• Euphemism (Greek ευφήμη - "piety") is a word or descriptive expression that is neutral in meaning and emotional "load", usually used in texts and public statements to replace other words and expressions that are considered indecent or inappropriate. In politics, euphemisms are often used to soften certain words and expressions in order to mislead the public and falsify reality. For example, the use of the expression “interrogation with partiality” instead of the word “torture”, “action” by the Nazis for the veiled name of mass executions, etc.

    Euphemisms are used in spoken or printed texts to replace words that are considered rude or "obscene", such as abusive and obscene words. Sometimes as euphemisms are used “non-literary” words with less negative “load” than swearing and swearing - vernacular, slang, author's. The use of euphemisms significantly mitigates the negative “load” on the text of abusive or abusive words, although in most cases it is possible to determine which word it replaces by euphemism or the meaning of the text.

    The phenomenon of euphemism is based on:

    linguistic taboos have long been known, forbidding to pronounce the direct names of such dangerous objects and phenomena as, for example, gods or diseases, since the act of mentioning them, it was believed, could cause the phenomenon itself. There are also widely used and still euphemisms due to religious beliefs, such as "unclean" instead of "devil".

    factors of social dialectology.

    As the forms of human life become more refined, direct designations of known objects and phenomena (for example, some physiological acts and parts of the human body) begin to be considered odious and are expelled from the language, especially from its literary reflection. So, for a noble patrician in the era of the heyday of the economic and political power of Rome, some turns of the earlier era become unacceptable: lat. Noli dici morte Africani “castratam” esse rem publicam (Cicero, “De oratore”, II).

    Medieval chivalry avoids in courtly poetry direct designations of the genitals, which are demonstratively preserved in their language by the advancing third estate ("The Novel of the Rose"). The language is usually distinguished by a special inclination towards euphemisms at the moment of stabilization of culture, for example, linguistic pretentiousness in aristocratic salons of the 16th-17th centuries, the language of literature of the 19th century.

    Not only in communication, other forms of treatment are used, but also vices or misdemeanors are spoken of in especially softened expressions. On the "discovery" of such euphemisms, often forms of satire and ironic antiphrase are built.

According to D. Kristall, political discourse, along with advertising, is adapted to embellish reality and hide the true state of affairs. Therefore, one of the pragmatic patterns of the functioning of the political language is the tendency to euphemization.

The linguistic glossary of terms gives us the following definition of euphemisms. "Euphemisms (Greek euphemismos, from eu - good, phemi - I say) are emotionally neutral words, expressions used instead of synonymous words or expressions that seem indecent, rude or tactless to the speaker." For example: rus. “Old” instead of “old”, “deviate from the truth” instead of “lie”; French executer “execute” (lit. - “execute”) instead of mettre a mort “put to death”; Polish pomoc domowa (lit. - “home help”) instead of sluzaka “maid”. Euphemisms are characterized by a high degree of mobility. They also replace tabooized names, archaic (Russian "master" instead of "bear", "jester with him" instead of "to hell with him", French parbleu instead of par dieu) and new ("lethal outcome" instead of "death", " neoplasm "instead of" tumor ").

Euphemisms are also understood as occasional individual-contextual substitutions of some words for others in order to distort or mask the true essence of what is designated, for example, the use of the word “cholera” by F.M. Dostoevsky to denote the psychophysical state of a person.

Euphemism is opposed to dysphemism - the replacement of an emotionally and stylistically neutral word with a more rude, dismissive, etc., for example, “to thunder” instead of “to fall”.

According to D.N. Shmelev, euphemisms are "words and expressions that, under certain conditions, serve to replace those designations that seem undesirable to the speaker, not quite polite, too harsh."

B.A. Larin believes that, according to the semantic structure, euphemisms are one of the varieties of a trope, that is, metonymy, metaphor, synecdoche, etc. The difference between this variety is in its purpose and scope. Euphemisms are aimed not at a figurative representation of reality, as the paths of poetic language, but as an eclipse, a cover for the unsightly phenomena of life or immodest thoughts and intentions.

E.I. Sheigal believes that a euphemism is an anti-invvent, it is based on understating the degree of a negative sign or on switching the evaluative sign from negative to positive. That is, the euphemism "works" to improve the denotation. To speak euphemistically is to use language as a shield against an object of fear, dislike, anger, and contempt. Euphemisms are used to hide the truth about the negative sides of the denotation.

E.K. Temirbaeva defines political euphemisms as “words and expressions used in the language of politics instead of unwanted words and expressions in order to hide, soften or distort the meaning of the events and phenomena covered”. This definition almost completely coincides with the definition of a euphemism, therefore we will assume that a euphemism and a political euphemism are identical concepts. There is only one difference between them - the scope of use. Political euphemisms are euphemisms characteristic of the language of politics.

As you know, the language of politics is one of the most dynamic branches of the language. The choice of words for the nomination of political realities is undoubtedly determined by extralinguistic factors associated with changes in political life. At the same time, the ideas of the so-called “political correctness”, which “requires to remove from the language all linguistic units that offend the feelings, dignity of the individual, infringe upon his human rights with the usual linguistic tactlessness and / or straightforwardness in relation to race and gender, age, health, social status, appearance, etc., or rather, find neutral or positive euphemisms for them. "

Pragmatically, euphemia is associated with a violation of the maxim of action (clarity and clarity of presentation). Euphemization is a strategy of obscuring, obscuring unwanted information, which allows you to muffle, make unpleasant facts less obvious.

Euphemistic renaming is the result of a kind of compromise between semantics (reflection of the essence of the denotation) and pragmatics (reflection of the speaker's interests). Euphemism denotes something that, according to the logic of things, should be assessed negatively, but the interests of the speaker (political benefit) force us to evaluate this positively, and at the same time, the requirement of the maxim of quality does not allow passing out clearly black as white. There is only one way out of this situation: to recognize black as black, but at the same time pretend that it is still not very black, but rather only slightly black.

So, the shift of the pragmatic focus in the process of euphemistic renaming leads to the "improvement" of the denotation, which is the main task of euphemia. In its most general form, the model of "improvement" (bad - good) for the political discourse of E.I. Sheigal presents it in the following way: a social problem - a solution to a problem or a social conflict - harmonization (although in reality this is only the creation of the appearance of harmonization, avoiding the problem with the help of its selective coverage).

