The Connotation of Cuss Words

I’ll admit I swear a lot more than I used to. It’s part of the reason my vocabulary seems to have shrunk, which is not exactly something I’m proud of.

There have been studies that say people who swear are more creative. While I can totally get behind this, it’s not why I swear. My life coach also said she thinks we swear because we don’t have the adequate vocabulary to describe something. This also make sense. But, honestly, I just don’t think “swear words” or “cuss words” are all that bad.

Think about it. Shit and crap are simply synonyms for poop. Bitch is another word for female dog. And fuck, in the literal sense, seems to mean having sex.

When you look at what these words actually mean, they’re not bad at all. So what made them “bad”? What gave them the nasty, insulting connotation? Can anybody help me out here?