as in curse
a disrespectful or indecent word or expression was reprimanded for teaching his little brother cusswords

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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 cussword This wasn't an in-the-moment cussword thrown down in the middle of a passionate, blow out fight. Ashley Iaconetti, Cosmopolitan, 30 Aug. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cussword
Noun
  • The last of the old curses and the purest championship drought in the sport.
    Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
  • After its patriarch’s mysterious death, the pharma family falls prey to an ancient curse.
    Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 24 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Feller told Al Jazeera that Chinese employers would have to accommodate non-Mandarin speakers by offering English-language positions and improve work-life balance.
    Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 1 Oct. 2025
  • One of the most prominent Mexican actresses of her generation, Notni led Amazon MGM’s 2024 reboot of Zorro and recently wrapped Day One, a Spanish-language Amazon series which releases later this year.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Don’t pretend the cure for coarse speech is a swear jar.
    Eric Preven, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
  • 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
Noun
  • 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
  • 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
Noun
  • Most of the messages were filled with expletives.
    Hope Karnopp, jsonline.com, 25 Sep. 2025
  • Ronson politely demurred the money twice until Combs barked at him with an expletive to take the money.
    Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 18 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • This story references profanity and may be offensive to some readers.
    Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
  • Her closing line was audible in the room and in unedited online footage, though the broadcast censored the profanity.
    Megan Cartwright, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025
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
Noun
  • Use chapter titles or epithets to set up what’s coming.
    JD Barker, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 2025
  • On his next broadcast, Maher convened guests like Ice Cube and Michael Eric Dyson to call him to task for using the epithet and to explore the issues about its us.
    Brian Steinberg, Variety, 19 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Cussword.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cussword. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.

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