1
as in curse
a disrespectful or indecent word or expression
a rap song that is filled with profanities
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in vulgarity
the quality or state of being obscene
once notorious for its profanity, that 1950s best seller will strike today's readers as lamentably tame
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of profanity
The childish use of vulgar profanity simply leads peoople to view the speaker as being unable to express his/her view.
—
Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2025
Kenyatta gave an even more impassioned appeal, using profanity while trying to portray the bill as part of a sinister plot by the rich to harm the poor.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 16 May 2025
Epic Games rapidly deployed a hotfix after players encountered the Sith Lord responding to their comments with profanity and strong language.
—ArsTechnica, 16 May 2025
For Dowd, Moira standing up to Lydia and telling her off brought back memories from the pilot, when Lydia had Janine’s eye famously removed for using profanity.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for profanity
Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2025
Kenyatta gave an even more impassioned appeal, using profanity while trying to portray the bill as part of a sinister plot by the rich to harm the poor.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 16 May 2025
Epic Games rapidly deployed a hotfix after players encountered the Sith Lord responding to their comments with profanity and strong language.
—ArsTechnica, 16 May 2025
For Dowd, Moira standing up to Lydia and telling her off brought back memories from the pilot, when Lydia had Janine’s eye famously removed for using profanity.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for profanity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for profanity
Noun
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Christopher Walken stars as a school teacher who comes out of a coma with a gift that feels more like a terrifying curse.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
23 May 2025
-
While Rory McIlroy finally broke his 11-year curse to claim the green jacket, Bradley struggled, missing the cut with a 3-over-par.—
Devlina Sarkar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 May 2025
Noun
-
Finally, women need to call this type of vulgarity out instead of being demure!—
Chloe Mayer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 May 2025
-
Fiona Crombie’s production design gives the movie an imposing scale (with a Mar-a-Lago vulgarity in the ostentatious décor of the Marshalls’ quarters), though for a project shot by Darius Khondji and screened in IMAX, the visuals are nothing special.—
David Rooney,
The Hollywood Reporter,
15 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Previously, pro-Kremlin trolls had been notably restrained in commenting on Trump, using neutral or careful language, Agentstvo reported.—
Isabel van Brugen,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 May 2025
-
With technical innovation and a brand defining visual language that dates back 102 years, TIME Studios aims to impact communities and the world at large with ideas that forge true progress.—
TIME PR,
Time,
27 May 2025
Noun
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The word was forbidden in their household and treated like a swear.—
Ariana Yaptangco,
Glamour,
22 Apr. 2025
-
Is this the kind of situation where mild swears seem generally used?—
Stacey Colino,
Time,
1 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Such was the case this past weekend, as the Bronx faithful showered the $765-million man with deafening boos, taunts and obscenities.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
19 May 2025
-
The shooting happened around 7 p.m., when officers were called to the 300 block of Oyster Point Boulevard for a report of a man who was yelling obscenities and trying to use a metal object to force his way into a public restroom, the South San Francisco Police Department said in a statement.—
Jason Green,
Mercury News,
16 May 2025
Noun
-
The Knicks fan then began a series of expletives, roasting the ESPN insider.—
Matt Levine,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 May 2025
-
During an argument in the car, Lanez allegedly directed expletives at Megan and her friend.—
Jordana Comiter,
People.com,
13 May 2025
Noun
-
And, when the alarm wails hours before dawn, human cusses of angry protest join the chorus of budget appliances failing before their time.—
Virginia Konchan,
The New Yorker,
30 Sep. 2024
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My grandmother extended a ladder up into this tough old cuss of a tree and climbed up, at some risk, to pick the bulging fruit.—
Jim Meddleton,
The Christian Science Monitor,
1 May 2024
Noun
-
As the Oxford English Dictionary notes, the expression not hardly is considered a vulgarism.—
NR Editors,
National Review,
16 Apr. 2020
-
The British cringed over new American accents, coinages and vulgarisms.—
Time,
Time,
11 June 2019
Cite this Entry
“Profanity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/profanity. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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