vulgarism

[ vuhl-guh-riz-uhm ]

noun

1. vulgar behavior or character; vulgarity.
2. a vulgar expression; a word or phrase used only in common colloquial, and especially in coarse, speech.

vulgarism

/ ˈvʌlɡəˌrɪzəm /

noun

1. a coarse, crude, or obscene expression
2. a word or phrase found only in the vulgar form of a language
3. another word for vulgarity

Word History and Origins

Origin of vulgarism¹

First recorded in 1635–45; vulgar + -ism

Example Sentences

The idea of the swing vote is either a vulgarism or a myth — a story we tell ourselves to explain why a justice identified with an ideological bloc occasionally votes the other way.

From Seattle Times

Later, she said, she overheard a patron use a vulgarism to say that there were too many black students in the museum.

From New York Times

Trump huffily called Tlaib’s vulgarism “disgraceful” and “highly disrespectful to the United States of America.”

From New York Times

Mr. Goldberg had a third source, whom he described as “one friend of Trump,” as using a rather different vulgarism to describe Mr. Trump’s foreign policy.

From Washington Times

As Trump spoke, someone in the crowd accused him of not caring about Puerto Rico, using a vulgarism to make the point.

From Seattle Times