Yo! What’s up motherfuckers! Oh oops I apologise for my rude language. I didn’t mean to offend anyone. "Fucking shit I shouldn’t have said that”. It seems that swearing has become the norm of our evolving verbal English language. I was trained not to swear by my parents but societal pressure to fit in with the norm has forced me to communicate in such a way. This type of socially offensive language is called “profanity”, which is described as bad, strong, coarse, foul, vulgar, lewd. Synonyms of swearing include the use of expletives, cursing or cussing. On average, no matter the language we speak, we cuss roughly 80 - 90 words each day which make up 0.5% - 0.7% of all the words we speak. According to a poll conducted by Angus Reid Public Opinion in 2010, Canadians swear more often than Americans and the British when having conversations with friends, while Britons are more likely to hear strangers swear while eavesdropping a conversation than both Canadians and Americans. I honestly feel bad typing this but here are the most common swear words I have heard people use in online and offline conversations:
— Fuck / Fucker / Fucking (F-Word)
— Shit (S-Word)
— Damn
— Cunt (C-Word)
— Bitch / Son of a Bitch c
— Motherfucker
— Damn
— Gosh
— Crap
— Hell
— Pussy
— Asshole / Ass / Assfuck / Fuckass
— Dumbass
— Cock / Cocksucker
— Whore / Ho
— Slut
— Douche / Douchebag
— Faggot / Fag
— Piss
— Bastard
— Darn
— Dick / Dickhead
— Twat
— Skank
— (Zounds = God’s Wounds / Gadzooks = God’s Hooks)
You will notice in my previous posts I censored all of my curse words until now with symbols we occasionally use like @,#,$,%,&,!. This is called a grawlix, which was first used by American cartoonist Mort Walker in 1964. On television and radio, whenever someone swears in the recording, those words are blocked out by a bleep censor with a 1000 Hz sine wave which sounds like this in the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKV5O7UKixQ
Even with the bleeping sound, we can still decipher what word was most likely bleeped out by the extrinsic changes in their mouth and the sentence it was used in the relevant context, also better known as lip reading. That’s why bleeps are sometimes accompanied by a digital blur or a black box covering the speaker’s mouth and their middle finger.
The term “profane” originates from the classical Latin term “profanus”, meaning “before (outside) the temple.” It carried the meaning of either “desecrating what is holy”, or “with a secular purpose” as early as the 1450s AD. In modern language, profanity represents secular indifference to religion and religious figures, whilst “blasphemy” is a more offensive attack on religion and religious figures, that are considered sinful, and a direct violation of the 10 Commandments.
In English, all swear or curse words have Germanic roots like “shit" and “fuck”. More technical alternatives like defecate, excrete, fornicate and copulate have Latin origins.
What fascinates me is that the 3 most common curse words are used in many different contexts. For those who are posh English speakers and cannot be bothered to understand the colloquial language of younger generations, there’s no need to feel offended because I’m here to help you translate what these variations actually mean depending on the context. The following definitions are provided courtesy of Urban Dictionary:
(a) F-Word, F-Bomb
Ever since its introduction to the English language, this word was considered to be obscene and vulgar. However this word has become increasingly less vulgar and more publicly acceptable in casual conversations. This is called a “dysphemism treadmill”. Its origin, however, is rather obscure despite its common use in everyday spoken language. Reports from Dr. Paul Booth claimed that its first use was probably during the early 1300s where the f-word was first used to define a sexual connotation. He believed it was used in an English court quoted by man local to Chester who is referred to as “Roger Fuckebythenavale”. In this context Booth says its use referred to either an inexperienced copulator, or someone trying to have sex with the navel, or a rather extravagant way to describe someone who is stupid to think that this is the way to have sex. In 1278, an Englishman named John le Fucker may have provided philologists the inspiration to record earliest instance of the f-word. Variants of the word in other Germanic languages include: German: ficken (to have sex); Dutch: fokken (to breed, to beget); Norwegian: fukka (to copulate) & Swedish: focka (to strike, to copulate) & fock (penis).
