swore like a sailor
Uttered many profanities
Swore like a sailor describes someone who curses frequently, intensely, or with impressive variety.
Sailors have a longstanding reputation for profane speech—life at sea was rough, male-dominated, and far from polite society.
My grandmother swore like a sailor when she was angry.
The phrase usually conveys grudging admiration or amused shock rather than genuine offense.
- curse wordsTaboo expletives
- truck driversCommercial vehicle operators
- vulgaritiesCoarse or indecent expressions
- blue streakSwift or ceaseless flow
- salty languageCrude or profane speech
four letter words · sailors · ship deck · anger · expletives · locker rooms · bartenders · invective · frustration · humor · emphasis · idioms · soldiers · pirates · camaraderie · stress relief · obscenities · surprise
swore like a sailorpolite conversation
Courteous social discourse
refined language · proper speech · prim and proper · diplomatic language · clean language
swore like a sailorcalm and collected
Emotionally steady, unflustered
cool as a cucumber · bit one's tongue · held one's peace · silent as the grave · said nothing
swore, sailor, swear, swears, swearing, sail, sailed, sailing, like