Dirtiest word of all time

What is the dirtiest word in the English language? While it does have its equivalents in some other tongues, most languages, especially those languages that are soon to be extinct – have not, and never even had, an equivalent term. It is a word so dirty that it is never, ever, spoken or heard in polite society, not even in the very depths of the ghetto.

It is not the F-word; nor is it the N-word. These words are commonplace and shouted in the streets.

Where might one hear such a filthy word? Where might this dirty word be given vent to defile the air? In corporate boardrooms perhaps; murmured in the quiet of a lawyer’s office; or conspiratorially whispered in a judge’s chambers. The Mass Media shun it. Politicians cringe at the very sound of it. The rich and famous never mutter it – ever.

What makes any word dirty? What makes people avoid its use? Dirty words evoke an emotional, animal or gut reaction. They are provocative. They go to the very core of who we are. Words akin to the F-word reference our sexuality and our base animal nature. The N-word and all its derogatory kinship terms reference our social status – or lack of it.

Inheritance. The casus belli immemorial. Inheritance is a claim, a concept and sometimes a law whose true origin is shrouded in the mists of pre-history. It may well be that inheritance was the solution to a vexing and recurring problem – but this solution became distorted and grotesque; turning upon itself and creating far greater problems than it has ever solved.

The conflict between heir and bastard wends its way throughout the warp and woof of human history. Your pre-historic ancestors fought over their food. They fought over their females. They fought over claims of territory. When tools were invented they fought over them. The tools became weapons. At that time there were no rules. Might only, made Right. At the same time that weapons developed so too did the concept of cooperation. The problem with Might Makes Right is this: Might is fleeting. One man’s domination over others depends upon raw physical strength and agility. But all men grow old and all men are subject to injury. All men eventually sicken and die. You’re only top dog for a little while. The mightiest of mighty men could be overcome numerically (out numbered or ganged up on) by much smaller men and is also subject to an inherent weakness; that is to say, the need for sleep. The need for sleep makes the mightiest of mighty men vulnerable to a stealth attack by a lesser man. In those days your ancestors were all a bunch of thieves, thugs and murderers – they had to be. Every man was a warrior but not in any modern or heroic sense. Every man had to hide, guard and fight for any possessions he hoped to keep.

Those who saw an advantage to cooperative thievery witnessed the breakdown of social order every time a warrior fell: whether it be of old age, sickness or battle, when a man died all those around him fell to in a bloody mêlée over his possessions. One mans death was thus often an occasion for the deaths of several others as well. This tore families apart and internally weakened tribes and nations.

The nameless ones made them a rule: that the son of the fallen was rightful heir to the possessions of the fallen, thus sparing the bloodbath mêlée and breakdown of social cohesion within the gang.

Of course there were problems. What if he had many sons? Which would be heir? The first? The last? By his will? What if he had no sons? What if he had no children or wife? Such issues are argued to this very day.

Evolving technology brought about durable goods and often the things made by the hand of man outlive the man himself. Such possessions naturally accumulate from one generation to the next over great spans of time, especially those things that generate a profit. But profit for one is loss for another.

Inheritance as an abstract body of laws is a man-made, self-perpetuating institution that out-lives its authors. It is practically a living entity unto itself. Estates do not serve men. Men serve their estates.

Over the great sweep of history Dame Fortune has had her say – and today we are confronted by the grotesque iniquity of one man inheriting a vast fortune while his neighbor struggles beneath the yoke of perpetual, hereditary poverty.

Inheritance. It conjures thoughts of death. It is the proverbial skeleton in the closet. It has been said that behind all great wealth there is crime. Inheritance is historically a bloody, oppressive hand over us all.

There are no great men – only great estates.

Inheritance. The dirtiest word in the English language.

WARNING:

This Forty Tale contains strong language, paranoia and regret. Reader discretion is advised.

There are certain words you are just not supposed to say. And you know the ones I’m talking about…the dirty words.

Shit. Fuck. Ass. Damn. And of course, the worst of all, the “C” word, which I can’t even write down. If you don’t know what word I am referring to, check out any episode of the Real Housewives of New Jersey, as it is used as commonly as the word “hello” on that show. If you’re still confused, I’ll tell you when I C you next Tuesday.

