Minced oath

A minced oath is a pseudo-profanity or euphemism used in place of what might be considered profane or blasphemous language. The phrase minced oath dates from the early 17th century, before this during the 15th century, it was generally known as an idle oath. The Puritan influence was largely responsible for the coining of such minced oaths. Early editions of Shakespeare were duly screened and so-called profanities removed. The English language is full of such minced oaths such as gosh, gee, blimey etc and many of them are featured in this database.