four-letter word
9
7.7
- noun
- /ˈfɔrˌlɛtər wɜrd/
- Offensive
:
palabrota
- Many people avoid using that four-letter word in polite conversation.
And that's one four letter word that most people don't like.
- And that's one four letter word that most people don't like.
- It's like calling somebody, well, I won't use bad language, but using a four letter word to describe somebody.
Examples
-
Maybe some people do live in bliss, but I think for many, "life" is a four-letter word.
Blog text (29) -
With occasional four-letter words flying, the panel was still tight-lipped about the upcoming season.
Blog text (4) -
Today is just a four-letter word.
Academic text (2008) -
For them, the word mistake is a four-letter word.
Blog text (16) -
The root of the global problem is a four-letter word called "DEBT."
Blog text (2) -
"In my administration, coal will not be a four-letter word."
Blog text (4) -
After all, art isn't a four-letter word.
Academic text (1996) -
Yeah, Sears is now a four-letter word in my house.
Blog text (21) -
EMS does not have to be a four-letter word.
Blog text (29) -
The special thing to note about my goals list is that it does not contain the destructive four-letter word 'diet', nor will it ever mention losing weight.
Fiction book (1992)
Synonyms
1
7.2
A rude word people say when they are angry or surprised
A short rude English word of four letters that insults someone
A polite phrase people use instead of a rude word for a woman
A polite phrase for a rude word that starts with A, for example ass
A polite way to avoid saying a rude word that starts with p
A polite way to refer to a taboo or offensive word without saying it
How Offensive
Surface Forms
Morphology
four-letter + word
The phrase is compositionally analyzable as ‘a word made of four letters’, so a learner who knows the constituents can derive a literal interpretation. However, its conventional euphemistic meaning 'an obscene/swear word' depends on cultural/pragmatic knowledge and is not fully predictable from the parts alone, making the expression only partially transparent to B1 learners.
Etymology
The phrase four-letter word comes from a simple idea: many common rude English words have exactly four letters, so people began calling those swear words four-letter words instead of saying them out loud. That's why it now means 'an obscene or offensive word'.