Euphemism - Common Examples

Common Examples

Other common euphemisms include:

Euphemisms	Meaning
light in the loafers, confirmed bachelor, rides the bus, friend of Dorothy	male homosexuality
left the building	to describe a person (usually a celebrity) who recently died
abattoir	slaughterhouse
acting like rabbits, making love to, getting it on, screwing, doing it, making the beast with two backs, sleeping with	having sex with
adult entertainment, adult material, gentlemen's special interest literature	pornography
bathroom tissue, t.p., bath tissue	toilet paper (usually used by toilet paper manufacturers)
bathroom	toilet room, especially one in the house (US)
been around the block	having had much sexual experience
being laid (off), dismissal	fired or sacked
bias crime	hate crime (used by the New York Times to describe the Rutgers University/Tyler Clementi case.)
big, curvy, fluffy, zaftig, plus-sized, thick-boned, full-figured, heavy-set, Rubenesque	overweight, fat, obese
the big C	cancer (in addition, some people whisper the word when they say it in public, and doctors euphemistically use technical terminology when discussing cancer in front of patients, e.g., "C.a."; euphemisms for cancer are used even more so in the Netherlands, because the Dutch word for cancer can be used as a curse word)
bye-bye box	coffin, casket, or cremation box.
chemical dependency	drug addiction (though these technically describe distinct conditions)
co-morbidity	simultaneous existence of related mental and physical health issues (when morbidity is used as a medical term for illness), although in the regular medical use of this term it simply means the presence of one or more mental or physical diseases apart from the primary one and as such is not a euphemism.
comfort station	brothel or, alternatively, toilet
correctional facility	prison
custodian, caretaker	janitor (Also originally a euphemism – in Latin, it means doorman. In the British Secret Service it may still carry the ancient meaning. It does in the novels of John le Carré.)
to cut excesses (in a budget), rightsize, downsize, let go	lay off
economically depressed neighbourhood, culturally-deprived environment, inner city	ghetto, slum
enhanced interrogation	torture
escort, service provider	callgirl, sex worker – often used in a context where "johns" become "clients" and "tricks" become "sessions" or "appointments" like those conducted by professionals in various other fields.
euthanasia	killing of healthy animals in animal shelters for a variety of reasons ranging from temperament to shelter overcrowding (the term "euthanasia" generally refers to the killing of sick animals or originally, physician assisted suicide)
exotic dancer	stripper
family planning	contraception such as condoms, frequently used by retail stores
feminine protection	tampon
gaming	gambling
gender-based violence	rape or sexual assault
gentlemen's club	go-go bar, strip club
hate	Bias or discrimination based upon involuntary characteristics, illness, or lifestyle (not an euphemism when used simply to describe strong dislike towards something)
holiday tree, winter tree, tree	Christmas tree
in the family way	pregnant
it's snowin' down south	your slip is showing
a little thin on top	bald
lost their lives	were killed
mentally challenged, intellectually challenged, a few sandwiches short of a picnic	stupid, dim, dull, slow; of subnormal intelligence
"I misspoke," bend the truth, white lie, fudge, colour the truth, be economical with the truth, dissemble, political spin, unreliable	lied, lie
motivation	bribe or coercion
the north of Ireland	Northern Ireland (seen by many Irish people as a term imposed by the British and therefore a profanity; however, saying the north of Ireland may be primarily a way of identifying oneself with the Irish Nationalist cause, rather than a euphemism)
peer homework help, comparing answers, collaborating, harvesting answers	cheating (at school, during exams, etc)
persuasion or interrogation	torture
a little persuasion	enormous physical force, as with a blow from a sledgehammer
pre-owned, pre-loved	used or second hand goods, such as clothes, furniture, automobiles
products of pregnancy	fetus (in the context of abortion)
reputational management	the use by lawyers of a strategic lawsuit against public participation or threats of vexatious litigation to silence public complaints or criticism
ride the short bus	learning disability requiring remedial or special education – see Short bus
restroom, washroom, powder room (for women)	toilet room
replacement workers	scabs or strikebreakers brought into a labour dispute
sanitary landfill	garbage dump (and a temporary garbage dump is a transfer station), also often called a Civic Amenity in the UK
sanitary napkin	maxipad
sanitation worker (or, sarcastically, sanitation officer or sanitation engineer)	bin man, garbage man
the Scottish Play	Shakespeare's Macbeth
senior citizen, golden ager	old, elderly
sex worker	prostitute
she's in the club	she's pregnant, chiefly British
special, unique	different, quirky, odd
State Electrician	executioner in cases where an electric chair is used
take legal action	sue
visit from the stork	give birth
water pollution control plant	sewage treatment facility
we are looking forward to settlement of the account	you owe us money
wellness	benefits and treatments that tend to only be used in times of sickness
women wearing comfortable shoes	female homosexuality (used on-air by Robin Williams as announcer in Good Morning Vietnam)

These lists might suggest that most euphemisms are well-known expressions. Often euphemisms can be somewhat situational; what might be used as a euphemism in a conversation between two friends might make no sense to a third person. In this case, the euphemism is being used as a type of innuendo. At other times, the euphemism is common in some circles (such as the medical field) but not others, becoming a type of jargon or, in underworld situations especially, argot. One such example is the line "put him in bed with the captain's daughter" from the popular sea shanty Drunken Sailor, which means to give a whipping with the cat o' nine tails—euphemistically referred to by sailors as the "captain's daughter".

Euphemisms can also be used by governments to rename statutes to use a less offensive expression. For example, in Ontario, Canada, the "Disabled Person Parking Permit" was renamed to the "Accessible Parking Permit" in 2007.

The word euphemism itself can be used as a euphemism. In the animated short It's Grinch Night (See Dr. Seuss), a child asks to go to the euphemism, where euphemism is being used as a euphemism for outhouse. This euphemistic use of "euphemism" also occurred in the play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? where a character requests, "Martha, will you show her where we keep the, uh, euphemism?" It is analogous to the 19th-century use of unmentionables for underpants.

Also, lots of euphemisms are used in the improvised television show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?. They are used often in the game 'If You Know What I Mean', where players are given a scene and have to use as many obscure clichés and euphemisms as possible.