For some reason, when I entered my forties, not only did I gain weight and anxiety, but I also gained the mouth of a truck driver. I think the intentions for my newfound Drunken Sailor Syndrome (DSS) stemmed from social angst and stress. And California traffic. But that’s a different blog for a different time.

My mom once told me that she cringes every time she reads the “F” word in one of my posts. That comment made me feel bad, because I certainly don’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable with what I am writing.

But, at the same time, I am a little defiant when it comes to that word, because I feel that it adds an emphasis like no other. Case in point, take the following statements:

• 90 Day Fiancé is a train wreck.
• The Real Housewives are insane.
• This soft serve is amazing.

Now, let’s add the “F” word to those statements:

• 90 Day Fiancé is a fucking train wreck.
• The Real Housewives are fucking insane.
• This soft serve is fucking amazing.

See what I did there? See how much better those phrases sound?

I’m pretty sure my mom just stopped reading.

As far as obscene language goes, Dumbass is another personal favorite, as I can be one at times, and…I just like the way it sounds.

Shit show is a great use of profanity, as it can be very telling and is absolutely necessary for use in my reality show recaps.

I do draw the line at saying the “P” word. I hate that word despite my love for cats. However. I am now able to say and write the word vagina without flinching or turning red, and it only took me forty-something years to do so.

You’re probably wondering where I am going with all this. Well, there are two words that are the dirtiest of all, and I’m ashamed to admit, I use them more than any other obscenity. The first word is…SHOULD. As in, I should’ve had children, or I should’ve gotten married.

This word not only follows me everywhere, but it haunts me to my core.

I should have a husband by now.

I should be a mother.

I should’ve written a book already.

I shouldn’t have eaten that soft serve.

I shouldn’t have used the word “F” word in my last blog post.

Should relates to another “S” word I can’t stand…SUPPOSE. As in, I was supposed to have children, or I was supposed to get married.

These “S” words are constantly shitting all over me, and this fucking dumbass can’t take it anymore!

Sorry Mom. ☹

I think the “supposed tos” start at a very young age. By being introduced to fairy tales, adolescent girls are taught (or brainwashed) to believe that our sole purpose in life is to meet Prince Charming and live happily ever after. These notions stay with us and we grow up believing that we are supposed to get married and we are supposed to reproduce. Those two things are the meanings of life and not negotiable. No ifs ands or buts about it.

Yet, as reality sinks in and life moves forward, sometimes these “supposed tos” switch to “should haves”.

In my late thirties, I started to become obsessed with all the things I was supposed to do. I couldn’t understand why all of the standard “supposed tos” were happening to everyone else around me, but not me.

This led to that age-old question:

What the hell is wrong with me?

Why am I not good enough? Why am I not deserving of love?

These questions then led to embarrassment and judgement. For years, I walked around wearing the theoretical scarlet “D” on my chest, signaling to all around me that I was the Dumbass who wasn’t married and didn’t have kids.

I used to believe it was others that were judging me regarding these issues. However, I now realize that despite what others think of me, my worst critic is myself. Is that a cliché? Yes. But is it true? Double yes.

Now granted, it’s not all in my head. At my age, you tell people your single and don’t have children and they look at you like you have three heads. It’s something that people just can’t internally comprehend, especially coming from someone like me. The smoke and mirrors allow me to present myself as a fairly normal, attractive, pulled-together person. People just can’t understand why I’m not married. And quite honestly, I don’t understand it either.

And then, when I say I don’t have children…that is when they become completely baffled and their mind is blown like chunks from one of my jumbo-sized cats. The walls cave in. The mirrors shatter, and the smoke clears.

How can she not have children, they wonder. What the hell is wrong with her?

Well, clearly something is wrong with me, but nobody can quite put their finger on it, including myself. What is holding someone back from marrying me? Or procreating with me? Is it my cankles? My breath? My third nipple?

What the hell is it???

Last month I had lunch with a good friend of mine. We hadn’t seen each other in quite some time. It was great to catch up, as she is a beautiful person, both inside and out.

