R. W. Holder Livres

There's an art to not saying what you mean, and A Dictionary Of Euphemisms investigates our all too common tendency to prefer vague or roundabout expressions to words which are blunt, precise, and often disagreeably true. Whey else do we say 'bijou', 'house of ill repute', and 'corporate entertainment', when what we really mean is 'inconveniently small', 'brothel', and 'bribery'? Let A Dictionary of Euphemisms be your guide to the language of prudery, evasion, and deceit. Filled with thousands of quotations, definitions, derivations, and historical explanations, this dictionary offers compulsive browsing combined with essential reference

We often use euphemisms when dealing with taboo or sensitive subjects--we speak of "full-figured" women, we "fudge" on our income tax, we get "cold feet" before our wedding. Here, author Holder celebrates this human tendency to use mild, vague, or roundabout expressions rather than those which are blunt, precise, and true. The dictionary provides definitions, examples, as well as historical explanations where appropriate.--From publisher description