Profanity, whether or not spoken in frustration or pleasure, is a common type of expressive language. Whereas it’s widespread throughout all cultures and languages, perceptions of its use fluctuate broadly around the globe.
The phrases chosen, the frequency, and the conditions during which swearing happens fluctuate broadly throughout cultures and areas. Even throughout the U.S., there are noticeable variations in how People use profanity.
As specialists in English courses and using language, in 2022, the staff at Preply surveyed People in cities throughout the nation to be taught the place individuals swear essentially the most. This yr, we determined to survey residents of these cities and be taught extra about how these communication habits have modified.
To realize perception into the cities with the largest potty mouths, we requested respondents what number of occasions they swear on common every day after which calculated the typical by state. Learn on to see how your metropolis ranks among the many relaxation.
Key takeaways
- The common respondent swears 16 occasions per day.
- Kansas Metropolis, MO, Fort Price, TX, and Portland, OR, residents swore essentially the most on common in 2024.
- Raleigh, NC, Virginia Seaside, VA, and Washington, D.C., residents swore the least on common in 2024.
- Portland, OR, residents are the most certainly to swear extra now than they did in 2022.
- Almost 1 in 10 People say they don’t swear in any respect.
- Almost 1 in 5 People say they assume much less of people that curse usually round them.
- “Crap,” “frick/frickin’,” and “dang” are People’ favourite PG filler phrases to make use of instead of swearing.
How People’ swearing habits have modified since 2022
On this yr’s research, we discovered swearing habits have modified in sure elements of the nation as some cities reported a rise in common curse phrase utilization and others reported a lower. Even with these fluctuations, the highest two cities are new to our rankings.
Main the way in which for the largest potty mouths within the U.S. is Kansas Metropolis, MO, with a median of 22.8 curse phrases per day. Second place falls carefully behind with Fort Price, TX, residents reporting a median of twenty-two.4 swears per day.
In third place, we lastly reached a returning metropolis, Portland, OR. In 2022, we discovered residents mentioned about 14 curse phrases per day, however this quantity has grown to 22 on common this yr. Up subsequent, we now have one other returning metropolis that additionally noticed a rise in potty mouths since 2022, Detroit, MI. Residents of town reported a median of 18 swears per day in our unique research, however that quantity has elevated to 21.2.
Not all cities noticed an increase in swearing, nevertheless. Las Vegas, NV, leads the way in which dropping from 30 phrases a day on common in 2022 to 14.3 in 2024. Equally, Columbus, OH, residents went from the primary metropolis for swearing in 2022 with a whopping 36 phrases on common to seventh place this yr at 20.4.
Total, we found almost 2 in 5 People swear 10 or extra occasions a day on common. When analyzed by age, youthful generations swear extra on common. And males are likely to have larger potty mouths than ladies within the U.S.
When People swear essentially the most
Some individuals curse recurrently as a part of their communication model, whereas others solely let curses slip out in sure conditions. After studying the place individuals swear essentially the most, we turned our consideration to when.
From stubbing a toe to dropping a telephone on their face, unintentional self-injury has induced 94% of People to curse. Shut behind, 90% of individuals say their language will get extra “colourful” when complaining about one thing.
The third most typical scenario that results in cursing is street rage. Think about what occurs if you drive down the street, having fun with some music, and one other automobile flies up subsequent to you after which cuts you off, slamming on its brakes. When you’re prone to inform them off, then you might be among the many 87% of people that say they’re most certainly to swear when expressing street rage.
Receiving unhealthy information, arguing with somebody, and making a joke comply with behind on our checklist claiming fourth, fifth, and sixth place, respectively. Wrapping up our checklist in seventh place, we found that 55% of individuals are most certainly to swear when receiving excellent news.
Along with these conditions, we needed to be taught which particular locations People have let these phrases slip or the individuals with whom People are likely to let this language run freely.
Whereas presumably acceptable in some households, we discovered that almost two-thirds of People admit they’ve cursed on the dinner desk. Equally, almost 3 in 4 People admit they’ve cursed at work and one other 1 in 6 say they’ve cursed in a spot of worship.
As for individuals, 1 in 2 individuals have sworn in entrance of youngsters whereas 56% of individuals have cursed in entrance of their elders. Maybe that is why greater than a 3rd of People who swear say their dad and mom criticize them for the way a lot they curse.
People’ favourite swear phrase substitutions
Typically within the warmth of the second, we’d like a phrase or phrase to specific our frustration however don’t essentially need or really feel the necessity to swear. That is when PG filler phrases come into play. You understand, the phrases that may be mentioned in a PG-rated film, but when it was an R-rated movie, we all know the language can be a bit extra “colourful.”
So with this in thoughts, we requested survey respondents what their go-to substitutions are. Rather more tame than its relative starting with the letter “S,” People’ favourite PG filler phrase is “crap.” Up subsequent, “frick/frickin’” claims the quantity two spot, adopted by “dang” in third. Whereas decrease on the checklist, a few of our private favorites embody, “dagnabbit,” “goshdarn,” and “barnacles.”
We found these filler phrases are mostly used as an alternative of cursing when in entrance of youngsters, in public, and whereas People are at work, maybe in an try and be well mannered towards others. Nonetheless, these could also be extra generally utilized by the almost 1 in 10 individuals who say they don’t swear in any respect.
Study greater than a colourful language with Preply
Whether or not swearing is suitable is dependent upon context. Whereas some elements of the nation might view it as a typical facet of speaking, others might view it as offensive, relying on the place or with whom you’re talking. The truth is, we discovered greater than two-fifths of People say it’s by no means acceptable to curse in public. This isn’t restricted to the U.S., nevertheless, as using profanity is frowned upon amongst many cultures.
As a pacesetter in language studying, we at Preply, know the way necessary understanding cultural nuances are when studying a brand new language. So in case you are trying to diversify your language abilities, you possibly can depend on our knowledgeable tutors to show you the phrases you wish to be taught, whereas additionally making certain you already know when it’s acceptable to make use of them.
Whether or not you need to pursue on-line Spanish courses or on-line French programs, our staff is right here that can assist you obtain your language studying objectives. Get began at the moment by discovering a language tutor that matches your schedule and finances.
Methodology
On this research, we got down to find out how People’ cursing habits have modified since 2022. To do that, we surveyed residents of the most important U.S. cities and requested how usually they curse, who they curse at most, once they curse essentially the most, in the event that they use PG filler phrases and extra. To find out the frequency, we requested respondents what number of curse phrases they use each day on common after which calculated the typical variety of phrases utilized in every state. We then ranked states from essentially the most to least curse phrases used.
After discovering the general standing of cursing in 2024, we then appeared again at our 2022 research and in contrast the variety of curse phrases used each day in every metropolis. Two cities from the unique survey weren’t included on this research on account of an absence of respondents, El Paso, TX, and San Jose, CA. Moreover, we added 18 new cities to this yr’s report.