--- title: Soft words for hard things: rudeness and swearing — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «Soft words for hard things: rudeness and swearing», a lesson of the euphemisms course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: Grown-ups often say rude things in very polite clothes, and the polite words are a warning sign. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Euphemisms](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/) / Soft words for hard things: rudeness a… # Soft words for hard things: rudeness and swearing Lesson 40 of the euphemisms course of Mova's primary school: 26 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/). - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/1/) — Grown-ups often say rude things in very polite clothes, and the polite words are a warning sign. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/2/) — "With all due respect" sounds respectful, but it nearly always comes just before "you are wrong". - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/3/) — "No offence, but" comes just before something offensive. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/4/) — Office emails have their own polite rudeness: "per my last email" means "you did not read what I already wrote", and news reports call a shouting match "a frank exchange of views". - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/5/) — There are also rude gestures with jokey names, like "the one-finger salute", which is no salute at all but an insult made with the middle finger. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/6/) — To understand polite rudeness, ignore the kind words and listen for what comes after them and how it is said. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/7/) — "Go take a running jump" means go away; it is a British way of telling someone off. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/8/) — "The one-finger salute" is a jokey name for raising the middle finger as an insult. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/9/) — "Flip the bird" means raise the middle finger as an insult; it is American slang. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/10/) — "The two-fingered salute" is a jokey British name for the rude V-sign made with two fingers, palm turned inwards. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/11/) — "Shut the front door!" is an American jokey cry of surprise, a cleaned-up form of a ruder phrase; it has nothing to do with doors. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/12/) — "With all due respect" usually means "I disagree with you, or I think you are wrong". - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/13/) — "With the greatest respect" usually means "I think you are quite wrong"; in British speech it can mean "you are a fool". - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/14/) — "I hear what you're saying" often means "I disagree and I will not change my mind"; it is British and polite. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/15/) — "Bless your heart" in the American South can mean "you poor foolish thing", hiding pity or scorn behind sweet words. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/16/) — "Not to be rude, but" warns that what comes next is rude. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/17/) — "No offence, but" warns that what comes next will offend. - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/18/) — "Per my last email" means "you did not read my email properly"; it is office jargon. - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/19/) — "As previously mentioned" means "I already told you this"; it is office jargon. - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/20/) — "Let's agree to disagree" means "let's stop arguing, because I will not change my mind". - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/21/) — "I'll bear it in mind" often means "I will ignore what you just said"; it is polite British speech. - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/22/) — "A frank exchange of views" means an angry argument; it is the language of officials and news reports. - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/23/) — "A robust discussion" means a heated argument; it is official language. - [24](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/24/) — "Not a people person" means unfriendly or rude to others; it is said kindly. - [25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/25/) — "Interesting choice" said about clothes, food or a decision usually means "a bad choice". - [26](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/40-with-all-due-respect/26/) — "A word in your ear" means a quiet telling-off in private; it is British. - ← previous: [Soft words for hard things: rudeness and swearing](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/39-pardon-my-french/) - next →: [Olympiad: the euphemism detective ★★★](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/41-olympiad-euphemism-detective/) - ↑ back to [Euphemisms](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/)