〔Abstract〕Languagecommunicationisanimportantmethodtomaintainsocialrelationship,sopeopleoftenusetheindirectorpleasantexpressionsintheplaceofthoseconsideredunpleasant,rudeoroffensiveincommunication。Itisnotonlyalinguisticphenomenon,butalsoakindofsocialphenomenonandculturalphenomenon。Itreflectssomekindsofcorrespondingculturaltraditions。Thispapermainlyfocusesonthewaysofexpression,themajorfunctionandthesocialinfluenceofeuphemisminEnglish。AndthefirstpartelaboratesuponthedifferentexpressionsofeuphemisminEnglish,pidedintofourparts:figureofspeech,semanticmethod,thevarietyofpronunciationandspellingformandgrammar。Andthenitmakesstudytheapplianceofeuphemismonthreefunctions:avoidance,courtesy,disguiseinsociallife,anddiscussesthepositiveandnegativeinfluencesofeuphemism。Toknowthesecouldhelpustounderstandthemodeofthinking,socialvalues,moralconcepts,andculturaltraditionsinEnglishspeakingcountry,andcouldimproveourlanguagecommunicativeability。 〔Keywords〕:Euphemism,application,socialinfluence,positive,negative 【摘要】语言交际是人类以维系社会关系的重要手段,因而人们在交际中通常避免使用引起双方不快从而损害双方关系的语言,而是采取迂回曲折的方法来表达思想,交流信息,它不仅是种语言现象,而且是社会现象和文化现象。委婉语言体现了相应的社会文化传统。本文主要阐述了英语委婉语的构成方法以及它的社会影响,并着重从修辞手段,语义手段,构词手段及语法手段对委婉语言作了较全面的分析,并对委婉语在交际中的语用功能和表达方式做了一些探讨,从委婉语的避讳功能,礼貌功能和掩饰功能三个方面探讨了委婉语在社会生活中的运用,了解委婉语在运用中的积极作用和消极作用,有助于我们更深入的了解英语国家人们的思维方式、社会价值观、道德观以及文化风俗,对于提高自身言语交际功能是十分必要的。 【关键词】委婉语;运用;社会影响;积极;消极 1。Introduction EuphemismisoriginallyfromGreek,meaning,speakwithgookwords。phememeansspeech。ItsdefinitioninOxfordEnglishDictionaryis(exampleofthe)useofpleasant,mild,orindirectwordsorphrasesinplaceofmoreaccurateordirectones。〔1〕 Theappearanceofeuphemismisbasedontworeasons:oneaimstotaketheplaceoftaboo。Whengivingupatabooword,peoplewillfindanothernewonetotaketheplaceofit,whichcreatesaeuphemism。Theotheraimstoavoidoffensivenessduringthecommunication。Itisafigureofrhetoricbywhichanunpleasantoroffensivethingisdescribedorreferredtobyamilderterm。 InEnglishlanguage,euphemismiswidelyusedinthedailycommunications。Inordertoachievetheaimoftaboo,inordertoachievetheaimofpoliteness,itisusedtoavoidtheinelegantthings〔2〕,whicharethetwosocialpsychologicalbasisoftheemergenceofeuphemism。Euphemismisoneoftheimportantpartsoffigureofspeech。Itisnotonlyalinguisticphenomenon,butalsoakindofsocialphenomenonandculturalphenomenon。Euphemisminusediffersfrompersontoperson,fromprofessiontoprofession,evenfromclasstoclass〔3〕,That’swhysometimesthemeaningofsomeeuphemismswillpuzzleyouifyoudonotknowthebackgroundofEnglishculture。TograsptheEnglisheuphemismcannotonlyhelpusopenoureyes,butstrengthenourabilityofreadingcomprehension。ThispaperaimstodiscusstheapplicationofeuphemisminEnglishandtomakeacknowledgeofitssocialinfluence,whichcouldhelpususeeuphemisminacorrectway。 2。Waystoexpresseuphemism 2。1。Figureofspeech 2。1。1。Metonymy。Sometimes,peoplegraduallyforgetthEireuphemisticidentities。TheyarenotusedintermsofeuphemismsbuthavethEIrownindependentmeanings。Forinstance,takeabovementionedpoppy,nowifyoulookupthiswordinthedictionary,youcanfindthemeaningofopium,ithaslostitseuphemisticfunction。