She too is in her forties and in the past, she has shared with me her struggles with trying to have a child, and then her struggles with coming to terms with not having a child, a situation I am also familiar with. What was interesting about our conversation was that she said that once she accepted that she was not going to have a child, and moved passed all the perplexing anxiety that goes along with it, she was finally able to relax and enjoy her life.

This got me to thinking about myself, and what it would take for me to be truly happy. I started to dig deep and think about what I really want out of life, and that’s when it hit me – I don’t spend my days pining after a child. I don’t even fantasize about getting married anymore. (Although, I do daydream about wedding dresses at least once a week.  I WILL have one whether I get married or not! Mark my words!)

But for now…I digress.
It’s not that I don’t want to get married – I really do. Yet, there is not a longing in my heart anymore for these two “mandatory” things that I am supposed to have, that I should have. My heart doesn’t ache for them. What it aches for is a significant, supportive, happy relationship with someone I can laugh and grow old with. What I do visualize about is writing and publishing a book. That will be my baby – something I created and came from inside of me.

Writing is my passion. Having profound love is my dream. These are the things I truly want.

But, even after admitting this, I still feel bad. I feel bad about all the people I’m letting down, especially my parents who deserve a grandchild after all I have put them through. (And, not to mention the fact that I’m an only child. The legacy stops with me. What a shit show!)

I know the fairy tale expires at forty, but when does the shame and blame expire?

Do I have to wait until I’m physically not able to have kids before I give myself a break about the things I should have done? I’ve still got some time on that one. And when the hot flashes start…I’m not so sure I’ll be able to handle my normal self-loathing and guilt as well.

When am I going to be able to look in the mirror and say, “Hey, you haven’t gotten married and you don’t have kids – so what? I accept you for who you are.”

I’m hopeful this will happen in the near future. I think it’s supposed to.

Could’ve, Would’ve, Should’ve – the story of my life. But, certainly not the most interesting one.  That, my friends, is still to come.  And it’s going to be fuckin’ amazing….

Sorry Mom. 😊

And she lived hopefully ever after.

What do you get when you mix Latin, German, and French, along with a bunch of other linguistic tidbits (eww)? You get the English language of course, one of the most impressively adaptive yet horrifyingly dirty languages in human history.

And when I say dirty, I’m not just talking about your F*CKS, SH*TS, and C*NTS. (English cursing is as good as it gets, but that is best saved for another article.)

The Nasty Nast Of Suggestive English

During my senior year at University of California : Irvine, some friends decided to place a bet on who could most impress our political science professor on their final in-class essay. This guy had been tenured since the days of Henry Kissinger, and was constantly using vocabulary that made political science sound more like Human Sexuality 101. Naturally, then, someone had the retarded idea of seeing who could most eloquently insert (eww) a suggestive word into their final exam. Sounds simple, right?…

Perhaps. Unless of course, the word you had to use was “panties.” That’s right, I had to insert the word panties into my final, in-class political science essay. Nasty nast.

Needless to say, there’s absolutely no possible context in which to appropriately use the word panties while arguing the points of American interventionism in Iran by way of progressive diplomacy and cultural exchange.

So, a few paragraphs into my essay, I simply finished a sentence with a period, followed by the word panties, and then continued writing as normal. It was revolting, and violating, and yet, on some strange level of peculiarity… almost enlightening. (My paper was later returned to me with a big red circle drawn around the word “panties” with a question mark beside it… along with a shining letter “A-” at the very top.)

English Morphology And Expressive Power

Just a few weeks prior, a friend of mine had been shopping at Trader Joe’s market when he happened upon an elderly woman who was browsing red wine, looking like quite the connoisseur. He decided to ask her about one of the reds. “Oo yes, that one is QUITE… titillating,” she replied with a sly grin, before winking at him as she strolled away.

He called me on the phone in a panic, half laughing, and half crying, suffering from what appeared to be a condition similar to PTSD. It would take him months before he got over the image of the winking, titillating old woman who had psychologically scarred him with her abrupt accostment of suggestive English in a public setting.

In the world of linguistics (and computer programming), there is a concept known as “Expressive power” to denote which languages can communicate the widest variety of concepts and ideas. And while the debate continues – with many linguists pointing out the lack of consistent logic in English, etc – the truth remains that English is exceptionally expressive and has evolved more than any language in world history.

