Euphemism （委婉）
1. On the 14th of March, at a quarter to three in the afternoon, the greatest living thinker cead to think. He had been left alone for scarcely two minutes, and when we came back we found him in the armchair, peacefully gone go sleep—but forever.
3月14日下午2点45分，当代最伟大的思想家停止思想了。让他一个人留在房里总共不过2分钟，等我们再进去的时候，便发现他在安乐椅上安静地睡着了——但已经是永远地睡着了。
2. I am afraid she can’t act that part---she is a little on the plump side.
恐怕她扮演不了那个角色——她有些发福。
英语Euphemism 一词源于希腊语 euphemismos, 意即good speech。
Definition：
A figure of speech by which an unpleasant or offensive thing is described or referred to by a milder term. (Chambers English Dictionary)
委婉语是以较文雅、悦耳或温婉的说法来代替粗野、刺耳或直露的说法。
（Indirectness ）
Function：
委婉语能借助语音、语法、词汇及其他修辞手段，得体地表达生活中那些使人尴尬、惹人不快、招人厌恶或令人恐惧的事物。其主要修辞作用是在语言表达上减少刺激性和敏感性，从而起到一种缓冲或美化作用。因此， Euphemism又被叫做： sweet talk / gilded words /cosmetic words甜言蜜语 / 镀金词 / 化妆词
Classification:
英语委婉语数量众多，其运用范围涉及到社会生活诸领域，大致可概括为一下四个方面：
1.有关疾病、残疾、衰老、死亡的委婉语
2.有关人体、排泄、性爱、生育的委婉语
3.有关社会职业、社会问题的委婉语
4.有关政治、经济、军事、外交的委婉语
To trace the beginning of euphemisms, we can’t neglect “taboo”.
1.有关疾病、残疾、衰老、死亡的委婉语
a.疾病：
look off colour气色不好，实指身体有病
under the weather在恶劣天气条件下，实指健康欠佳
social dia社会病，实指艾滋病
b.残疾：
disabled, handicapped, inconvenienced
hard of hearing, auditory-impaired (听觉损伤的）
sight-deprived, visually retarded (视力上有障碍的）
c.衰老
advanced in age
past one’s prime (已过壮年）
golden age
sunt years
nior citizen（资深公民）
the longer living
d.死亡：
表示“死亡”的英语委婉语十分丰富，多达上百条。如：
go west, be at rest, be asleep in the Arms of God, go the way all flesh( 走众生之路 ), join one’s ancestors, return to dust, breathe one’s last, pass away, run one’s race ( 跑完自己
的赛程 ), be no longer with us
再如，关于死的委婉语中、西方都比比皆是。而且很多在英汉语中都能找到对应词，如长眠---go to sleep; 没了---no more;弃世---abandon the world; 了结尘缘---pay the debt of nature; 去极乐世界---go to Nirvana； 但也有一些委婉语找不到自己的对应词。中国封建社会等级森严，等级制在语言上的体现就是不同阶层的人要用不同的语言来描述。据《礼仪》记载：天子死曰崩，诸侯死曰薨，大夫死曰卒，士死不禄，庶死曰死。但在英语中有哪一个词能与“薨”对应呢？
由此可见，委婉语与文化密切相关。它的产生、存在和发展是社会的道德、政治、风俗等现象的反映，充满着丰富的文化内涵。委婉语的文化特性提醒我们：对文化背景知识的掌握了解对于正确地解读委婉语至关重要。
2.有关人体、排泄、性爱、生育的委婉语
a.人体：
in a state of nature(处于自然状态）
in one’s birthday suit
b.排泄：
pass air( 排气), make a noi, wash one’s hands, answer the call of nature
c.性爱：
have relations with, go to bed with, do it, live together, sleep around
d. 生育：
eating for two(吃双份饭 ),
swallow a watermelon ed,
in the family way（家居打扮的）
3.有关社会职业、社会问题的委婉语
a.职业：
英语里有借委婉语拔高、美化职业的倾向，尤其是从事卑微职业者，更是乐此不疲.
gardener---land architect（风景建筑师）
houwife---domestic engineer（家庭工程师）
shoe maker--shoetrician（鞋靴专家）
garbage cleaner---garbologist(垃圾学专家）
barber---tonsorial art , hair-dressing parlor
undertaker ---funeral director
highway man --- knight of the road
prostitute --- shady lady, call girl, pavement princess, streetwalker, hostess，a lady of the town
b.犯罪
to work the hole（指在地铁里行窃）
to walk away with(指顺手牵羊）
如面对罪犯本人，法官可直接宣称“You have been ntenced to five years in prison.” 但如果友人将这一事实转告罪犯亲属时，他会婉转地说 “He has been nt to the big hou.”或 “He is now living at the government’s expen.”
如教师当着家长的面评价学生的品行、学业成绩时，既要如实反映情况，又要顾及学生心理承受能力，还要保住家长的面子，不得不采用委婉的表达方式，因而常使用如下的说法：
The student is a bit slow for his age.不直说 The student is stupid.
I’m sorry to find your son an underachiever for some cours.不直说 Your son failed many major cours.
He’s sure to go far if he is highly motivated.不直说 The student is lazy.
He needs to learn how to adhere to rules and standards of fair play.不直说 The student cheats.
4.有关政治、经济、军事、外交的委婉语
war---conflict, police action
bombing---pacification of the enemy
bankrupt---restructure
an underdeveloped nation (低度发达国家，实际指贫穷落后国家）
the poor--- the disadvantaged, the needy, be in debt, be in difficulties
在现代西方社会，poor（贫穷）是个可怕的字眼，贫穷意味着糟糕的生存状况、低下的社会地位。为了面子的需要， “poor”的一系列委婉语应运而生：disadvantaged, deprived, underprivileged, negatively privileged and so on. 这是因为disadvantaged 与 poor 意义上有根本区别。Poor 是对一个人生活状况和社会地位的描述，disadvantaged 则意指此人的
状况不是自己造成的，社会对他的不幸要负责。以下是一篇描述一年轻女子悲惨生活的短文，里面运用了很多poor的委婉语：
“I ud to think I was poor. Then they told me I wasn’t poor, I was needy. Then they said it was lf-defeating to think of mylf as needy, that I was culturally deprived. Then they told me deprived was a bad image, that I was underprivileged. Then they told me that underprivileged was overud, that I was disadvantaged. I still don’t have a dime but I have a great vocabulary.”( Harper Dictionary of Contemporary Usage)
Examples:
委婉语在口语和书面语里都时有运用，不可或缺，这是因为在日常生活和社会生活中都有不少人们不愿直接提及的事物，这就需要借助委婉语来表达。以下为一些实际用例，部分出自名家笔下，堪称巧用英语委婉的典范。
