I think swearing is good if not overused.

I’ve heard studies show that people who swear are trusted more, something about them coming across more open and genuine.

I’ve considered removing or at least reducing swearing in my common language usage, but I don’t consider it enough to just replace swearing with placeholder words. “What the fudge” doesn’t work, in my mind, because it is still clear to everybody what my brain was trying to say before my resolution not to swear intervened. “What on earth are you talking about?” Much better.

I kind of realised through running that through to its end that what my issue was, with swearing, was lazy use of language. So I still swear, but I try not to lean on the words as crutches.

Where this puts me, language usage-wise, is in a position where I’m using swearing as a tool to accentuate my meaning or express emotion succinctly, since I don’t swear as often it carries more weight.

For instance, my high school bully was a reprehensible human being but Donald Trump is a worthless fucking cunt.

I swore for emphasis in a job interview and got the job! It was definitely a risk but they received the message I was trying to convey so it worked.

Swearing is brilliant if you smash your thumb with a hammer, or break something expensive. If you swear all the time in normal conversation you don’t have any special words left to use when those things I mentioned happen.

My favourite is to exclaim “Shut the front door!” in conversation.

I disagree. Swearing a useful expressive tool.

Just don’t overuse it and know situations where it’s best not used.

I do not understand the reason for swearing being considered bad.

I do not understand why replacement words are better.

If it were the specific sounds being made that are wrong, replacement words would make sense. However, since other languages have no prohibition on these words and may have words that sound the same/similar to swear words in another language.

If the meaning behind the words was the ‘bad’ part, then replacing those word with other words that express the same idea would be just as wrong.

Who determines which words are bad? If it’s a cultural thing I guess it makes sense but a person is fickle and groups of them even more so. I still don’t understand why a group would prohibit specific words but not their meanings (barring superstition, like in the case of the origin of word “bear”). If it were a deity of some kind, it makes me return to the question why specific words in specific languages but not the meaning and intent behind those words.

I don’t know about that, MOTHER LOVER DOOM just doesn’t hit right.

If you’re using direct replacement words and the sentiment is the same, what’s the point?

There are no bad words. Bad thoughts. Bad intentions, and wooooords.

– George Carlin

Fuck no! I always found it funny how communities find specific words offensive and look down upon people that use them. Context is important, of course, but the vast majority of cases I witness people swearing are non malicious in nature. (Don’t get me wrong, there are absolutely words/phrases I will never say; again, context is key here)

Coming up with alternative words for the same intent is super silly to me, too. The individual makes it very clear they are aware of the “rules” and are making an asserted attempt to sidestep them. Why bother with all that effort and not simply use the intended word instead?

I don’t have a thing against swearing but I do sometimes say heck instead of fuck

I’m trying not to curse but when you fix things for a living you curse a lot.

Forking shirtballs, The Good Place has the best replacement words.

Fuck, which becomes Fork.
Shit, which becomes Shirt.
Bitch, which becomes Bench.
Ass, which becomes Ash.
Dick, which becomes Deck.
Cock, which becomes Cork.

I don’t exactly talk like a sailor but I don’t censor myself either. I think swearing is much less of a big deal in my culture than it seems to be in conservative America. For example, bleeped-out words on TV or radio are not a thing here. I have not and will never use any “replacement words”, those just seem forced and silly to me.