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bawdy

bawdy

9 9.3
Talking about sex in a funny or rude way
  • adjective
  • /ˈbɔːdi/
  • NSFW
: picante
  • From the bar, coarse jokes and bawdy stories sent gusts of laughter swelling out.
  • bawdy houses

Examples

  • The comedian's routine was filled with bawdy jokes that had the audience laughing uproariously.

  • The song she sings, however, is a bawdy saloon song.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • Give us a bawdy song!

  • Spare me your bawdy mind first thing in the morning.

  • The old guys make you dress up in goofy costumes and you have to sing these bawdy songs.

  • Turns out she was watchful and sly, with a bawdy sense of humor.

    Academic text (2010)
  • You expect some booze and bawdy behavior, and of course, the requisite buxom babe.

  • The Berretos, the Rios, and the Alavarados sang the bawdy kind of song that brought forth those bursts of laughter.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • During the party, his bawdy remarks made some guests blush but kept everyone entertained.

  • The play featured a bawdy humor that poked fun at relationships in a light-hearted way.

Synonyms

dirty
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
296 6.4

Containing rude sexual words

adds a comic, coarse emphasis rather than only rude sexual reference
crude
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
52 5.1

Being rude and offensive, often about sex

is less about simple bad taste and more about comic indecency
vulgar
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
52 6.5

Being rude and indecent in words or behaviour

is more targeted at humorous indecency rather than broad tastelessness
filthy
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
44 4.7

Words or jokes that are rude and about sex

is coarser and comic rather than focused on raw obscenity or shock
lewd
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
33 7.4

Sexually offensive or indecent in a way that shocks people

is more about making fun with coarse humor than provoking sexual excitement
racy
vsbawdy
  • NSFW
18 7.9

Slightly shocking because it talks about sex in a rude or funny way

is similar but places more weight on comic, coarse humor than daringness
raunchy
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
17 8.6

Content about sex that is rude and shocking

is more about playful coarse comedy than blunt explicit vulgarity
off-color
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
10 7.7

Slightly rude or indecent in a way meant to be funny

is more openly coarse and comic rather than only mildly improper
risque
vsbawdy
  • NSFW
7 7.7

A little impolite because it talks about sex, often in a funny or daring way

is more about coarse comedy than about being merely bold or daring
ribald
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
3 9.5

Speech or behavior that is rude about sex to make people laugh

is more focused on playful coarse humor than on shock or explicitness
gamy
vsbawdy
  • NSFW
2 9.9

Slightly about sex in a playful, rude way

is generally more coarse and openly comic rather than gently playful
gamey
vsbawdy
  • NSFW
1 8.4

Slightly shocking because of sexual or rude content

is more overtly comic and coarse rather than merely mildly provocative
ithyphallic
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
1 9.9

Refers to art or speech that has crude sexual content

is more comic and humorous rather than being purely explicit or artful
paillard
vsbawdy
  • Offensive
9.9

Rude about sex in a way that shocks people

leans more toward comic indecency rather than straightforward crude sexiness

Antonyms

784 2.2

Suitable and correct for a particular situation or use

How Indecent

obscene
  • Offensive
42 6.2
lewd
  • Offensive
33 7.4
bawdy
  • NSFW
9 9.3
ribald
  • Offensive
3 9.5
suggestive
  • Offensive
14 6.0
risque
  • NSFW
7 7.7

Surface Forms

bawdy positive

Morphology

bawdy = bawd (opaque) = bawd + y

The form is built from 'bawd' + '-y', but the modern meaning has become lexicalized and is not straightforwardly predictable from the base word.

Etymology

Bawdy comes from an old word bawd meaning 'a woman who ran a house of prostitutes'. So bawdy came to describe things about sex that are rude or told in a comic, shocking way.