EUPHEMISTIC WORDS
According to the textbook definition,
a euphemism is a ‘mild, indirect or vague term used in place of a direct, harsh
and likely offensive words.
List of euphemistic words we use
daily:
EUPHEMISTIC WORD
ORDINARY WORD
·
between
jobs - unemployed, or without a job
·
Bite
the dust - Dead
·
Bottom - buttocks
·
capital
punishment - the death penalty
·
casualties - victims, or people killed or injured
in wars and accidents
·
challenged - more limited mentally or physically
than most people
·
Collateral
damage - When innocent people or schools,
hospitals, and homes are destroyed in
an attack
·
comfort
stop - a short break on a journey to allow
travellers to go to the toilet
·
Correctional
facility - prison
·
creative
differences - problems among musicians, dancers,
writers, actors, etc. that make
it difficult or impossible for them to work together
·
dating - regularly having sex
·
deceased - dead
·
Differently
abled - Someone with mental or physically
disable
·
Dismiss - to fire someone from their job
·
Euthanize - to kill an unwanted animal
·
Expecting - to be pregnant
·
Explicit - showing or describing sexual acts
·
family
jewels - testicles
·
family
planning - often used as a euphemism for birth
control or using contraceptives
·
getting
on - old or elderly
·
Hearing
impaired - Deaf
·
Homeless - On the streets
·
in the family way - pregnant
·
Intellectually
challenged - idiot
·
Issues - emotional problems
·
Late - used instead of "dead" or
"deceased" when mentioning a dead person
·
lay off - to fire a worker
·
let go - to fire a worker
·
Lose your lunch - Vomit
·
loss of life - many deaths
·
Lost his marbles - suffer from mental illness
·
Merry - drunk
·
nature calls - needing to urinate or defecate
·
pass away - to die
·
pass wind - to release gas from the anus or the
"bottom"
·
person of
interest - a criminal suspect
·
pre-owned - used or second-hand
·
private parts - a person's sex organs or
"genitals"
·
put down - to kill
an animal, esp. one of no commercial value
·
put to sleep - to kill an animal, esp. a sick,
injured or very old pet
·
relieve oneself - to go to the toilet, esp. to urinate
·
Relocation center - prison camp
·
Restroom - a public toilet
·
sanitation worker - garbage or rubbish collector
·
senior citizen - an old person
·
Staying on the
tractor - enjoying your retired life
·
Sweetener - a bribe
·
Terminated - murdered
·
Termination - abortion
·
the big C - cancer
·
Visually
challenged - blind
·
wardrobe
malfunction - a problem with clothing that allows
breasts, buttocks or genitals to be
seen