What makes this word rather interesting is that we use this word as a verb, adjective, noun and adverb meaning it’s a flexible word linguistically, albeit rudely. Below is a list of the most common uses of the f-word I overhear by people of all traits and races in casual conversations and sometimes on television.
— Let’s Fuck! = Let’s engage in quick and passionate sexual intercourse
— Fuck Me!
= A sing of exasperation which you shouldn’t take literally especially by someone who is not showing an obvious sexual interest.
= During your intimate sessions, it literally means ram the ham harder, faster and deeper hoping your partner experiences orgasm.
= Adds a exclamation to the realisation the full extent of the predicament you have fallen in
— What the fuck?! (WTF, Dafuq)
= An expression of extreme surprise, (incredulous) confusion, disappointment, pain, anger and irony
= An expression of extreme frustration, after a recent chain of bad events that has just been added to by something that just happened
= An emphatic way to say “What?!”
= Occasionally used in the context when you tire of considering a certain decision but you somehow commit yourself to that particular action whatever the consequences.
— Stupid Fuck! = A vulgar way to emphasise someone’s steer stupidity
— Fuck My Life! (FML) = A common phrase used by those who are experiencing misfortune, grief, humiliation, regret or simply having a bad day. These people may be feeling distressed, pressured or depressed about something.
— Fuck You!
= A expression of contempt, sometimes accompanied by erection of the middle finger.
= It can be used as an offensive gesture with the intention to emotionally hurt another person.
= It can be used as a way to express your sexual desire over someone you like like.
= It can be used, in an amiable accolade, as a way to express unobtrusive jealousy, where it may actually sound friendly.
— Fucking / Fucken… e.g. She is fucking hot!, I will fucking kill you!, I fucking hate / love you!, This fucking guy! Fucking Do it!
= On its own, it describes a man’s erect penis is rapidly thrusting back and forth in a woman’s vagina (or rarely anus).
= Also the name of small town in Austria
= A transitional adverb, to add strong emphasis to the adjective, verb, noun or emotive language.
— Fuck the system! = "When one wants to bring down their enslaving government who’s only will is become more powerful and wealthy at the expense of the common working class, a government that is sending the western world to ‘hell in a hand basket’ yet the so-called ‘retarded white trash inbreeds’ don’t take action into addressing communal issues as long as politically biased CNN reports headlines that approves their actions. These reinforces claims of lying and corrupting by the members of government who are disgruntling activists of all sorts, and the rumour that their society is being bribed by billionaire companies whom are close business allies with politicians in power, in an effort to maintain the status quo and tame the tiger.”
— Got Fucked! = When a person shouts “fuck you!”
— Fuck with me! = Contact me; Get a hold of me; Holler at me; Help me out; Let’s get together!.
— I’m fucked! = In the appropriate context, it predicts someone’s doom or downfall in the near future. It may also describe someone who is drunk and/or under the influence of drugs beyond the point of comprehension, rationally and all responses. They may be vomiting/puking everywhere and/or behaving abnormally, influenced by the effects of alcohol and narcotics within their system.
— Fuck off! = "Go away, Leave Me Alone, Don’t Talk To Me Again, Get out of my Sight!" These angry insults are usually accompanied by the middle finger gesture.
— Fuckwit = A person who is not only lacking in clue but is apparently unable or unwilling to acquire clues even when handed it to them on a plate in generous portions. In other words, it’s a person who lacks intelligence that they cannot grasp the simplest of concepts.
- Fuckboy / Fuckboii = A male, usually in their teens and early 20s who tricks girls into thinking they’re sweethearts and end up having romantic moments with them (hookups). Then over time they turn on you viciously and end the relationship in disgrace leaving the girls in a ripe mess through cheating.