And,ifyoudonotknowthebackground,youcannotknowthemeaningofNapoleonandBorstal。Therefore,wecanseetheimportanceofknowingthebackgroundofEnglishculture。Itcanhelpyoualottorecognizeandunderstandtherealmeaningofeuphemismandmakegooduseofit。Tousemetaphorcaneasilyavoidtheoffensivethings。Forexample,whereforeitisbettertobeaguestofthelaw,which,thoughconductedbyrules,doesnotmeddleundulywithagentleman’sprivateaffairs。(O。Henry,TheCopandtheAnthem)tobeaguestofthelawisaeuphemismfortobeinprison〔4〕,Manyeuphemismsfordeathwerecreatedbywayofmetaphor,suchasgoingtohislonghome,tobehomeandfree,togotosleep,tosleepthelong(oreternal,neverending)sleep,torestinpeace,tobeatrest,togotoHeaven(orParadise),tojoinone’sancestors,tobegatheredtoone’sfathers,tojointheimmortals。Moreexamplesare:agedsunsetyears,tobepoortobepinched,tohaveimpropersexualintercoursewithgirls(especiallymaiden)tobribetogreasesomebody’handcuffsbracelets。 2。1。3Personification2。1。4。Analogy Intheeuphemismsforoccupationpeopleoftenuseanalogy,whichmakesthehumblenamemoreelegant〔5〕,Forexample,chefisaeuphemismforcook。ItisborrowedfromFrenchwordchefdecuisine。Bmorticianreferstoundertaker。Therealsoappearedsomebeautifulnamesforbarbershop:hairsalon,beautyparlour,andstylistparlour。 2。1。5。Ellipsis Thatistoomittheoffensivewordswhilespeaking,suchastobeexpecting(ababy),tohave(sexual)relationswithsomebody,totakeprecautions(againstpregnancy),todepart(fromthisworld)。Ofcourse,suchphrasesshouldbeputintoacertaincontext,whichcanexpressthemeaningofeuphemisms。 2。1。6。Periphrasis Itisanexpressionofbeatingaroundthebush。Thoughitisamuddledacting,itsaimistoavoidoffendingothers,andtobemorepolite〔6〕。Ifsomeoneaskedawomanwhethershewasknittingatinygarment,hemeantthathewonderedwhethershewaspregnant。Suchwayofspeakingishumorous,sweetandagreeable,suchastodietocloseone’seyes,toexpire,tobreatheone’todefecateandtourinatetowashone’shands,toeaseorrelieveoneself,todoone’lavatorywashroom,women’tobeinprisontoliveatthegovernmentsexpense。Teachersoftenusethisexpressiontoavoidthestudents’andtheirparents’awkwardness。Forexample,dirtyiscalledbelackofproperhealthhabits。〔7〕 2。2。Semanticmethod 2。2。1。Synonym Forexample,thriftisusedinsteadofeconomical,defecatereplacesshiftandurinereplacespiss。Andmadisreplacedbycrazy,insane,andlunatic。Sucheuphemismaimstousetheappreciativetermtotaketheplaceofthederogatoryterm。 2。2。2。Negation Sucheuphemismusesthecontrarytermtoexpressthesamemeaning,anditcouldbemoreusefulthansynonyminreplacingthetabooandmakepeoplemoreunderstandableandcomfortable。Wecouldcallstupidpeopleunwisepeople。Afatchancemeansaslimchanceandfindwordsstandsforbadwords 2。2。3。Vaguewordsandexpressions Thatistomaketheharsheroroffensivewordsmoregeneral。Forexample,ifsomebodyhassomementalproblems,wecanexpressitlikethis:Hheisnotathome。Thereareotherexampleswhichusevagueexpressions,suchasdiseasetrouble,V。D。(venerealdisease)prostituteawomanofthestreets,awomanofacertainclass,apaintedwoman,thepoortheunderprivileged,buttocksbehind,bottom,tobekilledtobeputtosleep。 2。2。4。Loanwords BecausefromtheperiodofRenaissance,Latin,Greek,andFrenchareconsideredasculturedwords〔8〕。