The phrase four-letter word refers to a set of English-language words written with four letters which are considered profane, including common popular or slang terms for excretory functions, sexual activity and genitalia, and (depending up the listener/reader) sometimes also certain terms relating to Hell and damnation when used outside their original religious context, and/or slurs.

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  • The phrase four-letter word refers to a set of English-language words written with four letters which are considered profane, including common popular or slang terms for excretory functions, sexual activity and genitalia, and (depending up the listener/reader) sometimes also certain terms relating to Hell and damnation when used outside their original religious context, and/or slurs. The "four-letter" claim refers to the fact that a large number of English "swear words" are incidentally four-character monosyllables. This euphemism came into use during the first half of the twentieth century. Common four-letter words (in this sense) that are widely considered vulgar or offensive to a notable degree include: ', ' (and regional variants such as feck, fick and foak), ' (or gism), ', ', ', ' and '. Piss in particular, however, may be used in non-excretory contexts (pissed off, i.e. "angry", in US English; pissed, i.e. "drunk" in UK English) that are often not considered particularly offensive, and the word also occurs several times with its excretory meaning in the King James Bible. Several of these (including even piss, despite its biblical pedigree) have been declared legally indecent under the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) TV and radio open-airwave broadcasting regulations. A number of additional words of this length are upsetting to some, for religious or personal sensitivity reasons, such as: ' (UK), ', ', ', ' and ' (UK) Ethnic and sexual-preference slurs may also qualify, such as ', ', ', ' and '. Several "four-letter words" have multiple meanings (some even serving as given names), and usually only offend when used in their vulgar senses, for example: ', ', ', ', ', ' (UK) and ' (UK). A borderline category includes words that are euphemistic evasions of "stronger" words, as well as those that happen to be short and have both an expletive sound to some listeners as well as a sexual or excretory meaning (many also have other, non-vulgar meanings): ' (US), ', ', ', ', ' (US), ' (UK, NZ, AUS), ' and ', as several examples. Finally, certain four-lettered terms with limited usage can be considered offensive by some, within the regional dialect in which they are used, such as ' and '. Occasionally the phrase "four-letter word" is humorously used to describe any word composed of four letters. This is the case when used to mean the word work, alleging that the speaker's or writer's audience treats work as unpleasant, or when the game of golf is noted as a four-letter word because the player's chosen entertainment pastime becomes an exercise in frustration.
  • Met drieletterwoorden wordt een aantal woorden aangeduid zoals kut, pik, lul, gvd die doorgaans als schuttingtaal in gebruik zijn. Het Engels heeft iets soortgelijks in de vorm van vierletterwoorden (four letter words). Bekendste voorbeelden daarvan: fuck, cunt, cock, dick, shit. Het eerste en het laatste woord uit deze Engelse lijst hebben ook in Nederland alom ingang gevonden. Het woord kut werd voor het eerst in september 2005 in een officieel bericht genoemd op televisie in het programma Opsporing Verzocht waarbij gerefereerd werd aan een gestolen schilderij van Herman Brood.
  • «Слово из трёх букв» — эвфемизм, заменяющий в русской речи обсценное слово хуй. Эвфемизмы, основанные на числе букв в заменяемом слове, присутствуют во многих языках.
  • Könsord är ord som syftar på könsorgan av slangkaraktär, vanligen av grövre karaktär, på svenska exempelvis kuk, fitta och mutta. Könsord används ofta som skällsord eller svordom. I bland annat Sverige under 1900-talet har könsord av många ansetts som "fulare" än "vanliga" svordomar. Könsord är också vanligt som klotter på offentliga toaletter, till exempel på skolor, restauranger och sportanläggningar.
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  • March 2009
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  • Explain this; many readers, especially non-native speakers of English will have no idea what is meant by this.
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  • The phrase four-letter word refers to a set of English-language words written with four letters which are considered profane, including common popular or slang terms for excretory functions, sexual activity and genitalia, and (depending up the listener/reader) sometimes also certain terms relating to Hell and damnation when used outside their original religious context, and/or slurs.
  • Met drieletterwoorden wordt een aantal woorden aangeduid zoals kut, pik, lul, gvd die doorgaans als schuttingtaal in gebruik zijn. Het Engels heeft iets soortgelijks in de vorm van vierletterwoorden (four letter words). Bekendste voorbeelden daarvan: fuck, cunt, cock, dick, shit. Het eerste en het laatste woord uit deze Engelse lijst hebben ook in Nederland alom ingang gevonden.
  • «Слово из трёх букв» — эвфемизм, заменяющий в русской речи обсценное слово хуй. Эвфемизмы, основанные на числе букв в заменяемом слове, присутствуют во многих языках.
  • Könsord är ord som syftar på könsorgan av slangkaraktär, vanligen av grövre karaktär, på svenska exempelvis kuk, fitta och mutta. Könsord används ofta som skällsord eller svordom. I bland annat Sverige under 1900-talet har könsord av många ansetts som "fulare" än "vanliga" svordomar. Könsord är också vanligt som klotter på offentliga toaletter, till exempel på skolor, restauranger och sportanläggningar.
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  • Four-letter word
  • Drieletterwoord
  • Слово из трёх букв
  • Könsord
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