A euphemism is a mild or pleasant word or phrase that is used instead of one that is unpleasant or offensive.

// The HR department advises using the euphemism “let go” instead of saying that someone was fired.

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“The new model supposedly has fewer hallucinations—a common euphemism for when AI models produce inaccurate or misleading results.” — Antonio Pequeño IV, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2025

There are times when circumstances call for a gentler or pleasanter word or phrase rather than the most direct one. Such words and phrases are known as euphemisms, with the word euphemism coming, fittingly, from the Greek word eúphēmos, meaning “sounding good.” Powder room, for example, is one of many euphemisms in the English language for a lavatory, aka the place where one goes when one requires the use of a toilet and sink. (Actually, we are hard pressed to find a non-euphemistic word for such a room; like powder room, the terms bathroom, restroom, and washroom all tiptoe around the often-primary reason one has for visiting it.) Similarly love handles is a euphemism for fatty bulges along the sides of one’s body at the waist, though as everyone who’s ever snuggled up to a loved one endowed with such bulges knows, love handles is a much better descriptor for what makes a person extra snuggly.