as in curse
a disrespectful or indecent word or expression
unleashed a slew of expletives upon losing the tennis match
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of expletive
Garcia responds to the officer using expletives.
—
Shaquille Brewster, NBC news, 16 Jan. 2026
Another protest in California on Tuesday saw agitators burning an American flag and shouting expletives through a megaphone.
—Anders Hagstrom , Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 15 Jan. 2026
The whole issue of award show expletives came to the Supreme Court twice, the last time in 2012, when the justices struck down fines on Fox Television Stations over expletives uttered by Cher and Nicole Richie during the Billboard Music Awards, as well as nudity that aired on ABC’s NYPD Blue.
—Peter White, Deadline, 11 Jan. 2026
In October, a controversial video leaked in which Alex can be heard using expletives and berating his younger sister during a rehearsal.
—Jenna Ryu, SELF, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for expletive
Shaquille Brewster, NBC news, 16 Jan. 2026
Another protest in California on Tuesday saw agitators burning an American flag and shouting expletives through a megaphone.
—Anders Hagstrom , Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 15 Jan. 2026
The whole issue of award show expletives came to the Supreme Court twice, the last time in 2012, when the justices struck down fines on Fox Television Stations over expletives uttered by Cher and Nicole Richie during the Billboard Music Awards, as well as nudity that aired on ABC’s NYPD Blue.
—Peter White, Deadline, 11 Jan. 2026
In October, a controversial video leaked in which Alex can be heard using expletives and berating his younger sister during a rehearsal.
—Jenna Ryu, SELF, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for expletive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expletive
Noun
-
In the preview, it was mentioned that Leon has something called the Umbrella curse.—
Destiny Jackson,
Deadline,
26 Jan. 2026
-
In the 2002 comedy, McAdams plays a catty teen who's turned into, yep, Saturday Night Live alum Schneider, via a curse.—
Raechal Shewfelt,
Entertainment Weekly,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
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If accumulation is the issue, Giaquinto swears by the five-second and five-year rules.—
Avery Newmark,
AJC.com,
14 Jan. 2026
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In both The Wire and 25th Hour, Whitlock uttered his catchphrase swear.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
31 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Each class is a one- hour adventure of hearing and speaking another language.—
Kris Slugg,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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Its sequel Dhurandhar 2 is scheduled for theatrical release March 19, 2026, in five languages — Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam — expanding significantly beyond the original's Hindi-only strategy.—
Hannah Abraham,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Sanders also bars profanity outside the meeting room and stressed the importance of being respectful of women.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
28 Jan. 2026
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Sunday, the robber came up to a 23-year-old passenger on the train at the North/Clybourn station on the Near North Side, and yelled profanities at the passenger before punching him and taking his personal property, police said.—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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In the right-wing imagination, these women are acting like harpies — an epithet often seen online — when they’re supposed to be helpmeets.—
Michelle Goldberg,
Mercury News,
20 Jan. 2026
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When the time came for Alan Cumming to cease deliberations, Michael was reduced to sputtering epithets in random sequences.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
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As the Oxford English Dictionary notes, the expression not hardly is considered a vulgarism.—
NR Editors,
National Review,
16 Apr. 2020
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The British cringed over new American accents, coinages and vulgarisms.—
Time,
Time,
11 June 2019
Noun
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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
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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
Cite this Entry
“Expletive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expletive. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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