bad language
Words considered offensive
Bad language refers to swearing, profanity, or obscenity—words considered vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate in polite company.
The phrase often appears in warnings or prohibitions: No bad language in front of the children.
What counts as bad language varies by context; words acceptable among friends may be inappropriate at work or in formal settings.
- expletiveProfane emotional utterance
- cursingUsing profane language
- swearingProfane speech or vows
- profanityVulgar or obscene speech
- swear jarHousehold profanity fine collector
invective · pejoratives · curse words · scatology · vulgarity · imprecations · maledictions · obscenity · bleep · dirty words · pardon my French · four-letter words · slur · filthy · tongue · verbal · foul-mouthed · tirade
bad languagegood language
Respectful, appropriate speech
kind words · blessing · prayer · praise · benediction
bad languagerefined language
Polished, cultivated speech
eloquent speech · formal language · King's English · Queen's English
language, languages, badness, bilingual, linguistic, baddest, multilingual, trilingual, monolingual