So, E.I. Sheigal, summarizing the options for concretizing this general model, identifies the most common models for shifting the pragmatic focus:

1) immoral behavior - noble motive / worthy goal;

2) adverse consequences - a compelling and valid reason;

3) coercion - free choice;

4) violence is a natural course of events;

5) the global nature of the problem is a special case of the problem;

6) illegality - the legality of an action;

7) loss for the object - benefit for the object of the action;

8) unequal status - equal status;

9) I / we are responsibility - they are responsibility;

10) intention - an accident of violation of social norms;

11) the destruction of a person - the destruction of an inanimate object.

As for the linguistic technique of euphemization, this issue was considered in detail in a number of works by such scientists as N.S. Krysin, V.P. Moskvin and others.

E.I. Sheigal offers a consolidated list covering almost all types of lexical innovations, including methods of word formation and semantic derivation. She considers this classification, firstly, in relation to political euphemisms, and secondly, from a certain angle of generalization.

It is important to note that euphemism is not an intrinsic characteristic of a word; therefore, one can hardly speak of euphemisms as special lexical layers. It would be more accurate to say that euphemia are ways or special categories of use of a word that form part of a broader communicative strategy of indirection.

From an onomasiological point of view, the essence of euphemia is that it is an indirect name for an unwanted denotation. The various linguistic means used in this case, allowing to avoid direct nomination, can be classified according to formal and substantive characteristics.

From a formal point of view, the original and resulting name, all varieties of euphemistic substitutions can be reduced to three types: 1) deployment (1 - n): word - phrase; 2) folding (n - 1): word combination - word; word - abbreviation; 3) equivalent replacement (1 - 1); (n - n): the number of components does not change.

Euphemisms are a moving layer of the vocabulary of any language - new ones appear almost every day. They can be divided into 2 large groups: permanent and non-permanent. Permanent euphemisms are euphemisms that, once appeared, have existed for many years and even centuries. Fickle euphemisms can also be called contextual, that is, applicable only in a given context, in a given situation. It is to this group that the euphemisms that we study in our work belong.

The speaker's assessment of a particular subject of speech from the point of view of decency / indecency, rudeness / politeness is usually focused on certain areas of human activity (or relations between them). Following B.A. Larin, we highlight such traditional areas as:

1) some physiological processes and conditions; Wed free your nose! - blow your nose instead!; free the intestines; malaise (about menstruation); She is expecting a baby (instead of: She is pregnant), etc .;

2) certain parts of the body associated with the "bodily bottom"; objects of this kind are such that their indirect, euphemistic designation in everyday speech is perceived by the majority as not quite decent, for example, the designation of the genitals;

3) the relationship between the sexes; Wed: to be in close, intimate relationships, in an intimate relationship, physical intimacy; colloquial use of the verbs to meet, to be friends, to walk (with someone); We had nothing with him (I mean physical proximity), etc .;

4) illness and death: "malaise", "feeling bad" instead of "being ill", "being ill"; “She is absolutely bad” - about the hopelessly patient, “left us”, “he was gone” instead of “died”; "Death" instead of "death"; “Lethal outcome” as a medical euphemism replacing “too direct” “death”, etc. The themes of death and burial, if these events are relevant (either coincide with the moment of speech, or separated from it by a small period of time), are verbalized almost exclusively with the help euphemisms. Let's compare, “to die” and the outdated, common people “to end”, “deceased”, “is gone”, “no longer with us”; “To bury” (but not to bury!); the actions of the institutions involved in organizing funerals in the official language are denoted by the vague and euphemistic turnover of ritual services. Let us also compare in the speech of doctors: “to lose the patient”, that is, to allow the patient to die, “not to cope with the disease”; "Children go away" (meaning "die").

These spheres of euphemisation can be called personal; they relate to the personal life and personality of the speaker, the addressee and third parties.

In addition, the phenomenon of euphemization is observed in various spheres of social life of a person and society.

L.P. Krysin identifies the following spheres of social life in which euphemisms are used:

1. The traditional sphere in which euphemistic means of expression are actively used is diplomacy. It is quite obvious that the communicative tasks that diplomats and politicians have to deal with cannot be solved using only direct nominations, without bluntness, innuendo, reticence, camouflage, that is, without everything that euphemisms are supposed to be intended to express. ...

Words and phrases that often flash now on the pages of the press and on the air, such as “go to extreme measures”, “unpredictable consequences”, “confrontation” (in relation to situations when there is a war, albeit a local one), “certain circles "," The appropriate authorities "," peacekeeping actions "," the principle of reciprocity "- were born precisely in the diplomatic speech use.

2. Repressive actions of the authorities: “detain” instead of “arrest” “capital punishment” instead of “death penalty”, “apply sanctions” - this turn is used in a very vague sense: it can mean criminal prosecution, imprisonment, economic or military blockade of regions and entire states. This is also accompanied by the designations of measures of party and administrative influence on people characteristic of the recent past: “warn”, “pretend”, “indicate” - as a rule, without filling in the content valence, etc.

3. State and military secrets and secrets, which include the production of weapons, certain types of equipment, the social and numerical composition of institutions (not only the military), the profile of their work, and much more. For example, the use of the words "object", "product", "product", "box", etc. instead of "weapon"; and also: "development of unusual types of weapons" (meaning bacteriological weapons), "non-traditional forms of war" (meaning forms of war aimed at the complete destruction of enemy manpower while preserving his military equipment).

4. Activities of the army, intelligence, police, criminal investigation and some other authorities, whose actions should not be "in sight". Here words and phrases with a fairly general meaning are used, while they are applied in relation to specific actions and phenomena: "task", "operation" ("go on a task", "complete a task", "carry out an operation to arrest a criminal" ), "Object" in the meaning of "a person under secret surveillance"; "Action", "special action"; “Closed institution”, jargon-professional “to have, to get admission” (without specifying the object: to secret documents, to secret work), “restricted to travel abroad” - about a person associated with secret work and therefore unable to travel abroad (in was further extended to politically unreliable persons).

5. Sphere of distribution and service: "goods of high demand", "scarce goods", "deficit"; in everyday speech and in common parlance, the phrases "organize, arrange something" in the meaning of "assist in the acquisition of some commodity" are widespread.