Take the word douche for example. Born in Latin as ductus meaning “leading”, it was shuffled into Italian as docciare which means “pouring” or “dripping” and later doccia referring to “piping” or “conduit.” Continue on to the 18th century as French began using douche to mean “shower” and English-speakers began repeating it, despite ALSO having the English word duct which ALSO evolved directly from Latin ductus.

That’s right, b*tch. We’ll take douche… AND ductus too.

Now, according to Google Books’ historic Ngram viewer of word usage, the word douche reached peak usage around 1900. From then on, the word continued to drop in usage, reaching a low point in 1992 that hadn’t been witnessed since the early 1800s.

But wait just a second! you might say. At the turn of the new millennium, around the year 2000, the word douche suddenly started to grow in usage again for the first time after nearly a century of dramatic decline. Da f*ck… you guys?

Thank the internet.

We Will Rock (Your Morphological Typology)

Give us the word douche, and we’ll give you back d*******g. Bam! Compound language. Or perhaps douchebaggery. Pow! Agglutinating language.

Or if we are feeling adventurous, we might make sh*t up on the fly, like when Stephen Colbert announced to a live television audience he had indeed twatted before, as a past participle of tweeting. Zap! Fusional language, with a touch of sarcasm.

While most languages have a variety of morphologies, modern English, spurred on by the rapid growth of the internet and a simple phonetic alphabet – would seem to almost purposefully devour new styles. In turn, our minds connect the invisible dots between various words and expressions, creating an apparent level of dirty connotation and Freudian evocation unseen in other languages. An old lady says titillating, and we think… of titties. When in fact, titillate comes from Latin titillat meaning “tickled”, and tits – referring to breasts or nipples – originated separately from German and Dutch. (Um, that may have just made it worse. By the way, titillating is enjoying record popularity.)

Contrast this complexity with translating d*******g to Chinese – one of the most “isolating” languages in the world – which, after translation, means “evil stick” (LMAO). And while saying (惡棍) in Chinese does apparently have modern connotation – being used in the title of Inglorious Basterds for Chinese audiences, for example – there is a clear lack of etymological depth, and in turn, not much dirtiness.

Listen as Jack Wagner, the original voice announcer at the Disneyland park in California, grammatically dissects the word F*CK on tape, several decades ago:

If you’re truly interested in English linguistic history, here’s a free eBook. But suffice it to say that the bastardized history of English has provided us with serious entertainment.

Dirtiest Words In The English Language

So, what’s a dirty word then? Any word, perhaps, that subtly evokes disgusting, sexual, or otherwise shocking or unpleasant images or associations. Without further ado, here are the most disgusting words in the English language. (Please comment with more.)

anal • anis • angina pectoris • back-hoe • baste • bolus • buboe • bulge • burgle • burst • caress • caucus • cesspool • cleft • chafing (chafe) • chum • clog • cockamamie • cockpit • coitus • concoct • crampon • creamy • crevice • crotch • crusty • cul-de-sac • cumquat • custard • dangle • diarrhea • dipthong • discharge • dongle • douche • dribble • drizzle • Dukakis • ejaculate • excretion • fallacious • finger • flaccid • flagellate • flexible • foist • fondle • fundus • gaping • genitalia (along with all specific types of genitalia) • gesticulate • gurgle • gyrate • hoist • invagination • jam • jiggling • juices • lambaste • limber • limp • loin • lube (lubricate) • luster • manhandle • masticate • matriculate • meat probe wipes • moist • nestle • oblong • ogle (ogling) • ointment • paginate • panties • penetrate • penile • pleasure • poke • pony • pop • poppycock • pouch • prematurely • probe • protrude • pulchritudinous • quiver • receptacle • regurgitate • rigid • rub • sack • saggy (sag, sagging) • saturated • scrofula • secretion (secrete) • shaved lunch meats • sloppy • smear • smegma • snorkel • soggy • spew • splurge • spoon • sprocket • squat (squat-thrust) • squirt • sticky • stroke • succulent • suck • suckle • supple • swallow (swallowed, swallowing) • swollen • taint • taint-squat • taught • tender • tenderloin • throbbing • thrust • tidbits • tight • titillate (titillating) • tutelage • tubercle • undulate • vacillate • wet • whack

Originally published December 18, 2009, as inspired by the original Facebook group.

