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Excuse my French (Origin)
What Is the Origin of the Saying "Excuse my French"?
The term "excuse my French" means please forgive my swearing. It also appears as "pardon my French."Table of Contents
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Examples of Use:
- Oh, you little b**tard! That hurt. Oh, sorry. Please excuse my French.
- The man is clearly a f**king — excuse my French — idiot!
- Don't be a d*ck, Tony. Pardon my French.
The use of this expression with "French" as a synonym for "swear word" originates from the early 1800s, when the rivalry between England was France was at its height. (It was of course the era of the Napoleonic Wars.) If a person swore in polite company, they would quickly follow up with "excuse my French" as a witty way to apologize for swearing. The idea was that French words were as disagreeable as swear words.
Competing Theory
Another theory suggests that someone who let slip a swear word in polite company would try to pass it off as French by asking for forgiveness for using French. (Detractors of this theory highlight that both parties would always have known that the word was a swear word.)Previous and Next Sayings
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