6. Relations between various national and social groups, the status of these groups: "non-indigenous population" - can be used in relation to Russians living in the Baltic States or other former republics of the USSR; “Ethnic cleansing” - the extermination in a particular region (city, republic) of persons who do not belong to the dominant nation in this region; was first used in relation to the situation in Yugoslavia, where Serbs destroy Muslims, Croats - Serbs on the territory of Croatia, and then began to be used in relation to situations in the former USSR; "Guest performers from the Caucasus region" - about criminal groups in Moscow and St. Petersburg, consisting of "persons of Caucasian nationality"; "High-risk groups" - about drug addicts, homosexuals, prostitutes who have a higher (than other social groups) likelihood of contracting AIDS.

7. Certain types of professions, the euphemistic designation of which is intended to increase the prestige of these professions or to hide the negative impression of the occupation designated by the "direct" name: "milking machine operator", "slaughterhouse operator", "cleaning work operator" (compare the former flusher , ceased to fulfill its euphemistic function), "controller" instead of "overseer", "executor" - about a person who carries out death sentences (cf. executioner), etc. Foreign language designations play a significant role in this group of euphemisms, for example, cinema sexopathologist - dog mating instructor

G.A. Zavarzina notes that the most often political euphemistic phrases in modern speech and the media are used in the spheres of political activity to refer to:

1) Authorities and their activities. For example, "controlled elite" instead of "rule in accordance with the interests of the ruling elite", "setting up the government", "setting up government bodies" instead of "removing certain members of the government from key posts", "competent bodies" instead of "federal counterintelligence service" etc.

2) Military actions and their participants. For example, “clearing the territory” instead of “physical destruction”, “armed bandit formations”, “illegal armed bandit formations” instead of “militants, bandits”, “field commanders” instead of “leaders of bandit formations”.

3) Economic methods and their followers. For example, “financial pyramid” instead of “financial scam”, “tax optimization” instead of “tax evasion”, “price release”, “free prices” instead of “price increases”, “captains of Russian business” instead of “oligarchs”.

4) Various national and social groups and the relationship between them. For example, “people of homelessness” instead of “vagrants”, “Afro-Russian” instead of “Negro”, “low-income population”, “ordinary people” instead of “poor”.

5) Phenomena of a foreign policy nature. For example, "unipolar world" instead of "US diktat", "asymmetric response" instead of "putting missiles on alert."

The scientist also notes that the main purpose of creating political euphemisms in these areas is to neutralize the true meaning of direct names that are undesirable for political or ethnic reasons. In this regard, there are certain functions of euphemisms in political discourse. This will be discussed in the next paragraph of our study.

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Course work

Euphemisms: ways of education and translation

Introduction ………………………………………………………………………… .3

1 Euphemism as a phenomenon of language and speech …… .. …………………… .. …………… ..5

1.1 The concept of euphemism ………………………………………… .. …………… 5

1.2 Euphemia and principles of communication ………………… .. ………………… .9

1.3 Methods for the formation of euphemisms ………………. ……………………… .13

2 Political correctness as one of the motives for using euphemisms ……………………………………………………………………… 16

2.1 The concept of political correctness ………. …………………………… .19

2.2 Media and euphemia ……………………………………………………….… 23

List of sources used ……………………………………. ……… 27

Introduction

Today, there is no doubt that the language system is constantly changing. And the well-being of many people often depends on the ability to organically transform their thoughts into words. That is why it is important to understand not only the meanings of new words, but also to be able to correctly use the existing ones.

Nomination, that is, "giving a name" to this or that thing can be direct and indirect. The use of direct nomination usually does not cause any particular problems. But when it comes to indirect nomination, that is, naming the same object in other words that represent it in a different light, in a number of cases difficulties arise. In this course work, one of the methods of secondary nomination is considered - euphemization.

While exploring euphemisms, a linguist must consider and analyze not only the euphemistic expressions themselves, but also the socio-cultural background against which the need for this method of nomination arises.

It should be borne in mind that, unlike ordinary vocabulary, euphemisms are extremely sensitive to public assessments of certain phenomena, both “decent” and “indecent”. Associated with this is the historical variability of the status of the euphemism: what seems to be a successful euphemistic name for one generation, in the next generations can be regarded as undoubted and unacceptable rudeness, requiring again a euphemistic replacement.

Relevance. This work is devoted to the phenomenon of euphemia in modern German. Within the framework of lexicology, interest in euphemia is associated with the manifestation of dynamism of lexical meaning, the problems of the nominative activity of a linguistic personality, and the processes of updating the vocabulary of the language. The relevance of this course work is determined by the fact that, despite the variety of aspects in which euphemism is studied, many questions remain controversial: reliable criteria for identifying a euphemism have not been developed, there is no generally accepted definition. The minimum number of special studies devoted to the problem of euphemia in modern German in Russian German studies determined the choice of the topic of this work.

Research object of this work are euphemisms of the German language.

Item research - features of their education and use in speech.

Target work consists in the study of euphemisms of the German language, their function in speech.

The object, subject and purpose of the study allowed us to define the next circle tasks:

Consider euphemisms as a way of secondary nomination

To reveal the euphemia of the German language in the language of politics.

Research methods: generalization and comparison as general scientific methods used in the analysis of theoretical literature. The work consists of an introduction, 6 paragraphs, conclusion and bibliography.

Practical significance- is that the results and
research material can be used in courses of lectures and
special courses in lexicology, phraseology, for writing term papers, as well as in the practice of studying the German language.

1 Euphemism as a phenomenon of language and speech

  • The concept of euphemism

The word "euphemism" comes from the Greek eu - "OK", phemi- "I speak" and has been used since the time of the ancient Greeks to denote a stylistic path that serves to verbally soften a rude or obscene expression.

The problems of euphemia have been repeatedly considered in the works of domestic and foreign linguists on the basis of various languages: [Kaney 1960; Vidlak 1967; Katsev 1989; Ratin 1996; Pavlova 1996; Gumirova 1997; Moskvin 1998; Borgoyakov 1998; Kudryashova 2000] and others.

In the past, domestic linguists did not pay due attention to the problems of euphemia, due to the conviction that was established in Soviet times about "the exposure of euphemisms and the preference for direct expressions for them, characteristic of the socialist era" [Larin 1977: 114]. Euphemisms are not included in the explanatory dictionaries of the Russian language, there are no special dictionaries of this genre.

This gap is now beginning to fill. A great interest in the problem of euphemia has been noted in recent years. Dissertation papers appear [Pavlova 1996; Rodchenko 2000; Tyurin 1998] and other publications on this topic [see, for example, Bolotnova 1998; Evseeva 2000; Kikvidze 1997; Kochetkova 1998; Kuzhim 1997; Mankovskaya 1997; Pavlova 2000; Sheigal 1997; Dubov, 1994].

