euphemism

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈjuː.fəˌmɪz.əm/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek εὐφημισμός (euphēmismós, “use of a favourable word in place of an inauspicious one”),^[2][3][4][5] from euphēmízein “to speak with fair words”,^[2][4][5] from euphēmía,^[2] from Ancient Greek εὐ- (eu-, “good, well”) + φήμη (phḗmē, “speech”),^[2][3][4][5] from phánai “to speak”,^[3][4][5] from Proto-Indo-European *bha- (“to speak”).^[5][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

In rhetoric, the figure of speech that substitutes a word of comparatively favourable meaning for one that is harsher (1656–81).^[6][4][3] Etymonline dates the word to the 1650s.^[5]

Semantic evolution

In Greek the word described the superstitious avoidance of ill-omened words, especially during religious ceremonies;^[5] the Athenians, for instance, called the Furies the Eumenides, “the kindly ones”.^[5] English used it first as a rhetorical term,^[5][6] and from 1793 for an individual mild word or phrase substituted for a blunter one.^[6][5]

Timeline

• 1656–81 – the rhetorical figure.^[6][4]
• 1793 – an instance, a mild substitute expression.^[6][5]
• 1856 – euphemistic.^[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The substitution of a mild, indirect or vague expression for one considered harsh, blunt or offensive.
2. An expression substituted in this way, as pass away for die.

Word family

• euphemist
• euphemistically
• euphemistic
• euphemize

Related words

• pseudonym
• dysphemism
• fame
• prophet

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
6. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press