dirty word

dirty word

A word, phrase, or concept considered taboo or that is no longer approved of; something that has the potential to cause the same offense that an obscenity would. Ever since Jason won the lottery, he considers "work" to be a dirty word. When it comes to politics, "tax increases" might as well be a dirty word.
See also: dirty, word
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

dirty word

 
1. a swearword; an obscene or blasphemous word; a four-letter word. You are not allowed to use dirty words in your school essays. My aunt is offended by the use of dirty words.
2. something that is disliked or disapproved of. Since Tom broke off his engagement, his name is a dirty word in the village. Socialism is a dirty word in that house.
See also: dirty, word
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

a dirty word

COMMON If something is a dirty word to someone, they disapprove of it and reject it. At the root of the company's problems was the misplaced belief that good products sell themselves. Marketing was a dirty word with them. Wolfe asks why `feminism' has become a dirty word, even among women.
See also: dirty, word
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

a dirty ˈword

a thing or an idea that somebody finds unpleasant or offensive: Work is a dirty word to these lazy kids.
See also: dirty, word
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

dirty word

n. a curse word; an informal word concerned with sex or excrement. Some kid got the microphone and yelled a dirty word into it.
See also: dirty, word
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
See also:
  • a dirty word
  • (as) sure as eggs (is eggs)
  • only Nixon could go to China
  • a penny for them
  • eggs is eggs
  • great minds
  • great minds think alike
  • a word to the wise
  • be twiddling your thumbs
References in periodicals archive
Far from being a dirty word, it needs to be a part of companies' strategic goals - led by the chief executive, not a diversity and inclusion officer.
DEBATE
This issue contains the following articles: (1) The M Word: "Marketing" Has Changed from a Dirty Word to a Buzzword in Higher Education (Jon Marcus); (2) A Contrarian View of the Testing Industry: FairTest Argues that Standardized Tests Are a Poor Predictor of Student Success (Robert A.
National CrossTalk. Volume 14, Number 3, Summer 2006
Sarkozy that "liberalism" is not a dirty word, so defensive he was about being labeled a "liberal." "What I mean is that I do not read Hayek before reaching a political conclusion," he replied.
The coming Chirac-Sarkozy prize fight: but will France when it's over be left with any hope for the prize of genuine reform?
When used in the context of higher education, "productivity" sounds like a dirty word. After all, as the argument goes, this isn't a widget-making business.
On Becoming a Productive University: Strategies for Reducing Costs and Increasing Quality in Higher Education
Up to now, it's been an undesirable reference (even a dirty word) to vendors addressing the SAN segment, where we're used to thinking of products as specialized and expensive.
SMB storage market welcomes the big boys
All was going well, lots of amicable talk about development and business, then someone said the dirty word: pisco.
Latin Trade Bravo X: the 10th Annual Bravo Business Awards: think you know what happens at the Bravo Awards? Guess again
For a long time, 'legacy' has been a dirty word. Now that customers can incorporate the future into their legacy applications, it's time to embrace the legacy."
Unisys 'future-proofs' mainframe legacy applications
He admits to feeling that he betrayed journalism by crossing over to flakdom, at least initially, and devotes an entire chapter to public relations as a dirty word. But during his years in PR, Willard has developed deep respect for public relations done right.
It takes a good Flak to know one, and it takes a journey to get there
For some people, forgiveness is a very dirty word indeed.'
The F-word
Has he stopped to consider that we have no steel industry, no aluminum industry, a declining auto industry and fewer jobs because the plaintiffs bar and anti-capitalism initiatives have made profit a dirty word and unobtainable.
Who's really at fault?
Profitability was not, for them, a dirty word. They looked to quality management primarily as a means of improving profitability.
Quality management isn't as tough as it looks
LaRusso also worked on several screenplays, including a rewrite of Saturday Night Fever, and spent 12 years in Los Angeles in the '80s and '90s before deciding that "art is a dirty word in L.A." and returning to New Jersey.
Playwright Louis LaRusso II died in February in New Jersey of cancer at the age of 67. (In Memoriam)
A few years ago, I was loath to get involved in politics, as if it were a dirty word! Well, that was then.
The politics of health care
"Giclee is becoming a dirty word; it has become the generic term for almost anything that has been printed digitally, whether the printing took place on a huge machine or on the cheapest home color printer," said Roe.
Rosenstiel's introduces new print process
"For some plant operators, maintenance is a dirty word," Himes commented.
Clean & healthy: keeping a paper recycling plant clean goes hand-in-hand with keeping it safe. (2002 Paper Recycling Supplement)