The study of euphemia is currently an urgent linguistic problem, because the processes of the formation of euphemisms as words or expressions that replace a rude, indecent, with an unpleasant word in the language are extremely intensive, as evidenced by the widespread use of euphemistic units in the works of modern authors, the activation of lexicographic work in the field of euphemia.

In linguistic literature, there are quite a few definitions of the concept of "euphemism". They reflect the various functions of this phenomenon. A number of definitions come from such a function of euphemism as softening the rough and unpleasant. These definitions describe a euphemism as “a soft, vague, or peripheral expression to replace crude precision or unpleasant truth”; as “a way by which an unpleasant, offensive or fearsome word is replaced by an indirect or milder term” [Ch. Kaney I960]; as: "a word or phrase that is used to replace an unpleasant word or expression with a relatively more acceptable" [I. R. Halperin 1981].

Other scholars, along with the softening function, note the importance of social motives, defining euphemisms as expressions that "are designed to minimize an unpleasant impression on the listener or possible unpleasant consequences for the speaker if the latter wants to make a favorable impression" [Partridge 1964]; or as “indirect substitutes for the names of the terrible, shameful or odious, which are brought to life by moral or religious motives, contributing to the mitigating effect” [Katsev 1989]; and also with the aim of “avoiding communicative conflicts and failures, not creating a feeling of communicative discomfort in the interlocutor” [L. Ratin 1996]; or as “used instead of a thematically stigmatic or socially incorrect antcedent, instead of words or expressions that seem forbidden to the speaker, indecent, unacceptable from the point of view of moral norms accepted in society, or even simply rude and tactless” [E. Tyurin 1998] :.

In addition to the above, there are also definitions based on the recognition of the function of masking reality for euphemisms: “A euphemism is the form of words that (for various reasons) expresses an idea in a softened or veiled or more respectful form. Moreover, this softening is sometimes only apparent ”[Lawrence 1973]; “Euphemization is the use of a non-offensive or pleasant term instead of a direct, offensive one, while masking the truth” [Niemann, Silver 1990].

Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that the euphemism performs three functions:

  1. Mitigation of the unpleasant for the speaker, that is, the taboo on the open use of certain direct designations of the denotation, for example, in the past, considered dangerous and often associated with some mystical forces. In East Slavic cultures, such words were Almighty, Creator, unclean power, wicked, demon, in German - Schö pfer, der Schwarze, der Bö se, der Versucher.
  2. Mitigation of rude and unpleasant for the interlocutor, based on social motives, in particular from the rules of etiquette. For example, in many cultures it is impermissible to use certain words in the address of people that refer to direct physical or mental negative characteristics, for example, in German, such words are forbidden. dick, dumm, kleinwüchsig, Ü bergewicht, and sometimes even behindert, which is already a euphemism.
  3. Disguise of reality. This function of euphemization works when the addressee tries to hide the true essence of the signified, to disguise it and, thereby, soften the addressee's reaction to his utterance. All these properties of euphemisms are widely used by politicians and public figures of all countries and cultures in their speech. So in German Vertreibung, und Ermordung- are replaced by Umsiedlung, Evakuierung.

In our opinion, the essence of the concept of euphemism is most fully expressed by the definition formulated by N.S. Arapova. Euphemism, in her opinion, is a stylistically neutral word or expression used instead of a synonymous linguistic unit, which seems to the speaker indecent, rude or tactless; euphemisms often veil, mask the essence of the phenomenon; for example: pass away instead of die, tell a lie instead of lie, liberalization of prices instead of price increase, product (about the atomic bomb) [Arapova NS 1990: 25].

1.2 Euphemia and principles of communication

Euphemistic replacement is associated with the fulfillment or deliberate non-compliance with the so-called requirements for speech. The list of such requirements (advantages to which one should strive and disadvantages to be avoided) was formed in the days of antiquity. The main qualities of speech were recognized as “correctness, unambiguity, consistency, clarity, accuracy, euphony, beauty, variety, clarity, brevity, relevance, plausibility” [Moskvin 2001].

A large role in the formulation and systematization of the rules of communication belongs to the well-known experts in the theory of speech acts P. Grice and J. Leach. They formulated the postulates and principles of verbal communication.

The basic principle, called by Grice "the principle of cooperation", consists in the requirement to make a contribution to the speech message in accordance with the accepted purpose and direction of the conversation. Four categories of postulates are subordinated to this principle: 1) the category of quantity (the statement must provide complete information), 2) the category of quality (information must not be false), 3) the category of attitude, with which the only postulate of relevance is associated (the statement must relate to the essence of the matter ), 4) the category of the method (the statement should be short and unambiguous) [Grice 1985: 222-223].

An equally important principle that regulates relations in speech communication is the principle of politeness, formulated by J. Leach.

This principle is concretized in six postulates [cit. according to Arutyunova 1985: 27]:

  • tact postulate (observe the interests of another);
  • the postulate of generosity (observe the minimum of convenience for yourself);
  • the postulate of approval (minimize the number of negative ratings);

4 the postulate of modesty (blame yourself as much as possible and praise yourself minimally);

5postulate of agreement (strive for maximum agreement between yourself and others);

6 postulate of sympathy (show maximum sympathy for people).

Failure to comply with these requirements, when speakers violate the rules of communication, leads to incomprehensibility, illogicality, ambiguity and other shortcomings of speech. The reasons for this may be reprehensible communicative goals (deception, slander, slander, insults, etc.), excessive politeness, fear of sanctions for truthful, but negative information, etc. At the same time, failure to comply with the requirements for speech can be communication -actively justified, if only in this way it is possible to achieve the goal of communication.

Euphemization refers to communicatively justified violations of speech requirements. In case of non-observance of some of Grice's postulates - the postulates of the quality category ("Do not say what you think is false"), the postulates of the method category ("Avoid incomprehensible expressions", "Avoid ambiguity") [Grice 1985: 222-223], nevertheless, its global principle of cooperation is observed - to make a contribution to speech communication corresponding to the accepted purpose of the conversation.

The ambiguity arising from euphemization is deliberate and serves the ultimate communicative goal - to soften the direct meaning of a harsh or rude statement that is unpleasant for the interlocutor.

Thus, the phenomenon of euphemia belongs to linguistic universals, is an integral component of the communication process and serves as one of the main means of conflict-free and successful communication.

