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
He is quick to laugh at his own jokes and appreciates the shock value of a well-placed curse word.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 8, 2023
But having solved the mystery of her mother, Jo chooses to return to her responsibilities in the terrestrial, persecutory world where magic is a curse word.
From New York Times • Aug. 9, 2022
Raphael Bostic, president of the Atlanta Federal Reserve, joked Tuesday in separate remarks that “transitory” is now seen as the equivalent of a curse word at the Atlanta Fed.
From Washington Times • Oct. 13, 2021
I wasn’t quite bold enough to use the forbidden curse word aloud, but I thought of it several times quite happily as I made my way up the path and to Auntie Braxton’s house.
From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson
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.