Peopleconsiderthatthoselanguagesaremoreelegant,tactfulandambiguous。Intheearly19thcentury,nomatterinBritainorAmerica,peopleusedFrenchwordenceinteinsteadofEnglishwordpregnant。Itispopulartillnowbecausetheformerismoreelegant,tactfulandambiguous。EnglishborrowswordsnotonlyfromFrenchbutalsofromotherlanguagesinmanykindsofwaystocreateitsowneuphemism。Forexample,lavatorywasborrowedfromLatinwordlavatorium,butitlostitsmeaningofeuphemismbecauseoflongtimeusing。Therefore,peopleborrowedanothereuphemismfromFrenchtoilettewhichwasrespelledintotoilet,anditbecamethemostpopulareuphemismreferringtolavatory。Frenchwordschemiseandlingerieareeuphemismsforunderwearandblouserespectively。sushiwasborrowedfromJapanese。ItsoriginalmeaningisakindofJapanesefood。Peopleputitintoaphrasealittletonguesushi,whichmeanstonguekissing。Theabovewordsmostlybelongtothecommonvocabulary。Inaddition,euphemismsalsoborrowsomescienceandtechnologicalwordsandacademicwordsthatarecold,clinicandantiseptic。SuchwordsaremainlyfromLatinandGreek。Forexample,LNativewordsshitandpissarealldirtywords,whileLatinworddefecationandGreekwordurinationareallacceptedeasily。 2。2。5。Understatement Thatistostatesomeseriousthingsinatemperatewayinordertoavoidbeingawkwardandstrident〔9〕。Forexample,Shewasneitherquiteprettynorquietplain。PMycousinJimmywasabitsoftinthehead。STheboyusedtotakethingswithoutpermissionandhasjustbeenoutoftherehabilitationhomeinthecountry。(steal,detentionhome);moneyforbriberykickback,tobeilltolookoffcolor,oldageadvancedinage。 2。3。ThevarietyofpronunciationandspellingformThereisaninterestingexample:laboratory,theoriginalstresswasonthefirstsyllable。Butitsoundedsimilarlytolavatory。Inordertoavoidtheunpleasantconnection,thestresswasmovedtothesecondsyllable。SuchphenomenoniscalledAssonance。Thatistomakeuseofortocreatewords,whichhavethesameorsimilarpronunciationswitheuphemisticwordsinordertoachievethepurposeofeuphemism。Therefore,inEnglishthereisawayofpersonificationtoexpresscatamenia:Thecaptainisathome。Itisbecausecaptainisassonantwiththemedicalsciencetermcatamenia。InoralEnglish,peeisusedtorefertopiss,whichhasthesamereason。 2。4。Grammar Thatistousepasttense,negativesentencetoexpresseuphemism。Forexample,Icanseebyyourfacethatyoudon’tthinkthatwaswise。THowdowefeeltoday?Usingweinsteadofyoushowsthemoderationandgeniality。IwantedtoIwonderedoftentaketheplaceofIwanttoIwonderSuchexpressionisoftenusedinoralEnglish。〔11〕 3TheSocialInfluencesofEuphemism EuphemismiswidelyusedinAmericaandBritain。Ithasalonghistory。Neweuphemismsemergeinanendlessstream。Accordingtoitsappliedfunctions,I’dliketopideitintothreeparts:Avoidance,CourtesyandDisguise。Throughstudyingthethreefunctions,wecanunderstandthewesternsociety’sviewonvalueandmorality。 3。1。Avoidance 3。1。1。TheeuphemismsforGodanddevil TheTenCommandmentsofBiblehasprescribed,ThoushaltnottakethenameoftheLordthyGfortheLordwillnotholdhimguiltlessthattakethhisnameinvain。That’swhytherearesomanyeuphemisms。InoralEnglish,usingGodcausallywouldbeconsideredblasphmous。IfsomeonesayGoddamniitheistreasonandheresy,andwouldbepunished〔14〕。