The communicative parameters of the euphemization process also include its motives. The motives of euphemization are the reasons for replacing some words and expressions with others, which are defined and classified, however, by different linguists in different ways.

Some authors, for example, highlight a large number of groups of motives, others, for example, [Katsev 1989; Capu 1960; Neaman, Silver 1990] divide the entire set of motives into two or three large groups, uniting them on more general grounds.

The most complete - covering can be considered the classification of E. Partridge. However, its significant drawback is a certain vagueness of the formulation of the motives of euphemization and the lack of clarity of the criteria for their identification. E. Partridge identifies the following euphemization motives:

The desire to adapt to the corresponding general mood,
general atmosphere of time, place, company.

Desire to add value to what one possesses (form of hyperbole). .

The desire to show respect for the one to whom you are addressing, to produce
impression, to make a pleasant one or simply not to offend the interlocutor.

The need to downplay, mitigate a painful memory, or
tragic news.

The existence of social and moral taboos.

The existence of superstitions and religious taboos.

Based on previous classifications, a more complete classification can be presented:

1 Social motives of euphemization.

1.1 The need to show respect for various community groups. This motive explains:

Names related to race, age, gender and
other features;

Names of concepts related to poverty;

Names of mental and physical disabilities of a person,

1.2 Desire to raise the profile of some of the realities of the social sphere:

Names of some professions, institutions, etc .;

2 Moral and ethical motives of euphemization.

2.1 The desire not to violate certain moral and ethical prohibitions established by society. This motive is due to

Names of human vices;

Names related to the field of physiology;

Names associated with the concepts of death;

Names related to family and marriage;

Sexual names;

Names of animals and animal meat;

Harsh curses;

3 Motives of euphemization associated with religion and superstition:

Names of supernatural powers;

4 Communicative motives of euphemization.

  • The desire to show respect for the interlocutor, to make an impression.

Some names related to the field of politics;

4.2 Desire to disguise an unpleasant truth.

Names related to the military sphere;

Political titles;

Criminal names;

Some names related to the field of business and commerce;

Names associated with special educational institutions.

This classification of the motives of euphemization identifies four aspects: social, moral and ethical, religious, communicative, thus, all the subject-conceptual spheres of modern taboos are in some way ordered within the framework of these aspects.

The phenomenon of euphemia belongs to linguistic universals and serves as one of the main means of conflict-free and successful communication.

  • 3 Methods for the formation of euphemisms

Among the various ways of forming euphemisms, the following stand out as the most common:

Metaphorical transfer

The use of metaphorical transference is the most productive way to form euphemistic vocabulary. The metaphor, creating a vivid image, brightens up the unpleasant or rough sides of the main, nominative meaning of the word. Thanks to the metaphor, it is possible to create such a remarkable image that the main meaning generally becomes secondary. dritte Zähne

Metonymic transfer

Metonymization of meanings as a method of forming euphemisms is based on associative links between a taboo denotation (antecedent) and a harmless denotation. Metonymy is not a common means of euphemizing German vocabulary. This is due to the fact that metonymy cannot veil the unpleasant aspects of phenomena and objects as much as a metaphor or an expansion of semantic meaning can do, for example der / die Schwarze

Borrowing

The euphemistic function of borrowings has long been known to linguists and is associated with the peculiarity of the perception of the internal form, or the motivation of the linguistic sign of the borrowed word. In most cases, the internal form of the word is not transparent to those who borrow the given word, and the meaning is not motivated, as a result of which there are no negative associative links. Borrowed euphemisms appear in the language as a result of linguistic and cultural contacts with representatives of other peoples, for example Negro, der Facility-Manager, der Hairstylist

Periphrase

This way is a euphemization of the concept by explaining its meaning: Personen mit Psychiatrieerfahrung

Also, euphemisms can be formed with the help of derivational means (affixation, compounding, word fusion, conversion, stem truncation, etc.). For example, Sozialschwache (compound), Nachrichtensprecherin (suffix), Vorsenioren (prefix).

Some effemisms are abbreviations (alphabetic,

syllabic or mixed). For example, das HwG-Mädchen (abbreviation).

\ Lexical means of euphemism formation:

1) Definition words with diffuse semantics: some, known, definite, corresponding, proper etc.: “These actions of the government have already led to known results» - I mean bad, negative results; "A certain contact was between our services, but everyone survived "; "People are driving in Mercedes, I would say with peculiar faces» ;

2) Nouns with a fairly general meaning, used to name very specific objects and actions: stock, product, an object, product(about the "stuffing" for atomic bombs), product (about drugs) material(meaning "compromising information about someone"), signal (meaning "a message to higher authorities about something unfavorable");

3) Indefinite or demonstrative pronouns, as well as pronouns like this case, one place: - At your place something was with Tolya? - No, what are you! We have with him nothing did not have(meaning sexual relations); the name of a television show about sex - "About this is» ; I need to one place(= to the toilet);

4) Foreign words and terms used as designations are more suitable - due to their less comprehensibility to most native speakers - for disguising the essence of the phenomenon than the original vocabulary: chancellor(cancer), pediculosis(lice) liberalization prices, celadon(womanizer), destructive (destructive), confrontation (opposition), etc .;

5) Words denoting an incompleteness of an action or a weak degree of a property, used not in their dictionary meaning, but as a euphemism: undersized shat (about the deaf), limp(about the lame) to suspend(stop, stop activity), etc .;

6) Abbreviations, especially typical for the repressive sphere and spheres associated with the concealment of military and state secrets: VM = capital punishment, i.e. shooting, SS = top secret (stamp on documents; in professional use, such a stamp was called "Two seeds"), zek, in later writing - convict(from the phrase prisoner canal army - an abbreviation arose during the construction of the White Sea-Baltic Canal).

2 Political correctness as one of the motives for the use of euphemisms

2.1 The concept of political correctness

The very concept of political correctness is quite multifaceted and is understood ambiguously. For example, N.G. Komlev in the “Dictionary of Foreign Words” gives the following definition: “Political correctness, political correctness - a concept established in the United States - is a slogan demonstrating the liberal orientation of modern American politics. Political Correctness deals not so much with content as with symbolic images and adjusting the language code. The speech is decorated with signs of anti-racism, environmentalism, tolerance towards national and sexual minorities, and the fight against AIDS. Tolerance is manifested in relaxed terms (for example, instead of “black” - “African American”, instead of “disabled” - “in need of physical support”)

SG Ter-Minasova believes that “the political correctness of the language is expressed in the desire to find new ways of linguistic expression to replace those that offend the feelings and dignity of the individual, infringes upon his human rights with the usual linguistic tactlessness and / or straightforwardness in relation to race and gender, age, health status, social status, appearance, etc. " ... Along with this, S.G. Ter-Minasova believes that the phrase political correctness is unsuccessful, proposing to replace it with a more appropriate term “linguistic tact”.

