October 24, 2001

3:08 AM

When I got tired of saying the word Fuck all the time, I switched over to the word Fuckity. When my friends pointed out that perhaps Fuckity was a bit twee, I was in a deep funk, until one day, when I discovered Roger's Profanisaurus - the definitive thesaurus of all things Scatalogical, Sexual and Rude. Zuffled lately? Gone whitewater wristing? Expand your vocabulary!

Link via Scott
posted by kristin (26 comments total)

Wow, what a resource! I'm not sure it's helpful right now, given all the animosity going on, but it's definitely back-burner stuff. I collect slang dictionaries, but the best single paperback volume, apart from Eric Partridge's classic, is Geoffrey Hughes's Swearing, a 1998 Penguin which puts all these wonderful inventions into context. It also has the distinct advantage of being far too rude to be quotable. Thanks, kristin.
posted by MiguelCardoso at 3:36 AM on October 24, 2001

Good grief, I guess I need to rethink my nom de plume!
posted by wassock at 4:17 AM on October 24, 2001

I wouldn't use it as a resource too much, Miguel. I think those naughty boys at Viz make most of them up.
posted by Summer at 5:22 AM on October 24, 2001

Haha, I skipped straight to the "F's" and I gotta say, whether they made it up or not, "furburger" is a pretty funny word. :p
posted by Totally80sGirl at 5:40 AM on October 24, 2001

Eek! I couldn't find it on Amazon.com when I was writing that last post (all of 2 seconds ago), but I just did--have any of you heard of the book called "the 'F' word"? It's a pretty interesting read....kind of along the same lines as this site, but not nearly as funny.
posted by Totally80sGirl at 5:45 AM on October 24, 2001

Furburger is definitely a word, though I haven't heard it since about 1978.
posted by rodii at 5:46 AM on October 24, 2001

Is Viz actually available in the States?

Roger Mellie (the Man on the Telly) was always one of my favourite strips, along with Finbarr Saunders (and his double entendres) and the Fat Slags. I haven't read Viz in about 10 years..
posted by salmacis at 5:54 AM on October 24, 2001

Ahh. Roger Mellie's Profanisaurus has been a staple of schoolboy humour since ... well, since I was at school. The great thing is you can get away with dropping many of his more creative terms into the most polite of group conversations. As long as you keep a straight face most people will remain none the wiser, while anyone who's more acquainted with the lingo will likely burst into laughter leaving them to do the explaining. Cruel, I know, but usually very funny.

I would also wholeheartedly recommend Jonathon Green's "Big Book of Filth" for a reasonably exhaustive catalogue of vulgarities covering the last few centuries.
posted by dlewis at 5:54 AM on October 24, 2001

I haven't read Viz in about 10 years

Has anyone?
posted by Markb at 6:00 AM on October 24, 2001

Finbarr Saunders and his Double Entendres was certainly a classic, salmacis. Now that you mention it, I remember the other day when I was walking down the street this gorgeous girl came up to me and asked me for a double entendre. So I gave her one.
posted by dlewis at 6:02 AM on October 24, 2001

Bah. This thing doesn't even include "tea-bagging" or "rough trade" in it. Harldy comprehensive.
posted by ColdChef at 6:06 AM on October 24, 2001

"Harldy"-adj. to be a complete fuckwit as you try to look clever. ex. "Look at that ColdChef, he's harldy a fuckwit."
posted by ColdChef at 6:08 AM on October 24, 2001

Great resource, I'm giggling like a schoolboy. But I wish he provided a bit more etymology. I mean, what is the origin of "bean flicker"?
posted by groundhog at 6:10 AM on October 24, 2001

Wow, the value of this Profanisaurus have gone up, now that I realize Microsoft has taken out all the 'offending words' out of the Word 2000 thesaurus:

"Microsoft's approach regarding the spell checker dictionary and thesaurus is to not suggest words that may have offensive uses or provide offensive definitions for any words."

posted by tamim at 6:11 AM on October 24, 2001

Let's just say that the bean in question is usually small and hard to find, groundhog. Especially if you are male and have indulged in a few pints of beer.
posted by dlewis at 6:19 AM on October 24, 2001

Damn near as good as the dictionary in the back of Pimp: The Story of my Life by Iceberg Slim. 1930's and 40's slang from a guy with a self-proclaimed 165 (or so) IQ. I defy anyone to read that book without having to look in there 3 times per page to figger out what the hell he is talking about. Great book, though.
posted by adampsyche at 6:27 AM on October 24, 2001

Comprehensive or not, it's added "bletherskate" to my vocabulary, which I look forward to grumbling on the subway on many a crowded morning.
posted by BT at 7:07 AM on October 24, 2001

For all you Welsh learners (you'd be surprised...): sexual vocabulary yn y Gymraeg.
posted by ceiriog at 7:16 AM on October 24, 2001

> For all you Welsh learners (you'd be surprised...)

Yes, I would.
posted by pracowity at 8:23 AM on October 24, 2001

The Mother Tongue is an excellent book about the historical development of the English language, including a comprehensive section on profanity. I last read it in high school (1996, I think) but have been considering picking up a copy of my own.
posted by Danelope at 8:47 AM on October 24, 2001

boobs See boobies.
boobies See boobs

Heh.
posted by CrayDrygu at 9:11 AM on October 24, 2001

I don't often get to lord it, but I will in this case.
posted by Frasermoo at 9:17 AM on October 24, 2001

this gorgeous girl came up to me and asked me for a double entendre. So I gave her one.

I think the punch line's supposed to be "So I gave it to her."
posted by kindall at 9:18 AM on October 24, 2001

"But I could only manage one"?
posted by MiguelCardoso at 9:20 AM on October 24, 2001

"So I gave her one" = "So I gave it to her" in British Neanderthal, cf "I wouldn't mind giving that one."
posted by ceiriog at 1:25 PM on October 24, 2001

When I got tired of saying the word Fuck all the time, I switched over to the word Fuckity.

Having spent a fair amount of time in Ireland, I became fond of the word "feck". It seems to be used interchangeably with "fuck", but less intense, with less of a sense of obscenity (you can say it on TV, apparently) and with markedly different origins. It just sounds nicer, too.

Now ... feck off! Feckin' eejits.

(See?!)
posted by chuq at 4:19 PM on October 24, 2001