— Fuckgirl = A girl who engages in behaviour similar to a fuckboy, who generally think they are the most beautiful creatures on the planet, more beautiful than any other girl who have the mentality to get whatever she wants. This behaviour is described as narcissistic and misogynistic, summarised by the “power of the pussy". They tend to be incomprehensible and guys are often manipulated to believe these girls intimately like them. They use their so-called beauty with their makeup masks, fake nails and fake eyelashes to get attention, sex and lots of money. They will show no emotion to guys who really care for them which is a pity. They actually fall in love with guys that just want to have sex and make money. Eventually they will make the call when the relationship is over leaving guys of all types devastated, angry and heartbroken.
— Fucknut = A person who is annoying and dumb that they can no longer be classed as an idiot. They are literally have less intelligence than a normal idiot.
— Fucked Up = This depends on the context of the conversation. It’s a level of status typically used in reference to being physically, mentally, morally / aesthetically, performance-wise, or even theoretically damaged in some way. It, in and of itself, has many levels, such as 'slightly fucked up’, or ‘so fucked up’, but all in all they have to do with describing the level of damage.
Physical: “Ouch, I just fucked up my thumb while I was hammering away at the nail.”
Mentally: That chick is SO fucked up, she are a full ounce of magic mushrooms!”
Morally/Aesthetically: See that mural over there? Now THAT is fucked up. Anyone with half a brain wouldn’t draw that!”
Performance-wise: “My grades are fucked up!”
Theoretically: “Man… that would be so fucked up if you did that!”
— Fucked Over = A British Slang phrase used to describe an unfortunate situation which is usually the result of 1 or more people taking advantage of another. Under normal circumstances, the person on the wrong side of the coin is unaware of the situation until it is too late. Being ‘fucked over’ does NOT normally relate to physical violence / assault, but it is more suited to describing a feeling of betrayal you experience when you realise that someone you once trusted has been deceiving and manipulating you for their own personal gain.
— Fuck all of you! / Fuck all y’all! = This term is usually pronounced very loudly to a large audience of haters who have criticised you.
— Fuck all! = You did absolutely nothing! Or the most extreme degree of nothing.
— Fuck the life out of him!
— Fucking Hell (Mate)! = A term used frequently by people native to the UK, which is an exclamation of feelings of frustration or anger.
— Fuck That! = An exaggerated way of saying “No”. In the right context, this term also depicts you telling someone you are completely against an idea they proposed.
— Motherfucker! = Literally, it means engaging in sexual activity with someone else’s or your own mother. A common slang derived most popularly from a form of “yo momma jokes” but it actually dates way back to the 1300s when it was considered the highest sin to sleep with one’s own mother (even above murder). More commonly, it describes a mean, despicable, or vicious person, or any particularly difficult or frustrating situation. Alternatively, it can be a term of admiration, as in “bad ass motherfucker!”, meaning a fearless and confident person.
— Fuck No! = The ultimate of all negative answers. When you say No with feeling and overreaction.
— I don’t give a fuck! = When you’ve had enough and seriously don’t care any less about a person’s business. This is commonly felt among people who have been walked all over for most of their life.
— Fuck Yes! = A different and better way of saying “Hell Yes”. You approve of something without even thinking twice about it which may have repercussions later if you’re not careful.
— Fuck Yeah! = When you experience significant, sudden, good fortune or accomplished something amazing that you never even dreamed would ever happen.
— … As Fuck (…af) = A phrase inserted after any adjective to give it emphasis. It generally means, “extremely”, or “to the utmost degree”.
— Fucker = One who is often rude, obnoxious, or mean…synonymous with asshole, dickhead etc. It can also mean someone who is the bulk of the work in sexual intercourse or a general term for a normal person.
— Fuck This Shit! = When one says when they are frustrated or annoyed to the point that they give up or no longer want to complete the task at hand. This usual results in the task being left incomplete.
— Let’s Fuck the Shit out of this…! = When you have sex with a woman so hard that she either bleeds or cries in pain, and not just on her first time.
— My Fucking God! = A more dramatic way to say “Oh My God” to give an exclamation of shock or surprise, often used repeated by gullible people who are shocked and surprised by almost everything you tell them and they insert this phrase into conversations whenever possible.
