Etymology
Origin of curse word
First recorded in 1870–75
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I’ve covered Nancy Pelosi for more than three decades and never once heard her utter a curse word, in public or private.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 8, 2025
Just one offensive or curse word can lead to a parental advisory label, so what’s defined as explicit can be subjective.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 3, 2023
Friends wonder whether they have ever heard Ryans use a curse word.
From Washington Post • Jan. 21, 2023
I did not stop, once, to pencil a curse word of admiration in the margins, which sometimes means nothing but sometimes means a lot.
From New York Times • Jul. 4, 2022
It was much worse than any curse word, they told us.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
