarcastically, sanitation officer) for "bin man" or garbage man
* software design engineer for bug fixer
* digital scatologist for a bug fixer who studies memory dumps. The job title Digital Scatologist has been printed on business cards by some Silicon Valley companies.
* force, police action, or conflict for war
* mature for old or elderly
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