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The seven dirty words are seven English-language curse words that American comedian George Carlin first listed in his 1972 «Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television» monologue.^[1] The words, in the order Carlin listed them, are: «shit», «piss», «fuck», «cunt», «cocksucker», «motherfucker», and «tits».^[1][2]

At the time, the words were considered highly inappropriate and unsuitable for broadcast on the public airwaves in the United States, whether radio or television. As such, they were avoided in scripted material and bleep censored in the rare cases in which they were used. Broadcast standards differ in different parts of the world, then and now, although most of the words on Carlin’s original list remain taboo on American broadcast television. The list was not an official enumeration of forbidden words, but rather were compiled by Carlin to flow better in a comedy routine. Nonetheless, a radio broadcast featuring these words led to a Supreme Court 5–4 decision in 1978 in FCC v. Pacifica Foundation that the FCC’s declaratory ruling did not violate either the First or Fifth Amendments, thus helping define the extent to which the federal government could regulate speech on broadcast television and radio in the United States.

Background[edit]

During a performance in 1966, comedian Lenny Bruce said he had been arrested for saying nine words: «ass», «balls», «cocksucker», «cunt», «fuck», «motherfucker», «piss», «shit», and «tits».^[3] In 1972, comedian George Carlin released his fourth stand-up album Class Clown. One track on the album, «Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television», was a monologue in which he identified these words and expressed amazement that they could not be used regardless of context. In a 2004 NPR interview, he said:

I don’t know that there was a «Eureka!» moment or anything like that. […] On these other things, we get into the field of hypocrisy. Where you really cannot pin down what these rules they want to enforce are. It’s just impossible to say «this is a blanket rule». You’ll see some newspapers print «f blank blank k». Some print «f asterisk asterisk k». Some put «f blank blank blank«. Some put the word «bleep». Some put «expletive deleted». So there’s no real consistent standard. It’s not a science. It’s a notion that they have and it’s superstitious. These words have no power. We give them this power by refusing to be free and easy with them. We give them great power over us. They really, in themselves, have no power. It’s the thrust of the sentence that makes them either good or bad.^[4]

Carlin was arrested for disturbing the peace when he performed the routine at a show at Summerfest in Milwaukee in 1972. On his next album, 1973’s Occupation: Foole, he performed a similar routine titled «Filthy Words», dealing with the same list and many of the same themes. Pacifica station WBAI broadcast this version of the routine uncensored on October 30 that year.

Federal Communications Commission v. Pacifica Foundation[edit]

In 1973 John Douglas, an active member of Morality in Media, claimed that he heard the WBAI broadcast while driving with his then 15-year-old son, Dean, and complained to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that the material was inappropriate for the time of day (approximately 2:00 p.m.).^[5][6]

Following the lodging of the complaint, the FCC proceeded to ask Pacifica for a response, then issued a declaratory order upholding the complaint. No specific sanctions were included in the order, but WBAI was put on notice that «in the event subsequent complaints are received, the Commission will then decide whether it should utilize any of the available sanctions it has been granted by Congress». WBAI appealed against this declaratory ruling, and the ruling was overturned by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a 2–1 decision on the grounds that the FCC’s definition of «indecency» was overbroad and vague and thus violated the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech. The FCC in turn appealed to the Supreme Court. As an independent federal agency, the FCC filed the appeal in its own name. The United States Department of Justice intervened in the case, supporting Pacifica’s argument that the FCC’s declaratory ruling violated the First Amendment and that it also violated the Fifth Amendment in that the FCC’s definition of «indecency» was too vague to support criminal penalties.

