expletive

noun

ˈek-splə-tiv How to pronounce expletive (audio)
Definition of expletivenext
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

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of expletive Trump used expletives to convey his disapproval of Israel’s plans, which threatened to upend negotiations with Iran. — Kevin Liptak, CNN Money, 2 June 2026 Videos circulating on social media showed drones repeatedly striking the facility, sending large fireballs upward - and expletives tumbling out of many a Russian mouth. — Charles Maynes, NPR, 18 June 2026 Chaos erupted after activist and opponent to Henyard Jedidiah Brown called the former supervisor an expletive, leading both Woods and Henyard to enter the melee. — Olivia Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 22 June 2026 Applying frosting is one of the few things that cannot be said to be a subset of Haaland’s métier; after tossing his balky piping bag aside in frustration, the Norseman issued an expletive that was deemed bleep-worthy by Fox’s Standards & Practices crew. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 26 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for expletive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expletive
  1. curse
  2. swear
  3. language
  4. profanity
  5. epithet
  6. vulgarism
  7. cuss
Noun
  • Brazil’s European curse at the World Cup continues thanks to Norway’s biggest star.
    — Andy Clayton, New York Daily News, 5 July 2026
  • Not obsessed One Wish Willow Nikki, but actual Nikki, now awoken from her curse when Bear dies.
    — Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Definition of curse
Noun
  • Why fill with swears a show that might otherwise have been appointment viewing for the whole family?
    — Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 31 May 2026
  • The event finds more than 20,000 people participating in an annual bar crawl throughout the city while dressed in their best holiday attire, tackiest Santa Claus costumes, and ugliest Christmas swears.
    — Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2026
Definition of swear
Noun
  • In a world order in rupture, international law remains the one language power still has to answer to.
    — Alain Berset, Time, 6 July 2026
  • Although it is celebrated primarily in Latin, Lauer said the language is only part of its appeal.
    — Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 6 July 2026
Definition of language
Noun
  • The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations described the threats as two profanity-laced, threatening audio messages left for the center.
    — Paula Wethington, CBS News, 30 June 2026
  • The couple’s relationship began with a friendship bracelet and a podcast shout-out in July 2023, and by September Swift was screaming profanities in support of her new favorite football player.
    — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 30 June 2026
Definition of profanity
Noun
  • Since construction at the Eagle Rock site — so nicknamed after a decrepit colonnade — first stalled in 2008, the only thing that accumulated faster than the garbage and graffiti were the epithets from outraged community members.
    — Ryan Steven Green, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026
  • The epithet is not a concession (the database of Trumpian apologies has yet to receive any inputs).
    — Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 10 June 2026
Definition of epithet
Noun
  • As the Oxford English Dictionary notes, the expression not hardly is considered a vulgarism.
    — NR Editors, National Review, 16 Apr. 2020
  • The British cringed over new American accents, coinages and vulgarisms.
    — Time, Time, 11 June 2019
Definition of vulgarism
Noun
  • He’d just been followed down a country highway by an angry mob, which screamed cusses and gave him the finger.
    — Chris Smith, Vanity Fair, 11 May 2026
  • 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
Definition of cuss

Browse Nearby Words

explanatory
expletive
expletives
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Cite this Entry

“Expletive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expletive. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on expletive

Nglish: Translation of expletive for Spanish Speakers

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