Someofthemadoptthesemanticmethod,suchastheCreator,theMaker,theSupreme(BEing),HolyOne,theAlmighty,theEternal,OurFather,theSaviour,KingofKings,Lordoflords,theLightoftheWorld,SoverEIgnoftheUniverse。Someofthemadoptthephoneticmethod,suchasGad,Gosh,Golly,Godfreyetc。Therearemanyeuphemismsforthedevil,suchasoldenemy,oldNed,OldNick,OldOne,Ole’un(OldMan),OldScratch,OldSerpent,theOldBoyetc。Forexample,HewasfrightenedasifOldHarrywerebeforehim。InEnglishtheyoftenuseheckinsteadofhell。hellhasotherexpressions:theotherplace,averyuncomfortableplace,theotherwayetc。Forexample,WewereallgoingdirecttoHwewereallgoingdirecttheotherway。〔15〕Euphemismisoftencausedinspeakingofthingsthatarepainfulanddistressingtothinkabout。Deathisoneofexpressions。Theeuphemismsfordeathareawidelyuseditem,especiallywhenitconcernsone’sownfamiliesandfriends。Ithasalotofexpressions〔16〕。Forexample,ifanythingshouldhappentome(whenIdie);tobeinterred。Deathalsohassomehumorousexpressions:tocashinone’tokickthebucket。Deathalsohasanintimaterelationshipwithreligion。TherearemanyeuphemismsfromBible,forexample,tobecalledtoGtobeatpeace,tobeasleepintheArmsofGtohaveone’snameinscribedintheBookoflifeetc。Somewords,whichconcerndeath,alsohaveeuphemisticexpressions。Forexample,graveyardiscalledmemorygarden。 3。1。3。Theeuphemismsforillness,naturalandmanmadecalamities Mostwesternersavoidtalkingaboutsomeseriousdiseases。Forinstance,AmericanandBleprosyiscalledHansen’constipationiscalledirregularity。commitsuicideiscalledselfdeliveranceorselfviolence。Peopleoftenuseinitialingtoavoidtalkaboutsomediseasesdirectly,suchasAIDS(AcquiredImmuneDeficiencySyndrome);BigC(Cancer);VD(VenerealDisease)etc。todiebecauseofacrashiscalledoldNanunnaturaldeathiscalledtobeblownacrossthecreek 3。1。4。Theeuphemismsforsex Nearlyalllanguagesconsidersexatabooword。Inthewest,whenchildrenaskedtheirparentswheretheycamefrom,theirparentsoftenansweredthebabywasavisitfromthestork。Pfartisalsowrittenintothedictionary。Youcansayitdirectlyinsteadofsaying,windfrombehindItisjustbecauseofthemovementofsexlibertyandsexliberation。PeoplecanhaveafreertalkaboutsexthanVictorianage。Onthecontrary,someotherneweuphemismsforsexappearedoneafteranother。Scohabitationhasbecomeverycommoninwesternsociety。Itisalsocalledakindofmarriage:trialmarriageorunmarriedwife。Nevertheless,withthesharpincreaseoftherateofporce,thereappearedmanyeuphemismsforporce:tobreakup,tosplitup,andmatchruptcy(ablendingofmatchandbankruptcy)。AndthehomosexualitywouldbecalledGreekarts,queer,gay。ThereisanotherinterestingphrasetogotoReno。Reno,asmallcityinthewestofNevada,isfamousforitseasyandfastproceduresofporce。SotogotoRenoalsobecomesaeuphemismforporce。 3。1。5。Theeuphemismsforbirth ContrarytotheChinesetraditionalopinion,inwesterncountries,beingpregnantandhavingababyarenotconsideredablessedevent。AustralianEnglishevencallitablastedevent。InAmerica,toweartheapronhigh,towearhavethebellyhighareeuphemismsfortobepregnant,whileinBritain,towearthebustlewrongisaeuphemismfortobepregnant。In19thcentury,aslimwaististheidealfigureforBritishwomen。Therefore,tobepregnantisalsocalledtobeawkward,tomakeawomanpregnantiscalledtospoilruinawoman’sshape。