Foreign authors concentrate on the fact that the phenomenon of political correctness arose and spread on the territory of American colleges and universities, thanks to the ethnic, racial and cultural diversity of the student body. In the introduction to Are You Politically Correct? F. Beckwith and M. Bauman write that political correctness is "networks of interconnected ideological views that question the foundations of university education: the traditional curriculum, views on the objectivity of the knowledge gained, attaching importance to cultural, gender, class and racial differences."

Politically correct ideas are often expressed in a softer form. It is the poet that euphemia is one of the most effective means of expressing politically correct vocabulary. I. Radchenko says: "political correctness is the general name for the euphemization of speech in certain, especially sensitive topics."

As already noted, political euphemisms represent a special group of euphemisms and can be considered within the framework of the general phenomenon of euphemism. Therefore, if euphemisms arise to replace taboo words, then it can be assumed that political euphemisms are directly related to the existence of political taboos. Subject-conceptual spheres of political taboos

The original names of the "subject areas" of the use of euphemisms according to R. Holder's dictionary of euphemisms with translation into Russian are indicated in brackets:

Political titles;

Names related to the military sphere;
- Names related to the field of economics and business;
- Names related to the criminal sphere;

Names of concepts related to poverty;

Names of mental and physical disabilities of a person;

Names related to the field of education;

Names related to the sphere of ethnic, age, gender, differences;

Names of human vices;

After analyzing the resulting list of subject-conceptual spheres of political taboos, we can conclude that a smaller part of political taboos covers the spheres of names directly related to the foreign policy of the state (international relations, the military sphere). Most of the spheres of prohibitions relate to domestic politics, that is, to what is somehow connected with society and social relations - these are names in the field of education, business, names of ethnic, age, sex differences, names of the concept of poverty , some professions, etc.

Thus, given the scope of political taboos and the fact that a recognized feature of political euphemisms is their use in the texts of political communication, the following definition of political taboos can be given:

political taboos are words and expressions that are undesirable for use in political communication, which can cause a negative reaction or offend the feelings of any groups of the population or even the nation as a whole. Appearing at the next stage in the development of human civilization, they are socially conditioned, their number in a particular language and the obligation to replace depend on the historical period, cultural characteristics, political regime, etc.

2.2 media and euphemia

It makes sense to mention here the influence of the media in the political world. During election campaigns, the media use their main functions, such as:

Information function, which is the most important function of the media. It consists in obtaining and disseminating information about the most important events for citizens and authorities. The information obtained and transmitted by the mass media includes not only impartial, photographic coverage of certain facts from the political and personal life of a presidential candidate, but also their commenting and assessment;

Ideological function (socially orienting), associated with the desire to have a deep influence on the worldview foundations and value orientations of the audience, on the self-awareness of people, their ideals and aspirations, including the motivation of behavioral acts;

The manipulative and managerial function is the most important, since the media influence the nature of our values, change attitudes, behaviors and perceptions of reality. They form myths and stereotypes. Human consciousness today is sometimes unable to resist such manipulation, as a result of which he becomes an object of information aggression and agitation. The media persuade or try to persuade a citizen to the side of a particular future political leader.

In the print media, almost all political action today is carried out with the help of political manipulative discourse, the purpose of which is primarily the struggle for power, its distribution and its use to control the masses. Over time, the methods of communicative influence on the addressee have largely changed, and this is especially pronounced in political discourse. Modern approaches to manipulation make possible the appearance in the mind of the addressee of all kinds and necessary manipulative pictures of the world. If we talk specifically about how political speech is formed (especially if it is presented to the masses), then we can distinguish a number of characteristics that characterize it. First, they never talk about the means of implementing certain social programs. An experienced politician will always call for goals, he will talk about how good it will be for everyone if he is chosen or supported in terms of the implementation of programs and ideas. It is always easy to catch an ordinary person describing such colorful pictures of the future. The illusion has been created, the words have worked, and the means are hushed up. Secondly, the speech of the politician is prepared in advance. And it is really simple in its content, easy to understand by representatives of society. As mentioned above, speech is created in such a way that it is free from political terminology and professionalism for the best perception by the addressee and, accordingly, creating the most effective basis for introducing consumer ideas and various kinds of illusions into the mind of the recipient. An important role in this case is played by the politician's image, namely, how he positions himself in front of a group of people. One of the manipulative strategies in this situation is to create the image "I am like everyone else, like a common people." Perhaps this is why political discourse is being simplified at the present time in terms of linguistic means; politicians even allow themselves to use jargon in their speech, and in general operate with the most common vocabulary. Among the extralinguistic elements in this type of discourse, it can be noted, for example, that politicians (in order to be closer to the people) try to dress simpler, look more natural, “like everyone else”. Third, analyzing the political discourse, one can identify strategies, the main "blow" of which falls on the feelings of the addressee. Consider the following slogan: “Are you a citizen of your country? Then you have the right to choose your destiny. Vote! .. "If we explicate the real meaning hidden behind such at first glance logically unrelated words, then we can deduce the following:" If you do not vote, you are not a citizen of your country and you are not responsible for your destiny. " In the mind of the addressee, everything is interpreted in this way, as a result of which an internal conflict arises, a struggle in which, as a rule, a manipulative move, a strategy, and not common sense wins. If we consider political discourse from the point of view of linguistics, then we can note the presence of political euphemism in media texts. Recently, there has been a tendency not to limit political discourse within the framework of professionalism and to make it accessible to every member of society. Like "euphemism" itself, "political euphemism" has several definitions, which indicate the features that distinguish it from other euphemisms: functioning in the texts of political communication in order to hide the unpleasant sides of reality by softening and distorting the meaning of the described fact. However, the use of political euphemism is due to several factors: a number of legal restrictions on the use of linguistic means of expressing a direct negative assessment in the texts of political communication; observance of the rules of cultural correctness in modern society; greater efficiency of influence on the audience with an implicit (hidden) way of transmitting information.

Thus, the target feature of the texts of political communication is to influence political views, thinking, behavior of people in society.