— Motherfuckin’ = Casually, it is used before a name or place or something to hype it up and suggest that is is really cool and awesome. As an adjective, it is synonymous with formidable or superior.
— Oh... Fuck! = An exclamation of immune frustration and awe of an overpowering catastrophe that is about to happen.
— Mindfuck = An idea or concept that shakes one’s previously held beliefs or assumptions about the nature of reality. This experience usually leaves the person stunned or speechless while they are wrapped their minds around this new idea.
— Fucking around! = Doing absolutely nothing productive; Wasting time; Not taking a task seriously; Purposefully performing a task poorly.
— For Fuck’s Sake = For Heaven’s Sake — A mixture between WTF and utter confusion, combined with annoyance.
(b) S-Word
As a noun it refers to faeces or faecal matter. As a verb it means ‘to defecate’. This word is likely derived from the Old English; nouns like scite (dung, attested only in place names) & scitte (Diarrhoea), verbs like scītan (to defecate, attested only in bescītan, to cover with excrements). Eventually it somehow morphed into the Middle English schītte (also meaning excrement), schyt (diarrhoea) and shiten (to defecate). These terms were most likely used by German tribes at the time of the Roman Empire.
This word can also be used as a generic mass noun similar to “stuff”. e.g. This meme is funny shit, this test is hard shit, that was stupid shit. e.g. Buy shit, lose shit, find shit, forget shit.
— Shit-faced = Describes someone who has drank too much alcohol, that speaks incoherently, has difficulty remembering the most simple details i.e. your address, your age, your best friends’ names.
— Smoke shit = The act of smoking Methamphetamine, and/or “ice”.
— Eat shit = An expression of extreme dislike or anger when used in the imperative i.e. Go fuck yourself
— Lucky shits, Dumb shits, Crazy shits
— Throw shit, Sling shit, Catch shit, Shoot the shit
— When shit hits the fan = The point at which an already unstable situation devolves into utter chaos, often in spite of a higher authority’s attempt to control it.
— Crock of Shit = Something is overly false, misleading or full of lies.
— Oh Shit! = An loud exclamation when you realise you have forgotten to do something important for you. e.g. Homework, Left your children in the car, You can’t stop your car from crashing or lost control of your car, or you’re about to get killed or injured in a bloody dramatic painful way
— Shithouse = Describes someone who is the epitome of scum, which is the lowest of the low. They have no morals who are just out for themselves and has to regard for anyone else, no matter how close they may be.
— Shit hole = A really bad place or building, especially a place that is undesirable for leisure activities, to live or work.
— Shit happens! = A universal religious concept used to describe something inevitable will happen without the control to circumvent or stop it from happening. It is a term of commiseration and you’re prepared to accept the outcome that lies ahead.
— Taking a shit / Having a shit = Commonly depicting the act of defecating. It can describe something that has almost become non-functioning or is poorly performing.
— Shitty = Of very poor quality, high inferiority, contempt, despicable, unfortunate, unpleasant (depending on the context). You’re in a state of discomfort, unhappiness, misery, incompetence or ineptness. It could also describe something trivial or insignificant.
— Shat = An Old English Past tense version of ‘shit’
— Shithead = A genuine moron. It describes someone committing an act that causes harm or temporary discomfort to another.
— The Shit = The best. Originated as a term to describe a high quality drug substance. Nowadays, this term has evolved to common usage of any item of high quality.
— Get shit done = To accomplish things and completing certain tasks
— Knowing shit = Someone who is very good at what he does, and has a profound knowledge about it.
— Feel like shit = When you feel down about yourself and express disgust. This is when you feel nothing matters to you and you couldn’t care less. You’re in a state of depression. Synonymous to “feel like crap”.
— Sounds like shit / Look like shit = A idiomatic way to denote something bad
— Don’t give a shit (Don’t give a fuck) = You don’t care, even in the slightest bit.
— Get my shit together = Refers to organising a particular set of personal belongings or tools, or to one’s wits, composure, to attention to the task at hand.
— Shit myself = When you perform badly at something
— Shit scared = Scared to the point where you metaphorically (not literally) defecated.
