Offensive terms: Swear words that aren’t

September 21, 2006: Issue 157

As we struggle with the chaos of relocation this week, we know you don’t need a stern grammar lesson. You need swear words you can use at work.

So here you go—a list of terms that sound like profanities but aren’t:

chuff: (v.) to exhale noisily
damnum: (n.) detriment
Damoclean: (adj.) involving imminent danger
fartlek: (n.) training run at a varied pace
feck: (n.) majority
fubsy: (adj.) chubby and squat
fucus: (n.) brown algae (rhymes with mucus)
fug: (n.) stuffy atmosphere
futtock: (n.) ship timber
pisk: (n.) nighthawk
puckfist: (n.) braggart
puckster: (n.) ice hockey player
schist: (n.) crystalline rock
shitepoke: (n.) heron
shittle: (n.) shuttle
vug: (n.) small cave
wangle: (v.) to manipulate or trick

Let fly. And remember, the feck of this Damoclean move will be finished soon.

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