Slang abbreviation

Slang abbreviation

Offensive words are often abbreviated for politeness, or decency. This is not limited to slang, or words that are always offensive- it can include words that are offensive to a certain party. For instance, abortion may be so offensive to a pro-life family that during normal conversation, if the pregnant daughter was to suggest getting an abortion, the mother would shout "HEY! Don't use the 'A' word in this house!"

This practice has existed for centuriesFact|date=February 2007. Some very common examples are below.

The "N Word" is often used to mean the word "nigger" [ [http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/sayitloud/kane1215 Black America Web, Commentary: Blacks Who Use the N-Word] ] [ [http://www.indyweek.com/durham/2002-03-06/cover.html The N-word] ] [ [http://www.edletter.org/past/issues/2004-so/racialdynamics.shtml The "N-word" and the Racial Dynamics of Teaching] ] [ [http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2005/09/20/florida Explosion Over the N-Word] ] , and is the title of a documentary [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0417003/ imdb, The N-Word (2004)] ] .

The "F word" sometimes means "fuck", [ [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375706348 Amazon.com: The F-Word: Second Edition: Books: Jesse Sheidlower ] ] but is also the name of a cooking show, The F-Word, and sometimes has even been used to mean "feminism". [ [http://www.thefword.org.uk/ The F-Word: Contemporary UK Feminism - The F-Word ] ]

The L Word is the name of a TV series, but has also been used to mean "love" [ [http://msnbc.msn.com/id/13145511/ MSNBC, The right time to say the ‘L’ word: "love"] ] This is strange because the word usually imposes a positive effect on those who hear it, but positive or negative, it's a strong word, and sometimes those emotions aren't wanted in the conversation.

References


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