In the minds of people there are a number of certain beliefs of political myths that can be activated in order to influence the audience. Political euphemisms are used in the texts of political communication in order to soften negative associations associated with certain facts, often at the expense of distorting the meaning of the described fact itself.

Political euphemisms are part of the general vocabulary of euphemisms, the scope of their use in the language is associated with the meaning of the term "political": state power, social life, social issues, public actions of politicians and officials.

The determining factor in the emergence of political euphemisms
is the need to replace words that are political taboos.

The motives for political euphemization are different: social, legal,
communicative.

In the texts of political communication, prerequisites are created for
the widespread use of political euphemisms, as they help maintain a balance between two opposite tendencies: the implementation of the pragmatic orientation of the texts of political communication to propaganda and persuasion and the observance of the rules of legal and cultural correctness that exist in modern society.

With the help of political euphemisms in the texts of political communication, a purposeful impact on the addressee of political communication can be carried out. It is carried out by changing the assessment of certain phenomena, events, by a total replacement of concepts in some areas of life and is aimed at changing the worldview, ideological, political, moral attitudes of the individual, that is, it has an ideological character.

Conclusion

As a result of the study, we suggested that when creating and using old and new euphemisms in speech, representatives of German-speaking cultures are guided not only by its values, but also by the provisions of the universal theory of politeness, which operates with the concepts of positive and negative faces. It was the desire to keep a positive face that became one of the reasons for the emergence and consolidation in German-speaking cultures of euphemisms belonging to the second or new sphere of euphemization, that is, politically correct words and expressions.

Despite the fact that political correctness to some extent contradicts such values ​​of German-speaking cultures as honesty and directness, it is a rather strong means of social control that can force the carriers of this culture to suppress verbal aggression and use non-aggressive words and expressions in their speech. Thus, we believe that one of the means of resisting verbal aggression and maintaining a positive face of the interlocutor is political correctness, implemented within the framework of politeness strategies. A correctly chosen euphemism is able to resolve the brewing communicative conflict. This issue is becoming more and more relevant in the era of broad intercultural interaction and intercultural conflicts inevitably associated with it.

So, euphemisms, being not only a linguistic, but also a cultural phenomenon, are a reflection of the values ​​of modern German-speaking cultures. On the basis of some outdated euphemisms and comparing them with new ones, it is possible to trace changes in the value attitudes of the cultures under consideration, which, in turn, allow us to consider political correctness as its new value and guideline in speech behavior, as well as as a means of adhering to a polite strategy. behavior and avoidance of verbal aggression, which can turn into a communicative conflict.

The study of euphemisms, methods and reasons for their formation, of course, can be considered one of the promising directions in modern linguistics. An additional area of ​​research can be a comparative analysis of euphemisms and the methods of their formation in Russian and German. In light of the fact that up to the present moment in Russian lexicography there is no tradition of compiling a dictionary of euphemisms, this goal seems all the more urgent. In addition, the continuation of the study of euphemisms not only in the linguistic, but also in the sociocultural mainstream with the involvement of the methods of cultural studies and sociology, is likely to add new data to the theory of linguistics and intercultural communication.

In conclusion, it must be said that euphemisms are not only a characteristic, but also a "legitimate" means of linguistic expression, which has a clear normative status: they are used then (in those situations and contexts) when the linguistic taste of the speakers, their idea of ​​moral and ethical values ​​dictate they need to replace direct nominations with indirect ones. At the same time, euphemisms can serve as an indicator of certain stereotypes that exist in a given society at a given time: very often what is called directly in some social conditions, in other, changed, conditions and in a different era requires euphemistic designations.

List of sources used

  • Vanyushina N.A. Features of the functioning of euphemistic vocabulary in mass and political communication // Philological sciences. Questions of theory and practice / www.gramota.net \ materials \ 2 \ 2010 \ 2 \ 7.html
  • Galperin I. R. On the concept of "text": Linguistics of the text (materials for
    scientific conference), part 1 // Collection of scientific works of the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute named after M.
    Toreza - M, 1974 .-- S. 67-72.
  • Galperin I.R.Problems of linguistic stylistics // New in linguistics. -
    -No. 9.- S. 5-68.
  • Kade T. Kh., Melnik E. M. Lexicography of scientific research
    in the linguistic classurus // IV Zhitnikov readings: actual
    problems of lexicography of scientific research. - 2000. - Part 2. -
    S. 126-135.
  • Katsev A.M. Linguistic taboo and euphemia. - L .: LGPI, 1989 .-- 79 p.
  • Komissarov, V.N. Practical work on translation from English into Russian / V.N.
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The word "euphemism" comes from a complex Greek term consisting of two words: "good" and "I speak." This is a stylistically neutral expression or concept that we use instead of some linguistic unit, which is synonymous, which seems rude, tactless or indecent to the speaker. Euphemisms, examples of which we will cite in this article, often mask the essence of the phenomenon, veil it, for example: using instead of "die" - "die", instead of "lie" - "tell a lie", replacing the phrase "price increase" with "price liberalization" ... We can speak of an atomic bomb using the word "product".

Historical variability of euphemisms

Euphemisms, in contrast to common vocabulary, are very sensitive to the assessment of certain phenomena by society as "indecent" or "decent". This is due to the historical variability of this layer of vocabulary: what one generation seems to be a euphemistic name, in the next one can be regarded as unacceptable and undoubted rudeness, requiring, in turn, a euphemistic replacement. An example is the history of the French words garce and fille. In ancient times, the first was just the feminine counterpart gars, meaning "young man, boy", then - a euphemism for the word "whore", but soon it began to be understood as rudeness and was replaced in this function by the word fille (one of the meanings), which, in turn , in French today is no longer considered a substitute and is used in abusive vocabulary. Similar euphemisms in speech are common in many languages.

A similar picture is observed in the history of the designation of this concept among the Slavs. So, the Russian word "kurva" (compare also the Belarusian, Ukrainian and Bulgarian "kurva", Czech kurva, Polish kurwa) originally meant "chicken", and then began to be used as a euphemism for rude words in the meaning of a dissolute woman (compare the French cocotte - first " chicken ", then" slutty woman "). There are also similar English euphemisms.

Correlation with other speech techniques

As a method of peripheral, indirect and at the same time softening designation of a property, object or action, they also correlate with other speech techniques, in particular with litota, which is understood as a technique of expressiveness, which is based on double negation ("not without intent", "disputable" ) or the shift of negation to the modus part from the affirmative part of the statement ("I do not think that you are right," - cf.: "I believe that you are wrong"), and with another means - meiosis - a technique of expression, the essence of which is intentional diminishing the intensity of certain properties of the subject of speech, processes, actions, etc. ("It is difficult to call her smart" - about a stupid woman; "He shoots pretty well" - about a good shooter).

