Word.ws English Dictionary

dysphemism

/ˈdɪs.fəˌmɪ.z(ə)m/

dysphemism noun: the use of a word or phrase carrying negative connotations or imagery (especially one that is derogatory, offensive or vulgar) to replace a (more) neutral original.

Noun

dysphemism (countable and uncountable, plural dysphemisms)

  1. (uncountable) The use of a word or phrase carrying negative connotations or imagery (especially one that is derogatory, offensive or vulgar) to replace a (more) neutral original.
  2. (countable) A word or phrase that is used to replace another in this way.

dysphemism meaning in Malay

dysphemism in Malay

use of a derogatory or vulgar word to replace a neutral one
bahasa kasar

Antonyms of dysphemism

Forms of dysphemism

pluraldysphemisms

Origin of dysphemism

Borrowed from French dysphémisme, modelled after euphémisme, with the prefix dys-.

Words formed from dysphemism

Questions about dysphemism

What does dysphemism mean?
Dysphemism means the use of a word or phrase carrying negative connotations or imagery (especially one that is derogatory, offensive or vulgar) to replace a (more) neutral original.
What is dysphemism in Malay?
Dysphemism in Malay is bahasa kasar. See Dysphemism meaning in Malay.
What part of speech is dysphemism?
Dysphemism is a noun.
How do you pronounce dysphemism?
Dysphemism is pronounced /ˈdɪs.fəˌmɪ.z(ə)m/.
What is the plural of dysphemism?
The plural of dysphemism is dysphemisms.

Words near dysphemism in the dictionary

  1. dysphasias
  2. dysphasic
  3. dysphasics
  4. dysphemia
  5. dysphemias
  6. dysphemism
  7. dysphemisms
  8. dysphemistic
  9. dysphemistically
  10. dysphemize
  11. dysphemized

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: dysphemism (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “dysphemism.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/dysphemism. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.