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Are there really any bad words? I know that all words can be bad if used in the wrong way, but how can the word itself be bad?

Biblicly speaking it isn't. In fact, if you read what the bible says about profanity it only says not to blaspheme or make fun of people. In other words, using god's name invain, telling blasphemous jokes, or using insults is actually profanity, not what society has made of it.

If you mean this non-religiously, then it's just plain frivilous altogether.

When you really think about it, naughty curse words are only an alternative way to describe things which in way-back-when's society were considered bad, or taboo.

Eg, poo, sexual intercourse, a fatherless child.
Things that people preferred not to discuss were just given a different name, maybe to hide the fact that people were talking about it.

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Yeah, that makes sense, but how can just saying the words be bad, especially when you usually aren't using the real defenitions?

There's no clear reason why some words are considered "bad", because you can have the word "crap", which is considered somehow not as bad as "[the s-word]", even though they both refer to the same thing. And, for religious folks, "gosh", "golly", "geez", and the like are derived from "God" or "Jesus", and would logically be more blasphemous than words referring to excrement. Words change meaning, too. There are words that used to be okay, but are now considered "bad", and I'm sure other words that we say all the time today will be "bad" a few decades from now.

The thing that bugs me about "bad" words is that they are overused, so that they don't even mean anything anymore. Plus, an overabundance of "bad" language in a film often reflects a lack of creativity, since the same few 4-letter words are used to refer to everything.

PizzaTrophy is right; most "bad" words started as euphemisms for taboo ideas, then evolved to take on new meaning (or lack thereof). It's all related to what is acceptable in a given society at a given time.

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"There's two kinds of people in this world: me, and everybody else. In that order."
-me
"Like you aren't an easy jab for my witty glivers and put-dubs."
-Stong Buh

I think bad words are only bad if you want them to be, or if you use them improperly. My cousin was saying the other day that she won't say, "Oh my word!" or "Oh brother", because she says that Word and Brother are other names for Christ. I said to her that if you ment Christ, then it was bad. But then she said the read a verse in the bible that the best way to stay safe from curses is to say only, "Yay yay!" and "Nay nay!" or in other words, "YES!" and "Oh no..."

I don't know where it is though.

I think that's a different kind of swearing. I think it means just say "yes" or "no" instead of saying something like "I swear on my grandmother's grave that I will do this"

Yeah it does, ever heard of this one; Thou shalt not take the Lord's name in vain.

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Yeah it does what? That would go with blaspheme as I said.

[quote="Ungurait#7"]There's no clear reason why some words are considered "bad", because you can have the word "crap", which is considered somehow not as bad as "[the s-word]", even though they both refer to the same thing. And, for religious folks, "gosh", "golly", "geez", and the like are derived from "God" or "Jesus", and would logically be more blasphemous than words referring to excrement. Words change meaning, too. There are words that used to be okay, but are now considered "bad", and I'm sure other words that we say all the time today will be "bad" a few decades from now.

quote]



well this being said heres the response to the sentence "Are Aces High Or Low?", heres what will happen in the future:

"Say, are Aces High Or Low?"
"they Go Both Ways"
"Heheheheheh! U said 'they go both ways'!"
"HUH???!!! BLASPHEMEY! U SAID 'GO'!"
"OHH GOD! I SAID GO!!!! Arrrrrggllllbrrrglleeee!!!"


yeah............

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that had no point why did you bother posting it?

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ive been gone for too long and i gotta make a statement, but sorry for it, but really, i aggree with that ungarit guy, soon every word of today will mean somthing gross. like "So then you take the potato and rub it accross tghe parts, right?" that will sound sick in a few years. ahh well, im finished.

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This discussion got locked the last time it was psted.

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Oh, sorry. I never realized it was posted before.

"Heheheheheh! U said 'they go both ways'!"
"So then you take the potato and rub it accross tghe parts, right?"

My friends and I make jokes like that all the time.

i forgot the meaning of that potato thing, what was it???

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For me, the same applies to any swearword as any word: nothing wrong with using that word, but to be a good linguist, you can't rely on it. take 'good' - we were all told when we were in primary school that if we use the word 'good' for everything that is good, instead of alternatives like "excellent", "brilliant" or "superb", our writing lacks skill. And if you're one of those people who uses the F-word three times a sentence (and trust me, I do know of people like this), then you should probably think about cutting back or using alternatives.

And frankly, who wants to say "f***" when you can say "great galloping underpants" or "sodomy on a stick"?

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"You get the Most Annoying Transsexual I've Ever Spoken To award." -The Zephyr Song

"great galloping underpants"

consider that my new catchphrase... underpants.. he he

personally i swear quite often, but i usualy say fudge when i'm very tempted.

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I certainly don't believe that any word should be characterized as "bad." I use words that society generally frowns on just as often as I use any other type of word. I'm agnostic (well if you asked my friends they would say I'm tbcist and that is what I tell people just to see the look on their face), but I still use god as a interjection just out of habit and because I simply refuse to say gosh. On a similar note, I've had a few friends stop hanging out with me because I say oh my god and I been heavily lectured by my friend's grandfather for quoting the part of i love you where Strong Bad says "Mainly because of your long freakin' name."

I just think it's cool that people used to have to fornicate under consent of the king.

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Hot!

I love soce's sporadic, inexplicable emoticons. Really, I do. What the crap does Marzipan have to do with fornication? Funny stuff, man.

[/offtopic]

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I'd like to fornicate under consent of king that girl that lives down the street from me.

Hmm. Doesn't really have the same meaning as "I want to [eff] her".

Anyways, I think society has really overblown the whole swearing thing. Example: sometimes saying "OH [ESS]!" is the only appropriate way of expressing surprise or other strong emotions.

Though my Spanish teacher let us say "damn" in class because she did...

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i would use swear words if they didn't offend people or make me look stupid.But people always seem to mistake me using "fishsticks" or "what the who" as being more stupid. OVer all i dont mind if someone uses a swer word around me there are just a few i cant stand i will list them
[edit i took it out]

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You're going to delete that post right now. By emitting two letters, nothing is being hidden.

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why don'y you tell him to fix his location too.

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for some strange reason, reading this makes me want to curse. a lot. like every curse word. its weird

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i changed it to tick off

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I have no objections to swear words, provided that they are used within the actual context and meaning of the word.

For example, "eff-ing" is not a universal adjective. Putting it in front of things doesn't make any sense.

"Ow, I hit my effing toe!"
"Pardon? Your toe does what!?!? That's really quite amazing."

I don't have much problem with swearing unless it's being used to offend or assault someone.

But that's part of the problem, Tire. Swear words are MEANT to offend. Think about it: when do people use them the most? When they're very angry, i.e., when they INTEND to offend someone with whom they are angry. Or for Shock Value, like how certain radio and movie personalities use them (Eddie Murphy and Howard Stern come to mind).

The point is, if you can communicate the same idea without using offensive language, then why not do so?

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Because most people think that swear wods are the best possuble way to express their thoughts, when the general public in america (not sure if this is the same with any other country) isn't, well, let's say "classy" enough to use non-offensive ways of communicating. Besides if we continue using swear words, they will no longer be considered offensive, there wont be anything good enough to yell when your team loses possesion of the ball or someone cuts you off in traffic. So if you want to say that there should be things that could be offensive, dont say them, but the more you curse, the less you offend! I mean, come on, would Eminem be accepted in the 50's?

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