Communication with the nomination

The euphemization process has a close relationship with another - nomination. It is one of the three fundamental phenomena that shape the human (the other two are assessment and predication). For cultural, ethical, psychological or other reasons, objects that can be named with difficulty or not at all require a euphemistic designation. Renewal of names occurs because it is required to veil or soften over and over again the essence of what is considered indecent, inconvenient in a cultured society. There are, in particular, political euphemisms, an example of which we have already cited (replacement of the phrase "increase. You can find a number of others.

Specificity of euphemisms

Euphemisms, the examples of which are very extensive, have their own specifics. It manifests itself both in their linguistic essence, and in what topics are most often subjected to this process, the areas of use of the words obtained, in the types of means and ways with which they are created in the language, in different assessments given by society to certain euphemisms ...

Essence of euphemism

The following points are essential for the euphemization process:

  1. The assessment that the speaker makes to the subject of speech as such, a direct indication of which can be regarded (by a specific addressee or in some social environment) as indecency, harshness, rudeness, etc.
  2. The selection of such designations that veil, mask the essence of the given phenomenon, and not only soften the way of its expression. This is especially clear on the example of medical euphemisms, vague semantically, for example, "neoplasm" instead of the word "tumor", or borrowings from other languages ​​(and therefore not quite clear to the majority) - a term like "head lice" instead of Russian "lice", or others euphemisms in Russian, examples of which can be continued.
  3. The use depends on the conditions of speech and context: the more self-control of the speaker's own speech is, the more likely it is that euphemisms will appear. Conversely, in situations where speech is poorly controlled, its high automatism is observed (communication with friends, in the family, etc.). Euphemisms, examples of which we have given, can be replaced by "direct" means of designation.

Purposes of Including Euphemisms in Speech


Spheres and themes of euphemization

The assessment of the words used by the speaker in terms of politeness / rudeness, decency / indecency is focused on certain areas and topics of human activity (as well as relationships between people). They are traditionally considered the following:

That is, a euphemism is a synonym for a word, but with a certain semantic connotation of meaning. The topics and areas of their application, as you can see, are quite numerous.

Euphemisms in text and speech

In the text, euphemisms, examples of which we have given, are often highlighted with quotation marks and can be accompanied by various metalanguage comments. The author can disclose these names and bring them in parallel with straight lines. The euphemisms also represent one of the stylistic means. They allow the speakers to vary their speech depending on various conditions, to veil and hide their intentions, if necessary, to avoid possible communicative conflicts that may arise with the direct nomination of various actions, objects and properties.

Euphemism men dysphemism

The culture of Russian speech is not limited to the use of euphemisms. In addition to them, there are also dysphemisms - this is an obscene or rude designation of an initially neutral concept in order to give the latter a negative meaning, or is used simply to enhance speech expressiveness. For example, the use of the word "die" instead of "die", and "muzzle" instead of "face", etc.

Dysphemism and cacofemism

This term is sometimes used as a synonym for another concept - "cacofemism". Their use, however, should not be limited to lack of culture and rudeness. In traditional cultures (for example, East Asian), dysphamisms are widespread in speech in order to avoid the evil eye: in relation to women, children or valuable objects. Often, such substitutions in use mask the line between polite self-deprecation and superstition.

We examined concepts such as euphemism men dysphemism as well as cacothemism. The objects and phenomena designated by them are used in speech by each of us, we do this without even thinking. Now you know what such replacements are called in Russian, and you will be able to use them more deliberately.

Euphemism is the replacement of rude, indecent or inappropriate expressions in this context with neutral words or phrases. The term is based on the ancient Greek word ευφήμη - piety.

Examples of

I have right now "those days"- i.e. period.

He came home already "ready"- i.e. drunk.

Of course we "Thanked" Ivan Ivanovich - i.e. gave a bribe.

Euphemism. Examples from literature

A euphemism can be found in almost any work of art. In the famous novel "Crime and Punishment", written by Fyodor Dostoevsky, Rodion Raskolnikov replaces the word "murder" with euphemisms "this is" or "a business" .

Am I capable of this?

What business do I want to encroach on and at the same time of what trifles I am afraid.

Use of euphemism

Religion and superstition

In risky professions, superstition is widespread, which leads to the emergence of such a phenomenon as "euphemistic words." So, among pilots and astronauts it is not customary to say "the last", instead, a euphemism is used "extreme".

According to popular beliefs, to pronounce aloud the name of an evil spirit means to invoke it, therefore, instead of the words "devil", "devil" or "devil", euphemisms were used "sly", "horned" etc.

Official documents

The language of official documents corresponds to a neutral tone, so they often contain euphemistic words. For example, they can be used to refer to a social group:

"People with special educational needs"

"People with developmental delays"

Speech manipulation

Also, euphemism phrases can be used for speech manipulations and smoothing out reality:

"Lack of positive results"

"Complete failure"

"All Quiet on the Western Front"

"We are retreating"

Common speech

Euphemisms in Russian are often used to replace swear words:

"Send in three letters"

"You go!"

"You go to the garden!"

"Badge-fly"

"Japanese policeman"

Euphemisms are used to refer to physiological processes that are not usually talked about in humans. When warning the interlocutor about the intention to go to the toilet, the woman can say:

"I'll go and powder my nose"

IMPORTANT!

The abundance of euphemisms leads to speech redundancy. In addition, they can give the reader the impression that the author wants to get away from the problem.
Some euphemisms change their meaning over time and can even become obscene. For example, a neutral word "horseradish" sounds indecent in a certain context.

Related terms

Dysphemism- a rude or obscene expression that is used instead of a neutral one. Dysphemism is the opposite of euphemism in meaning. For example, if instead of "die" you say "Leave us" or "go to a better world" is a euphemism, and if "Die" or "Churn out" is dysphemism.

Escrohemism is a figure of speech, implying that of all meanings of a polysemantic word, only negative or indecent ones are taken into account. For example, some have the word "Sit down" associated only with imprisonment, so they try to avoid it in other meanings, using the euphemism "sit down." Aeschrophemism is one of the prerequisites for the use of euphemism. The term "escrohemism" was introduced into scientific circulation by the philologist Hasan Huseynov and has not yet become widespread.