Someoneevencalledtobepregnanttobecaughtortobefallen。Somevagueexpressionsalsoshowakindofrestlessmood,suchas:thatway,inacertainparticulardelicateconditionetc。Theuseofhumorisanotherfeatureofeuphemismforbeingpregnant。Americanpeoplearelikelytosaytohaveawatermelononthevine,ortoswallowawatermelonseed。BritishpeoplearelikelytosaytohaveabunintheovenortohaveanIrishtoothache(tomakefunofIrishpeoplewhoarepregnantascommonlyashavingatoothache)。 3。2。Courtesy Anotherreasontouseeuphemismisthatitavoidstheharshanddirectwordinapoliteway,andmakesthesentencesoundmorepleasant。Tograspthepolitefunctionofeuphemismcanhelpyoubuildagoodrelationshipwithothers。Thepolitefunctionsareespeciallyreflectedintheoccupations,ortrades。ItrelatewithPolitenessPrincipleofLeech〔17〕。Itisobviousthatadvertisementisaimedathelpingbusinessmenpropagandatheirgoods,forthesakeofsolicitingcustoms。Asapleasantway,usingeuphemismsinadvertisementshasbecomemoreandmorewidespread。Now,secondhandstorehasbeenreplacedbyresalestore,super,giant,special,suchwords,havebecomemorepopular。Moreover,wecanoftenseethesamephenomenonabouttheexpressionsforclassesofcabins。Todefendpassengers’honor,FirstClassischangedtoDeluxeClass,SecondClassistoFirstClass,ThirdClasstoBusinessClass,andEconomicClasstoTouristClass。Thisfunctionundoubtlyplaysanactiveroleofimprovingtheprogressofsociety: 3。2。1。Theeuphemismfortheofficeandtrade Forexample,mortuaryorfuneralisaeuphemismofdeadhouse。Somesmallcompaniesorsmallenterprisesliketousethewordindustry,suchashotelindustry,touristindustry,garageindustry,women’sbeautyindustryetc。 3。2。2。Theeuphemismforoccupation Inordertopromotethesocialstatusoftheoccupation,almosteveryhumbleoccupationhasasweetsoundingname。Therearemainlytwoforms: 1)。Compound。Thatistochoosesomesweetsoundingoccupationalnamestomakeupcompoundorcompoundphrases。Forexample,todaywecanfindmanyoccupationsinAmericaandBritainnamedwithengineer:sanitary(orsanitation)building(custodian,dwelling)drycleaningengineer,thepersonwhoisinchargeofkillingmiceandcockroachesexterminating(extermination)engineer。Therearesomeothercommontitles:butchermeattechnologist。Somehumbleoccupationshavemanyeuphemisticnamesatthesametime。Forexample,peopleoftencallhairstylisttonsorialartist,undertakeralsohasmanyexpressions:bereavementcounselor,grieftherapist,funeraldirector,funeralservicepractitioner。Besidesengineerhousewifealsocanbecalledhouseholdexecutive,homemaker,Prostitutealsohasmanyeuphemisms,suchaspavementprincess,workinggirl,streetwalker,callgirl,businessgirletc。 2)。Derivation。ThatistochoosesomeLatinandGreekprefixeswhosemeaningsrefertoaperson,suchas(o)logist。mixologistisaeuphemismforabar’locksmithforlocktician。Somespecialoccupationalnameshaveadoptedtwoprefixes。Forexamplecosmetologistandcosmeticianbothrefertofemalehairdresser。Moreover,Latinprefixarianisoriginallyusedinreligion,butnowitisalsousedintheoccupation,suchas:bartarian,sanitarian。AnotherLatinprefixianisalsousedpopularly,suchascustodian(entranceguardordustman)。SomepeopleevenwanttochangethenativeprefixertotheLatinprefixorbecausetheythinktheforeignprefixismoreelegantandsweetsounding,suchasweldor,wildanimaltrainor。 