Why do we have words that we “aren’t supposed to say”? What decides what makes a swear word a bad word?
It can’t be meaning, because “poop” is fine and
“shit” is not. Or “sex” or “ruin” is fine, but “fuck” is not.
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Words themselves have only a defined meaning by the specific culture hearing that word. In the US, for example, “fag” is considered derogatory due to how it was used historically. And before it became associated with its derogatory meaning, it had a completely innocent definition. However in the UK (Europe in general) the word “fag” is most often associated with the word “cigarette.” You can have some pretty funny, albeit, awkward scenarios that arise from that.
Context is the other major factor at play. Though it takes second priority to historical meaning. “Shit” in different context means very different things. “I have shit to do today” vs “I have to take a shit” vs “What the shit was that?”
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