as in curse
a disrespectful or indecent word or expression
unleashed a slew of expletives upon losing the tennis match
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of expletive
He was also heard muttering expletives down the stretch, visibly battling the heat and pressure.
—
Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Aug. 2025
Their female anime character companion removes clothing as a reward for positive engagement from users and responds with expletives if offended or rejected by users.
—Annie Chestnut Tutor, Boston Herald, 18 Aug. 2025
Some people don’t give a (expletive).
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 16 Aug. 2025
The 3-2 vote to remove Councilmember Iva Walton as mayor came during a nearly five-hour meeting that descended into chaos, with expletives and insults exchanged among council members, city staff and other attendees.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for expletive
Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Aug. 2025
Their female anime character companion removes clothing as a reward for positive engagement from users and responds with expletives if offended or rejected by users.
—Annie Chestnut Tutor, Boston Herald, 18 Aug. 2025
Some people don’t give a (expletive).
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 16 Aug. 2025
The 3-2 vote to remove Councilmember Iva Walton as mayor came during a nearly five-hour meeting that descended into chaos, with expletives and insults exchanged among council members, city staff and other attendees.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for expletive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expletive
Noun
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Some monks who were once forced off the island put a curse on it and everyone who ever took anything away from it.—
Sara Stridsberg
September 15,
Literary Hub,
15 Sep. 2025
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When her curse begins to affect her physically, Amada travels to the Abyss to seek a cure from the Grand Warlock.—
Mia Sosa,
PEOPLE,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Taylor and Hinkle swear by bonnets, while Royal and others recommend tying longer styles into a loose bun or braid before wrapping.—
Larry Stansbury,
Essence,
4 Sep. 2025
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These men started talking to us, saying stuff to us, but Ivan just opened her mouth and let loose a raging stream of swears and curses.—
Alex Jovanovich,
Artforum,
1 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The usual way to craft programming code entails the handwriting of source code, often using a conventional programming language such as Python, C++, and other popular coding languages.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Having sat with Jones in their home studio, Ronson understood the language of digital sound meters, tape machines and knobs and faders, as well as the importance of reading the room.—
Melissa Ruggieri,
USA Today,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
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If one employee spots profanity or offensive language in an application, then it is sent to another employee, and possibly moved up the chain.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
10 Sep. 2025
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Ellis then claimed that Cardi cut her face with a fingernail and spat on her while yelling profanity and racial slurs at Ellis.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Then there was the woman who was Speaker of the House and would walk around talking to herself, screaming out epithets to imaginary people.—
Larry David,
New Yorker,
28 Aug. 2025
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Terrell represented a Black teenager who’d been expelled from a Los Angeles high school for punching a white referee during a football game after the referee allegedly had directed racial epithets at him.—
Peter Elkind,
ProPublica,
27 Aug. 2025
Noun
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As the Oxford English Dictionary notes, the expression not hardly is considered a vulgarism.—
NR Editors,
National Review,
16 Apr. 2020
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The British cringed over new American accents, coinages and vulgarisms.—
Time,
Time,
11 June 2019
Noun
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And, when the alarm wails hours before dawn, human cusses of angry protest join the chorus of budget appliances failing before their time.—
Virginia Konchan,
The New Yorker,
30 Sep. 2024
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My grandmother extended a ladder up into this tough old cuss of a tree and climbed up, at some risk, to pick the bulging fruit.—
Jim Meddleton,
The Christian Science Monitor,
1 May 2024
Cite this Entry
“Expletive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expletive. Accessed 19 Sep. 2025.
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