Minced oaths: how *not* to swear in English

Gosh, darn, drat, oh my! 

Do you know what minced oaths are? Minced oaths like gosh, darn, and drat express a taboo word or phrase in a way that is more socially acceptable. Here are some common minced oaths in English!

What are minced oaths?

When you feel the need to curse but do not wish to offend, then minced oaths are a good alternative. Here, the word minced refers to something cut up into smaller pieces and therefore less potent. Many minced oaths are shortened, misspelled, or mispronounced versions of curses or swear words.

Minced oaths are used in informal, usually spoken, conversations and are essentially synonyms that share some of the same sounds as the words they replace. The sounds of the word are really important in making it a suitable replacement—and certain sounds really satisfy the need to exclaim our displeasure or passion about a situation!

For example, some words that begin with "d" are satisfying to say when you are experiencing a misstep or mistake—and they replace a taboo word that also starts with a "d" but is less acceptable to say in many instances 🫢 You could use darn, dang, dagnabbit, doggone it, or drat to express frustration, as in, Dagnabbit, where’d I put that hammer? You can also use these options as adjectives to describe what is dismaying you, as in It’s that darn woodpecker, pecking at the house again! You're most likely to come across darn and dang, while the other options sound folksy or old-fashioned.

Some minced oaths that begin with "s" that also satisfy the need to exclaim your dismay are shoot, sugar, or the expression oh snap! These are preferred for polite company over the similar sounding swear word beginning with "s." For example, Shoot, I forgot my password!

There are also sounds at the ends of words that help you let out your frustration such as the “k” sound. You could say, What the heck? or What the frack is this? You can also orally spell out the swear word beginning with h- using the euphemism “h-e-double hockey sticks,” with hockey sticks representing the shape of the letter L. This one is especially popular with kids, and you might hear it in movies and TV shows, too!

Finally, there are alternatives for the infamous f-word for more frustrating or shocking situations. Good, kid-friendly options are fudge, fiddlesticks, frig, and farts. If you need the adjective form, then freaking, fricking, frigging, and fracking all suffice, as in I can’t go out because I have to do my fricking homework. 

Minced oaths to avoid religious taboos

If you really want to exclaim your surprise, you can use the minced oath with two alterna-swears, Shut the front door!

This type of minced oath, where multiple words are replaced, is particularly useful for avoiding taboos and profanity related to religious words and expressions. Some silly minced oaths that don’t take anyone’s name in vain, except perhaps poor Louise’s, include:

These minced oaths can be used on their own as exclamations, replacing more offensive, blasphemous phrases. In particular, crap and crapola can also function as nouns that refer to literal or figurative feces, as in Where did all this crapola come from? Tread lightly with crap especially, as it can be considered more offensive than the other options listed above. 

We swear these will come in handy

Before you start cursing like a sailor in English, consider using these alternatives that are more acceptable for grandparents, gentlefolk, and the workplace!