four-letter words

noun

plural of four-letter word
as in curses
a disrespectful or indecent word or expression clapped her hands over the toddler's ears so he wouldn't hear the four-letter word

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for four-letter words
  1. curses
  2. languages
  3. swears
Noun
  • The cumulative impression of Alice that the book leaves is of someone moving serenely through life, meeting fond blessings and awful curses both with the same calm equanimity.
    — Ian Penman, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
  • The woods could be hiding places of witches and sorcerers, disguised as the old and feeble, but capable of summoning wonder and terrors, charms as well as curses.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 July 2026
Definition of curses
Noun
  • Sadhguru is also a bestselling author whose videos stream in 35 languages on social media.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The Bible is widely read and loved in spite of the fact that most people don’t speak any of the languages in which it was originally written.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of languages
Noun
  • 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
  • Kennedy could be heard hurling swears at the Swedish team.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 23 Feb. 2026
Definition of swears
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.

Browse Nearby Words

four-letter word
four-letter words
four-poster
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Cite this Entry

“Four-letter words.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/four-letter%20words. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

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