3。2。3。Theeuphemismsfortheagedandweight Theage,especiallyawoman’sageisregardedasasensitiveprivacy。Andmostofthewesternpeopleareafraidofgettingold,sotheycalloldpeopleseniorcitizens。oldageandsenilitycaneasilycausethefearoftheoldpeople。Someeuphemisticexpressionstaketheplaceofthem,suchasgettingon(inyears),pastone’sprime,feelingone’sage,secondchildhood,adistinguishedgentleman,agrandedame,thirdage。TheoldpeoplebecomeanelderstatesmanoroldagepensionerorevenuseinitialingOAP。Theyarenotoldbutlonglived。Oldpeople’shome,ofcourse,isnotanidealplaceforoldmentolivein。Therearemanyeuphemisticexpressions:ahomeforadults,anursinghome,aresthome,aprivatehospital,aconvalescenthospital。Theoldpeoplewholivetherearecalledeuphemisticallyaresident。 Inwesterncountry,itisveryimpoliteifyoutalkaboutsomeone’sfigureandweightwithoutreservation。Ifsomeoneisfat,overweightisoftenusedtoreplaceit。weightwatchersisalsoaeuphemismforfatpeople。Tofemale,tomale,tochild,itiscalledchubby。Onthecontrary,ifsomeoneistoothin,euphemismisalsoused。Tomale,itiscalledlean,andtofemale,itiscalledslim,slender,willowyorsvelte。 3。2。4。Theeuphemismsforpovertyandunemployment Thetopicofpovertyandunemploymentmightcausesomeembarrassment,sopeopleoftenuseeuphemismwhentheirtalksconcernsuchthings。Forexample,dismissalisoftencalledlayoff,easeout,pennilessiscalledoutofpocket,inreducedcircumstances,badlyoff,needyetc。;thepoorpeopleiscalledthehavenots,theunderprivileged,eventheirhousesalsohaveasweetsoundingnamesubstandardhousing。Theeuphemismforunemploymenthasmanyexpressions。Mostofthemarehumorous,suchasbetweenjobs,betweenshows,tobedevelopinganewproject,toreceiveaMexicanraiseanIrishpromotion(toraiseapromotionwithoutraisingthesalary),tobeselfemployed。InAmericaunemployedmenarecalledclaimants,while,inBritain,theyarecalledtobeonpublicassistance。Ofcourse,someeuphemismsarepessimistic:TheBritishunemployedmencantake50percentofftheticketofafilmandadrama,sotheyalsocanbecalledthelessfortunate。 3。2。5。Theeuphemismsforexcretion Allwordsconcerningexcretionexcepttearsareconsideredtaboowords。Theeuphemismsforlavatoryhavemanywaysofexpressions,suchaswatercloset,cloakroom,comfortstation,toilet(whichispopularinBritain),restroom(whichisgenerallyusedinAmerica)。InAmerica,conveniencestationiswrittenEnglish,whilebathroomisoralEnglish。Johnisslang,whilepoet’scornerisacrackjoke。InBritain,theyuseJakesinsteadofJohn。Theyusepubliccomfortstationinsteadofpublicconveniencestation。Men’slavatoryiscalledGent’s,theJohn,Women’slavatoryiscalledLadies’,thepowderroom,powderone’snose(Br。);powderone’spuff(Am。);Mrs。Jones。Therearealsomanywaystoexpressurinationanddefecation,suchas,togotothebathroomrestroompowderroom,todoone’sbusiness,toanswernature’scall。。 Thereareotherexpressions。Forinstance,Ihavetoretireforamoment。Iwouldliketobeexcused。Interrogativesentencescanalsobeused:Whereistherestroom?WherecanIwashmyhands?Ladiescansay,I’dliketoaddsomemakeup。inordertoavoidtheawkwardness。 3。3。Disguise Oppositetothepositiveinfluencesofeuphemism,therearesomedifferentsayingsaboutit。