| 释义 |
minced oath
noun[ C ]
uk /ˌmɪnst ˈəʊθ/ us /ˌmɪnst ˈoʊθ/
a word or phrase that is used instead of saying an offensive word, often humorously:
When people search for alternatives to swearing, they often resort to minced oaths.
Minced oaths include expressions such as "gosh" instead of "God", "heck" instead of "hell", and "tarnation" instead of "damnation".
Minced oaths are a kind of euphemism.
The archaic expletive "zounds!" originated as a minced oath for "God's wounds!"
Minced oaths are often substituted to soften the harsher blow of the profane.
The phrase "By Jingo!", sometimes interpreted as a minced oath, became a rallying cry supporting Disraeli's Balkan policy of "active intervention" in 1878.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Digressing and being indirect or evasive
bury the ledeidiom
candy coat
candy coating
candy-coated
circumlocution
circumlocutory
f-bomb
get on to/onto something
glancingly
gloss over something
go off on a tangentidiom
implicit
mealy-mouthed
obscure
parry
prevaricate
stray
tangent
unexpressed
unvoiced
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Polite and respectful
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