— Shite = A British and fun way of saying ‘shit’. It is also the romaji for the Japanese Hiragana (して), meaning “doing”
— Piece of shit! = Any object, person, or other existing thing that works incorrectly, is too expensive or just doesn’t the job it was assigned to do. It could describe an object or person that is worse than worthless, holding no values nor redeeming qualities whatsoever. They could be a stupid, low-life, self-righteous human being who makes life a living hell for themselves and others.
— Shoot the shit = Having a friendly but pointless conversation
— Pile of Shit! = Literally, it means a mound a faecal matter that is emitting an unpleasant odour. In slang terms, it describes an item or person as unusable, of poor construction, unwanted, unreliable or unacceptable in some fashion.
— Bullshit! = A way to call someone telling a blatant lie, a fragrant untruth, an obvious fallacy.
— Shit ton = A widely adaptable large unit of measure. In numerical terms, it is equivalent to 24 metric tons, or 1/10% of a fuck-ton.
— … and shit. = Used as an ending to a sentence to describe things that usually happen on a daily basis such as watching TV, making love etc.
— Too much shit, not enough shit, right shit, wrong shit, carry shit
— Weird Shit = Describes a situation that is beyond strange or out of the ordinary. No matter how hard you think, you can’t fully understand why and how it happened.
— Shit creek = A metaphor for 'deep trouble'.
— Turns to shit
— In deep shit = In a lot of trouble
— Colder than shit, hotter than shit
— Bucket of shit = When a person gives someone information that is considered useless or meaningless in any way possible.
— Shit his pants! = Someone who has had an accident in their pants and/or describes a retard.
— Shitter = Slang term for a toilet
— Shitting bricks = To be extremely scared or frightened
— Shit-talk = An connotation for bragging or exaggeration or talking in a boastful way about things which are erroneous in nature.
Bitch, literally means a female dog (above). In slang terms, it is one of the most sensitive pejoratives for a person, especially women, who is belligerent, unreasonable, malicious, a control freak, rudely intrusive or aggressive. When applied to a man, it is a derogatory term for a subordinate. Its original use as a vulgarism, dates back to the 14th century, which suggested high sexual desire in a woman, comparable to a dog in heat (canine reproduction). In a feminist context, it can indicate a woman who is morally strong or assertive. The term is believed to be coined in 1150, by the Old English word bicche. It may also have derivatives of the Old Norse word bikkja meaning ‘female dog’.
It is believed the definition of a female dog was derived from the Greek Goddess Artemis. As she is the goddess of hunting, she was often portrayed with a pack of hunting dogs and occasionally transformed into an animal herself, but it is unknown which animal(s) specifically. She was described as free, vigorous, cold, impetuous, unsympathetic and beautiful.
As a derogatory term for women, this definition has been in use since 14th or 15th century but it’s unknown who coined the definition. According to English Language historian Geoffrey Hughes, tts earliest slang meaning mainly referred to sexual behaviour.
— This (lil’) bitch = When you become tired of someone’s actions prompting you to say such. Then is when you feel annoyed of someone’s antics or disgusted by their comments leaving you speechless.
— Son of a Bitch / Sunavabitch! = A form of profanity used to refer to a man who is nasty, rude, or otherwise offensive.
— Bitch ass! (Punk, Scared, Coward)= When one who likes to yell to show their toughness but when someone is then not committed to get back at them, they are labelled as weak.
— Bitching = As an adjective, it describes something that is actually great.
— To bitch = To complain, usually pejorative with intent.
— You’re a bitch! = In modern language, it has different meanings depending largely on the social context and it may vary from offensive to endearing. It can refer to a person or thing that is very difficult to handle.
— Bitch Slap = This term is derived from American slang. In the original sense, it describes a powerful, full-swing slap in the face with the front of the hand, evoking the way an angry pimp might slap a defiant prostitute. This is not to be confused with a pimp slap which uses the back of the hand. However, this term is now frequently used figuratively to describe a humiliating defeat or punishment
— Bitch End = A term used in poker. If you have the “bitch end” of a hand, you have the weaker version of the same hand as another player. The bitch in this context is slang for the Queen of Spades .