In 1978, the Supreme Court, in a 5–4 decision, ruled that the FCC’s declaratory ruling did not violate either the First or Fifth Amendments, but it limited the scope of its decision to the specific broadcast that caused the declaratory ruling and declined to consider whether the FCC’s definition of indecency would survive a First Amendment challenge if applied to the broadcast of other material containing the same or similar words which had been cited in Pacifica’s brief (e.g., works of Shakespeare – «pissing conduits», «bawdy hand of the dial on the prick of noon»; the Bible – «he who pisseth against the wall»; the Watergate Tapes). It noted that while the declaratory ruling pertained to the meaning of the term «indecency» as used in a criminal statute (18 USC 1464), since the FCC had not imposed any penalty on Pacifica, the Court did not need to reach the question as to whether the definition was too vague to satisfy the due process requirements of the Fifth Amendment.^[7]

This decision formally established indecency regulation in American broadcasting. In follow-up rulings, the Supreme Court established the safe harbor provision that grants broadcasters the right to broadcast indecent (but not obscene) material between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am, when it is presumed few children would be watching.^[8][9] The FCC has never maintained a specific list of words prohibited from the airwaves during the time period from 6 am to 10 pm.

The seven dirty words have been assumed to be likely to elicit indecency-related action by the FCC if uttered on a TV or radio broadcast, and thus the broadcast networks generally censor themselves with regard to many of the seven dirty words. The FCC regulations regarding «fleeting» use of expletives were ruled unconstitutionally vague by a three-judge panel of the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York on July 13, 2010, as they violated the First Amendment due to their possible effects regarding free speech.^[10][11][12]

The words[edit]

The original seven words named by Carlin are:

• shit
• piss
• fuck
• cunt
• cocksucker
• motherfucker
• tits

In subsequent routines, Carlin would frequently deconstruct the list, proposing additions or deletions based on audience feedback, or sometimes on his own whims. For example, a man asked him to remove motherfucker because, as a derivative of fuck, it constituted a duplication: «He says motherfucker is a duplication of the word fuck, technically, because fuck is the root form, motherfucker being derivative; therefore, it constitutes duplication. And I said, ‘Hey, motherfucker, how did you get my phone number, anyway?‘«.^[13]

He later added it back, claiming the bit’s rhythm does not work without it.^[13] In his comedy routine, Carlin would make fun of each word; for example, he would say that tits should not be on the list because it sounds like a nickname of a snack («New Nabisco Tits! … corn tits, cheese tits, tater tits!»).

Availability[edit]

Carlin performed the routine many times and included it, in whole or in part on several of his records and HBO specials. Parts or all of the performance appear on the following releases:

• 1972 – Class Clown – Audio recording – «Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television»
• 1973 – Occupation: Foole – Audio recording – «Filthy Words»
• 1977 – George Carlin at USC – HBO special – «Forbidden Words»
• 1978 – George Carlin: Again! – HBO special – «Dirty Words»
• 1983 – Carlin at Carnegie – HBO special – «Filthy Words»

The Carlin at Carnegie version can be heard as «An Incomplete List of Impolite Words» on the 1984 album Carlin on Campus (but not in the HBO special, Carlin on Campus). That version of the list features over 300 dirty words and phrases in an effort to stop people telling him that he left something off the list. Four days after Carlin’s original Class Clown recording, the routine was performed again for students at the University of California, Los Angeles. This would be months before its first official release. The recording was restored in December, 2013 and uploaded to YouTube by archivists at UCLA and could be accessed free of charge, but is no longer available due to a claim of copyright infringement.^[14]
The FCC ruling is referenced in «Offensive Language» from the album Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics and HBO special Doin’ It Again, both 1990 recordings of the same performance; however, the routine that follows is entirely different.

The Class Clown version can also be heard on the vinyl/cassette only release Indecent Exposure (1978). The Occupation: Foole version can also be heard on Classic Gold (1992). Both versions were re-released again as part of The Little David Years (1971–1977).

H.R. 3687[edit]

U2 singer Bono said on live television that his 2003 Golden Globe Award was «really, really fucking brilliant!» Despite complaints, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) did not fine the network. In apparent reaction,^[15] on December 8, 2003, Rep. Doug Ose (R-California) introduced House Resolution 3687, the «Clean Airwaves Act»,^[15] in Congress to designate a derivative list of Carlin’s offensive words as profane in the U.S. Code. The stated purpose of the bill was «To amend section 1464 of title 18 of the United States Code, to provide for the punishment of certain profane broadcasts.» In the text of the bill, the words shit, piss, fuck, cunt, asshole, and the phrases cock sucker, mother fucker, and ass hole are specifically listed.^[16] The bill was not enacted.

