EUPHEMISM

EUPHEMISM

1. Introduction

To be polite, people have a tendency to veil concepts that are delicate or offensive. Communicators use euphemisms in their utterances, spoken or written, to cover up or soften the unpleasant connotations and denotations of some words or expressions.

A particular behavior or utterance which is polite in one culture might be impolite in another culture.

In principle, encoding and interpreting of these indirect expressions are specific in every culture and language. Consequently, it should be noted that culture would affect the way people accept the restrictions and place them on the translation process in order to use euphemisms instead of directly expressing something unpleasant.

The present paper addresses euphemism as a way of being polite and studies it under the light of face-work and politeness theories in the cultural translation.

First, the current study reviews the notions and sub-categories of face-work and politeness theories as well as the face-threatening acts. Next, euphemism and its relation to face-work and politeness theories will be discussed. Then, from the cultural translation perspective, euphemisms are viewed and strategies for translation of harsh and objectionable concepts are discussed.Last, the conclusion part will be presented.

Euphemism

  

 The function of euphemism is to protect the speaker/writer, hearer/reader, or all of the above from possible effrontery and offence. This offence may occur in the broaching of a taboo topic, e.g. religion or death, or by mentioning subject matter to which one party involved may be sensitive, such as politics or social issues. In order for communication to progress smoothly and without conflict, accommodations are continually, and often subconsciously made. Interpretation varies according to context, i.e. whether the speaker means the term to be euphemistic, and the hearer interprets it in that light

 What is Euphemism?

A euphemism is a polite expression used in place of words or phrases that otherwise might be considered harsh or unpleasant to hear. Euphemisms are used regularly, and there are many examples in every day language. 

Synonyms and antonyms for euphemism

Synonyms:

1.  saying (n.)

A word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations

• euphemism
• Beatitude
• phrase
• idiomatic expression
• saw
• motto
• voice communication
• speech
• language

1. expression (n.)

The feelings expressed on a person's face

• facial expression
• look
• face

Antonyms:

1. dysphemism (n.)

an offensive or disparaging expression that is substituted for an inoffensive one

Types of Euphemisms

Within the definition of euphemism, there are many different sub-categories. Here are some of the different types of euphemisms:

• Phonetic modification: We modify strong swear words or words that are not meant to be spoken lightly ( God) so that the new phonetic euphemism sounds very similar to the original, but just different enough so that it’s inoffensive.
• Figures of speech: Many euphemisms come in the form of different figures of speech.
• Slang : Plenty of slang terms come to stand for taboo words or expressions. Since slang can vary greatly from one region or country to the next, at times some expressions have very different euphemistic meanings.

Example

1. You aren’t poor, you are economically disadvantaged.

2. You aren’t broke, you have temporary negative cash flow.

3. Passed away instead of died

4. On the streets instead of homeless

5. Adult entertainment instead of pornography

6.Comfort woman instead of prostitute

7. Use the rest room instead of go to the bathroom

8. Break wind instead of pass gas

9. Economical with the truth instead of liar

10. Sleep together instead of have sex

11. Fat - chubby, full-figured, plump, voluptuous, overweight, big boned

12. Remedial - special needs, developmental

13. Poor - underprivileged, unable to make ends meet, modest, financially embarrassed

14. Homeless - displaced, dispossessed, adrift

15. Bathroom - be excused, restroom, public conveniences  

Conclusion

  Euphemisms are usually employed to avoid saying anything controversial or indiscreet and can be really witty and out-and-out comical at times. From classic literature to movies and from boardrooms to drawing rooms, euphemisms are extensively used everywhere when talking about sex, violence, or any other topics that is deemed as taboo or inappropriate in the civil society. What's more, euphemisms can make your dialogues more poetic, add certain amount of sophistication to them and make them sound more proper and right. Euphemisms are an easy way to express oneself in a nice way without hurting or shocking anyone. Hope this extensive list of examples on euphemism will help you master the skill of polite conversation better and make you appear more couth.

References

www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/euphemism

www.thesaurus.com/browse/euphemism

www.literarydevices.com/euphemism/

examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-euphe...

fos.iloveindia.com/euphemism-examples.html