— Bitchin’ = Describes something that is cool or rad
— Bad Bitch = Since its reappropriation in hip hop culture, rappers define this term as an independent, confident, attraction woman. This is a way to show their desire for a woman. If you have listened to the songs “Da Baddest Bitch” by Trina, “Bad Bitch” by Rihanna ft. Beyoncé & “Starships” by Nicki Minaj before, the definition of bitch has been reappropriated to show that women are positive and empowering.
It’s evident that swearing is quite flexible linguistically in online and offline conversations no matter what language you speak. It can be quite difficult to discern the tone and, quite often, you would sometimes elicit the wrong response which would be quite embarrassing to say the least. This would raise a few eyebrows and leave a bad impression in front of your friends.
According to Canadian-born British cognitive scientist, psychologist, linguist and popular science author Steve Pinker’s book “The Stuff of Thought, he believes there are 5 functions of swearing:
(a) Abusive = Verbally abusing or intimidating or insulting of others stigmatising emotion and retaliation within others. This is intended to humiliate, objectify those you like to pick a fight with because of the biases taught to you by those around you (e.g You motherfucking son of a bitch!)
(b) Cathartic = When something bad or unfortunate happens to you like spilling coffee on your new coat, you would let out a personal expletive. One evolutionary theory suggests that it is meant to alert your audience that you are undergoing a negative emotion or having a tough time of recent. (e.g. Awww fuck! Damn this coffee!)
(c) Dysphemistic = Dysphemism is an antonym of euphemism. You are forcing the listener to think about negative or provocative matter. Using the wrong euphemism can have a dysphemistic effect (e.g. He fucks her!)
(d) Emphatic = When you want to emphasise something to ensure we understand what you’re talking about. (e.g. It was fucking huge!)
(e) Idiomatic = When you swear without referring to the matter at all. You are just using those words to arouse interest, to show off, and express to peers that the setting is informal. (e.g. Fuck, man!)
What boggles my mind is why do we confine to swearing. Once we start swearing, why do we enjoy it so much we swear even more? Why do these so-called bad words sound so bad and offensive to the human ear? We swear when we feel pain, outraged, disgusted, emotionally charged or excited. It is believed what swearing can help you relieve stress and improve focus on the tasks at hand. It is also seen to reduce the pain and suffering of a serious injury and improve our resistance to the over-stimulation of our pain receptors. But I wonder why swearing can improve our mood and health mentally and physiologically? It seems that evolution gave us this special gift whenever our body needs to rapidly release energy and stigma caused by the release of Adrenaline, Cortical and Noradrenaline from our adrenal glands to our heart, muscles and the brain. Swearing is an important way to alarm those around you how you are actually feeling such as when there is danger lurking like when a pack of deers gets attacked by a hungry, frisky tiger. Swearing can also be a test of communication and understanding of your peers. If you can mentally translate those swear words into the actual message they’re conveying to you, you have proven yourself to be a trustworthy and emphatic person to your friend. Swear words can also signify how powerful, superior and dominant you want to prove to the others. Your language has the power to insult, intimidate, degrade, objectify and satirically mock your peers. This type communication can lead to a few best friends but also worst enemies. But what does swear words look like as a sound wave compared to other euphemistic substitutes like defecate, intercourse or screw you? So far no one seems to know which is disappointing to say the least.
Amongst asian people, I feel Vietnamese and Korean people swear the most, more often than Chinese, Japanese, Malaysian and Singaporean. Since I’m not a linguist, I’ll do some further research into the swearing amongst different cultures around the world. There is this Vietnamese word that can be often confused for a swear word whilst translated it isn’t. Phuc = A given male name. In fact it reminds me a famous story a few years ago. Do you know which I’m referring to? Click and link and enjoy reading it.
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/nov/25/man-says-he-made-up-vietnamese-name-hoax-to-fool-news-media-and-facebook
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