Subscription services[edit]

The FCC obscenity guidelines do not apply to non-broadcast media such as cable television, satellite TV, or satellite radio.^[17] Whether the FCC or the Department of Justice could be empowered by the Congress to restrict indecent content on cable television without such legislation violating the Constitution has never been settled by a court of law. Since cable television must be subscribed to in order to receive it legally, subscribers who object to the content being delivered may cancel their subscription, an incentive is created for the cable operators to self-regulate (unlike broadcast television, cable television is not legally considered to be «pervasive», nor does it depend on a scarce, government-allocated electromagnetic spectrum; as such, neither of the arguments buttressing the case for broadcast regulation particularly apply to cable television).

Self-regulation by many basic cable networks is undertaken by Standards and Practices (S&P) departments that self-censor their programming because of the pressure put on them by advertisers – also meaning that any basic cable network willing to ignore such pressure could use any of the Seven Dirty Words. All of the words on Carlin’s list have come into common usage in many made-for-cable series and film productions.

See also[edit]

• Communications Decency Act
• Morality in Media
• Profanity
• Watershed (broadcasting)
• The Green Book (BBC)
• «Family Reunion», a song by the American rock band Blink-182 referencing the Seven Dirty Words

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Fairman, Christopher M. (2009). Fuck: Word Taboo and Protecting Our First Amendment Liberties. Sphinx Publishing. ISBN 978-1572487116.

External links[edit]

• FCC explanation of indecent, obscene, and profane broadcasts

The «dirtiest» word in American English?

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TheParser

Posted: Sunday, November 27, 2016 8:17:07 AM

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Back to top hedy mmm

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Back to top TheParser

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Back to top Ashwin Joshi

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Back to top hedy mmm

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No…not if its just a funny phrase, as it was intended….

Back to top Ashwin Joshi

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I am jovial. Puns and plays excepted.

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Posted: Sunday, November 27, 2016 11:30:16 AM

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Posted: Sunday, November 27, 2016 2:46:47 PM

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Posted: Sunday, November 27, 2016 6:01:02 PM

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Back to top Andrew Schultz

Posted: Wednesday, November 30, 2016 3:41:35 AM

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Posted: Wednesday, November 30, 2016 4:22:10 AM

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@$$hole is definitely a dirty word, at least in connotation. Of course, when talking in biological terms, it should not be treated «dirty». But that reference is quite less, I think. In this part of the world, the word and its translation in Indian language(s) is considered to be profanity. But I cant comment on whether this is THE DIRTIEST word.
Of late, I have heard this word being used frequently, in jokes, on some TV shows and ads, in movies, and even in conversations of the English speaking fraternity of this land (although English is a foreign language here).

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Posted: Wednesday, November 30, 2016 4:22:32 AM

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Posted: Wednesday, November 30, 2016 10:39:44 AM

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Must be one of Trump’s ancestors!

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Posted: Wednesday, November 30, 2016 11:29:32 AM

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Posted: Thursday, December 1, 2016 8:22:23 AM

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Posted: Friday, December 2, 2016 6:47:29 AM

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Posted: Friday, December 2, 2016 9:02:00 AM

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Posted: Saturday, December 3, 2016 8:15:07 AM

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Posted: Sunday, December 4, 2016 10:29:40 AM

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Posted: Sunday, December 4, 2016 10:38:50 AM

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Back to top Lotje1000

Posted: Monday, December 5, 2016 2:45:06 AM

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Back to top Kirill Vorobyov

Posted: Monday, December 5, 2016 6:04:43 AM

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Back to top Drag0nspeaker

Posted: Monday, December 5, 2016 6:27:39 AM

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Back to top Ashwin Joshi

Posted: Thursday, December 8, 2016 10:42:30 AM

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No word, by itself, is dirty. Your mind gets dirty when you interpret it in your own brainy thoughts.

Back to top MelissaMe

Posted: Thursday, December 8, 2016 12:05:06 PM

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