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by Jessica Glendinning
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Looking for euphemism examples? Understanding this linguistic tool is your ticket to tactful communication.
I distinctly remember standing in my grandmother’s kitchen one night when I was eight years old.
The adults in my extended family were sitting around the kitchen table drinking wine. Suddenly someone exclaimed, “That’s BS!”
I popped around the corner, eyes wide, and asked, “What’s BS?”
I watched their eyebrows lift. Waited as they scrambled for an answer. And then my aunt quickly answered, “It means baby shoes.”
They all laughed.
And I went back to what I was doing, not convinced she was telling the truth.
This may not have been my first experience with euphemistic language, but it certainly stuck with me over the years.
As I got older, I began to recognize there’s often a more polite word to use:
Enter the euphemism.
The folks here at Smart Blogger define euphemism as a “good way to talk about a bad thing.”
I’d expand that definition a bit and call it a polite expression for an unpleasant reality or things that might otherwise be considered taboo or have a negative connotation.
As a writer, there will be times when a polite euphemism is necessary. Other times, using them could even improve your writing.
Let’s look at some other related literary devices (aka literary terms) you can use to build out your writerly toolbox.
Innuendo hints at the truth without directly stating something unpleasant or inappropriate.
For example, someone might indicate they got “extra help” on a test rather than admitting they cheated.
Being “PC” often involves language filled with euphemistic-sounding language. But in reality, political correctness is intended to be respectfully and directly polite.
For example, it’s politically correct to speak of someone’s struggles with mental illness rather than call them “crazy.”
No an idiom is not a dumb-dumb (you’re thinking of idoit!)
Idioms are often cultural words or phrases that imaginatively convey an idea. It’s a literary device that’s not meant to be taken literally.
For example, people often joke about brides and grooms getting “cold feet” right before the wedding.
When the substituted word or phrase has a negative connotation rather than a positive one, you might be dealing with a dysphemism.
For example, someone might refer to a cemetery as a “boneyard.”
And of course, no polite conversation on euphemisms would be complete without sharing one of my favorite George Carlin bits.
(Warning: Georgie uses a curse word here and there, so cover your youngster’s ears)
Now that you have that euphemism definition, let’s look at some common types of euphemism and explore the colorful world of figurative language further.
Given our Puritanical roots here in the US, it’s no wonder euphemisms are everywhere. From bodily functions to religion to money, there more than one uncomfortable topic in everyday language.
Let’s look at the nine most common euphemism categories and several examples of each…
“Perhaps we have been guilty of some terminological inexactitudes.” – Winston Churchill, to the British House of Commons in 1906
“Only I didn’t say ‘Fudge.’ I said THE word, the big one, the queen-mother of dirty words, the ‘F-dash-dash-dash’ word!” – Ralphie, from the 1983 movie A Christmas Story
“Cause I got that boom boom that all the boys chase; All the right junk in all the right places.” – Meghan Trainor, from her song All About That Bass
“I can, however, try to move forward in a manner that is consistent with the values to which I subscribed before slipping my moorings.” – Former CIA Director David Petraeus, in apologizing for his affair
“Me, I’m trying just to get to second base, and I’d steal it if she only gave the sign.” – Billy Joel, comparing himself to Pete Rose in the song Zanzibar
“Another bride, another June; Another sunny honeymoon; Another season, another reason; For makin’ whoopee” – Ella Fitzgerald, in her classic 1958 song Makin’ Whoopie
“I am sorry that anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction during the halftime performance of the Super Bowl. It was not intentional and is regrettable.” – Justin Timberlake, apologizing for his part in the accidental exposure during the 2004 Super Bowl
“What’d you do?” I said. “Give her the time in Ed Banky’s goddam car?” – Scene from J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye
“In wifehood I will use my instrument, As freely as my Maker has it sent.” – The Wife of Bath’s Prologue from Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales
“I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs.” – Iago in William Shakespeare’s play Othello
“Don’t ever call me mad, Mycroft. I’m not mad. I’m just… well, differently moraled, that’s all.” – Acheron Hades in Jasper Fforde’s novel The Eyre Affair
“If I pass during some nocturnal blackness, mothy and warm, When the hedgehog travels furtively over the lawn…” – Stanza from Thomas Hardy’s poem Afterwards
“It had been found necessary to make a readjustment of rations.” – Squealer, to the other animals in George Orwell’s novel Animal Farm
“She made great Caesar lay his sword to bed; He plowed her, and she cropped” – Agrippa, speaking of Cleopatra in Shakespeare’s play Antony and Cleopatra
This certainly isn’t a comprehensive list of all the numerous euphemisms out there, but it should give you an idea of the types of phrases you can work into your creative writing, blog posts, or everyday speech.
The next time you find yourself writing about a sensitive topic or taboo subjects, you now have another literary device to use.
Your readers likely don’t need things softened to the point of “baby shoes,” but you can still avoid collateral damage on your way to a compelling piece of writing.
So forget about writer’s block: Roll up your sleeves, sit your “boom boom” in your favorite writing chair, and pull out your favorite trick to get you inspired to write.
You only have one life to live — and lots of words to write — before you “meet your maker.”
Literary Devices, Writing
This post was originally published on September 9th, 2021 by Jessica Glendinning. It has been updated for clarity and comprehensiveness.
Jessica Glendinning
Jessica Glendinning is a freelance writer who has heard many euphemisms in her lifetime. She spent 40+ hours combing through literature and pop culture archives to find the best euphemism examples to include in this post.