Comments on: What Makes a Word Into a Bad Word?

By: Mohamadu Keita

Mohamadu Keita — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 20:05:00 +0000

it cant be that bad iif its used everyday my grandfather got mad at me because i youtube video said shit then he goes downstairs to watch a baseball game and says shit like 30 times

By: Joey

Joey — Mon, 23 May 2011 01:41:00 +0000

Just because people think of them as bad. In 4th grade i screamed “Screw you!” at somebody when i was angry, and got a week of detention, and they knew i had said screw, not fuck, or any other word that could have been confused with screw.

By: me

me — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 20:00:00 +0000

It’s bad because it uses God’s name in vain.

By: Dole Anderson

Dole Anderson — Tue, 26 May 2009 10:09:59 +0000

shady- a slang word , used to defame a persons reputation by associating them as ( a liar and dishonest ) . Yes , it is a bad word .

By: rhet

rhet — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:40:07 +0000

Lindsay is mostly correct. In and of itself, a word cannot be bad or good. When spoken it is a sound, when written, a group of letters (symbols) we read which stand for the sound. A sound or an arrangement of symbols cannot have intent – good, bad or otherwise. It is all in how and when it is used – context. The F. word can be used when you smash your finger with a hammer, when LaBron drives and dunks, when you nearly crash your car, or when your in the throws of lovemaking . . etc. It all has to do with who you are with and what is not only the implied meaning, but the received meaning. There are no bad words – no good words either.

By: Phrizmacolor

Phrizmacolor — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:25:54 +0000

I think a profane word is one that is highly offensive to a group of people, because crap, shoot, and $hitt all mean the same thing. it is in which company you pronounce your language to. for example, in Oromo it is highly offensive to speak the names of your in laws, this is called laguu. In a professional environment you could be potentially fired for saying any slew of words you wouldn’t say around your grandma, whereas in the teenage community you would be shunned for not liking such words.

By: Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ — Mon, 04 May 2009 18:39:46 +0000

Words are not bad at all stop making them out to be bad.

By: Dole Anderson

Dole Anderson — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 07:03:08 +0000

yes , basically your defaming someone’s reputation by that term.

By: Dole Anderson

Dole Anderson — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 06:46:01 +0000

the word shady is that a swear word ?

By: Trai

Trai — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 23:14:54 +0000

Too many words are being labeled as “Bad Words”

We started saying “Shit.” It offended people, so we began saying “Shoot.” That offended people because it sounded too close to “Shit.” So, we started saying “Crap.” That was deemed bad too, so we started saying “Crud.” Now, I’ve heard people bitching about “Crud” too!

Where do we draw the line?

By: bradleybradwell

bradleybradwell — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 22:13:32 +0000

In my opinion,
A word isn’t bad until it has a negative influence you are directing the language at. If it’s used in a upbeat positive way i don’t think it should make such a big deal. I also think it’s a bad word if it intentionally ruins someone credibility or personal life.

By: Tom Finnicks

Tom Finnicks — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 02:03:50 +0000

God damnit, you’re right!

By: Chris McClymont

Chris McClymont — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 13:15:51 +0000

I read somewhere, I think on howstuffworks.com that when we hear a swear or taboo word, the part of our brain that processes and responds to emotion flicks on instead of the usual language part. That’s why ‘bad’ words can be very offensive – they provoke an emotional response, and that can easily make people uncomfortable. I think swear words can be very useful for conveying emotion – however since many swear words like f u c k provoke a very negative response of anger or frustration, overusing them can be funny to some people and uncomfortable to others – probably based on their upbringing and their associations with the word.

If you have a popular blog/podcast and get a lot of negative feedback on your swearing, then it’s time to cut back and try and find that social ‘normal’ amount of swearing to try to appeal to a wider audience – if that’s what you want

By: A Nonymous

A Nonymous — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:19:23 +0000

Consensus?

By: Computerwhiz1

Computerwhiz1 — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 01:25:17 +0000

Did you know SHIT really was a abbreviation of “Ship High In Transit.” They used this when they were shipping manure over seas for fertilizer so that they gasses wouldn’t build up. I would have to guess it became a bad word b/c poop or manure just isn’t pleasant. Also they began to just call it what the box said: S.H.I.T. So i think that is were we get that word from.