taboo deformation
Share:
Tweet n. 1. The alteration of a tabooed word to make a socially acceptable word, as by the replacement of one or more sounds in the tabooed word or by the substitution of a similar-sounding word for one or more words in a compound. 2. A word formed by such alteration, such as darn from damn or dadburned from goddamned. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.






