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Synonyms for euphemism

Grammar : Noun
Spell : yoo-fuh-miz-uh m
Phonetic Transcription : ˈyu fəˌmɪz əm

Définition of euphemism

Origin :
  • 1650s, from Greek euphemismos "use of a favorable word in place of an inauspicious one," from euphemizein "speak with fair words, use words of good omen," from eu- "good" (see eu-) + pheme "speaking," from phanai "speak" (see fame (n.)).
  • In ancient Greece, the superstitious avoidance of words of ill-omen during religious ceremonies, or substitutions such as Eumenides "the Gracious Ones" for the Furies (see also Euxine). In English, a rhetorical term at first; broader sense of "choosing a less distasteful word or phrase than the one meant" is first attested 1793. Related: Euphemistic; euphemistically.
  • noun nice way of saying something
Example sentences :
  • A euphemism of kleptomania had been offered and accepted as sufficient excuse for her crime.
  • Extract from : « Within the Law » by Marvin Dana
  • He paused, not knowing what euphemism to supply for the thing his lordship must have done.
  • Extract from : « The Lion's Skin » by Rafael Sabatini
  • As applied to her, the term: coveralls, regulation, gray was strictly a euphemism.
  • Extract from : « Attrition » by Jim Wannamaker
  • Euphemism, the choice of words not harsh for harsh ideas, has its uses.
  • Extract from : « English: Composition and Literature » by W. F. (William Franklin) Webster
  • For finiteness and nothingness are identical; finiteness is only a euphemism for nothingness.
  • Extract from : « The Essence of Christianity » by Ludwig Feuerbach
  • Pray, my dear Panoukian, admire the euphemism to spare both our feelings.
  • Extract from : « Old Mole » by Gilbert Cannan
  • The word "scapegoat" is a euphemism; the Hebrew text says Azazel.
  • Extract from : « The Bible Unveiled » by M. M. Mangasarian
  • The use of the word as an euphemism for "the devil" is later.
  • Extract from : « Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 3 » by Various
  • The expression, "Roll of Honour," is a euphemism, but poetical.
  • Extract from : « Stories That Words Tell Us » by Elizabeth O'Neill
  • In Domesday the word is most commonly an euphemism for “dispossessed Englishman.”
  • Extract from : « William the Conqueror » by Edward Augustus Freeman

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Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019