Cross―Cultural Contrastive Study of English and Chinese Euphemisms.doc

Cross―Cultural Contrastive Study of English and Chinese Euphemisms 　　Abstract Tmon　linguistic　phenomenon　in　all　languages.　By　using　euphemisms，　people　can　indirectly　and　politely　express　their　ideas，　without　making　the　listeners　feel　awkward　and　unpleasant.　As　a　mirror　of　culture，　the　generation　and　development　of　euphemisms　are　closely　related　to　culture.　Euphemisms　in　English　and　Chinese　are　also　abundant，　but　they　have　both　differences　and　similarities　in　expressions　and　cultural　connotations.　The　cross-cultural　contrastive　study　of　English　and　Chinese　euphemisms　can　help　people　correctly　understand　the　deep　meaning　in　English　and　Cmunications. Key　words：　Euphemisms；　Culture；　Cross-culture；　Contrastive　study WANG　Xiaoling，　ZHANG　Meng，　DONG　Hailin　（2012）.　Cross-Cultural　Contrastive　Study　of　English　and　Chinese　Euphemisms.　Cross-Cultural　Communication，　8（6），　-0.　Available　from：　http：///index.php/ccc/article/view/j.ccc.1923670020120806.1356 DOI：　http：///10.3968/j.ccc.1923670020120806.1356. 1. EUPHEMISM　AND　ITS　RELATION　WITH　CULTURE The　word　“euphemism”　originated　from　a　Latin　word.　Its　prefix　“eu”　means　“good”，　and　“phemism”　means　“speech”，　so　the　word　“euphemism”　literally　means　“word　of　good　omen”.　Routledge　Dictionary　of　Language　and　Linguistics　（2000）　defines　“euphemism”　as　“A　kind　of　expressing　method　which　aims　at　making　people　feel　less　embarrassed　by　using　some　words　with　vague　and　ambiguous　meaning　instead　of　those　which　may　make　people　feel　unpleasant　and　not　respected”. The　generation　of　euphemism　has　its　social　foundation.　Wmunicating　with　others，　people　often　face　the　situation　where　they　can　not　directly　express　what　they　want　to　say，　or　sometimes　a　direct　expression　will　cause　the　listeners　awkward　and　unpleasant.　In　these　cases，　people　tend　to　choose　an　indirect　and　roundabout　way　to　express　their　ideas　and　thoughts，　so　as　to　avoid　the　embarrassment.　With　this　purpose，　o　being. Whereas　the　use　of　euphemisms　is　not　only　a　soci