SomepeoplecondemneuphemismsasdemoralizingbecauseofitshypocrisywhileotherslikeHilaireBellocconsiderthema‘psychologicalnecessity〔18〕。Oneofthemostimportantreasonsisthateuphemismisusedtoconcealsomescandalousbehaviorsandcrimes。Therefore,euphemismcanalsobringaboutthenegativeinfluences,whichareembodiedinthefollowingtwoaspectsaccordingtoitsconcealingfunction: 3。3。1。Theeuphemismsfortherequirementsofpoliticsandwar。3。3。2。Theeuphemismsforcrime Crimeisalsoaverysensitivetopic。Thejudgecansay,Iherebysentenceyoutofiveyearsinprison。Whilethefamiliesandfriendsofthecriminalarelikelytousetheeuphemisticexpression,suchastosendtothebighouse,tosenduptheriver,tobelivingatthegovernment’sexpense。theofficer’sactofstealingorembezzlingiscalledTheymisusepublicfunds。Deathpenaltyiscalledcapitalpunishment。 3。4。Thecountries’namesaseuphemism InEnglish,thereisanotherspecialeuphemisticexpression。Thatistouseothercountries’namesinsteadofsomeharsherormoreoffensivewords。Theappearanceoftheseeuphemismsismostlybecauseofthehistoricandculturalreasons。Forinstance,becauseFrenchhadruledBritain,BritishpeopleliketomakefunoftheFrench。TheycalledsyphilistheFrenchdisease。FabortivepilliscalledFpornographicnovelsprintsiscalledFrenchnovels(prints)。ItseemsthattheFrenchdoesallthebadthings。In17thcentury,thewarbetweenBritainandDutchalsoledtoalotofantiDutchwords,includingeuphemisms。ProstituteiscalledDcommitsuicideiscalledDDDutchcheerisaeuphemismforliquor。ItwassaidthattheDutchoftendranksomeliquortobuilduptheircourage。BesidesFrenchandDutch,Britainalsomakesfunofothercountries。Condomhasothereuphemisticexpressionsintermsofcountry’sname,suchasSpanishletter,Americanletter,andItalianletter。AbortivepillisalsocalledPRMexicanraise。IEChineseisalsoincludedinthisusage,anditreferstoakindofheroin。CChineseredalsoreferstoheroin。Inaword,theBritishandtheAmericanrelatealotofoffensivethingswithothercountries’names。Thatiswhyexotichasthemeaningoferotic。Eexoticdancerbecamethegogodancer。BesidesEnglish,otherwesterncountriesalsohavesucheuphemisticphenomena。Infact,itisLinguisticChauvinism。 4。Conclusion Euphemismappearswithfalseappearance,andexertsasubtleinfluenceonexposingthetruth。Thatistousetheneutralorpleasantwordstoexpresssomeawkwardoroffensivecontents。AstotheEnglishlearners,weshouldnotonlypayattentiontoitsapplicationonappropriateoccasions,buttoitsinfluences。Itsactivefunctionscancoordinatetheinterpersonalrelationships,releasethecontradictionsandavoidtheconflicts。Thenegativefunctionsaretoconfoundrightandwrong,beautifytheshamefulbehaviorsandconcealtheessence。Languageitselfhasnottheclasscharacter,butdifferentpeople,politicalpartiesandcountriescanconsideritatooltoserveforthem。Thatiswhysomeonenamedeuphemismsascomfortablewordsorcosmeticwords。Indailylife,weshouldpayattentiontotheinfluencesthattheactiveandnegativefunctionsofeuphemismsbringus,andkeepthenegativefunctionsfromcorruptingourthoughts。 Bibliography〔2〕马漪云。浅谈英语中的委婉语及其运用〔J〕。山西农业大学学报(社会科学版),2005年4月。第1期。P76〔4〕同〔1〕。P104 〔5〕同〔1〕。P104 〔6〕向仍东。浅析英语委婉语的特征、构成及作用〔J〕。长沙大学学报,2005年1月。第1期。P87 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