Methodology 4 Data Collection 6 Data Analysis11 Conclusion 15 Appendix 17

Does the usage of euphemism in daily spoken language of English Azhar, Ahmad Azraf
among Kolej Mara Banting student different between gender?
Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Methodology 4
Data Collection 6
Data Analysis11
Conclusion 15
Appendix 17
1
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Euphemism
“Words are sharper than knife”. Recently, there were many conflicts or arguments that
are inflicted by people that unaware with their language. Inappropriate word can sometimes be
very hurtful and make people to dislike each other. Thus, there is euphemism in English that
allow people to say bad thing in more pleasant manner. A euphemism is a mild and roundabout
word or phrase used in place of one considered painful or offensive 1. Literally, says something in
an intentionally indirect, obscuring or obfuscatory way.
Euphemisms have several functions. Firstly, some people use euphemism to protect and
comfort themselves and others from negative thing. For instance, pass away is a euphemism for
die, and saying pass away to family will sound more polite. Other examples are euphemism for
handicapped person such as special children and mentally challenged. Other function of
euphemism is to hide real bad intention of a person. For example, people can say the need to go
the restroom instead of toilet. Other example is euphemism for cutting the numpr of workers
which is downsizing.
1.2 Background of the experiment
The objective of the experiment is to see which genders of KMB students use more
euphemism in their daily spoken language. From this experiment, I can deduce the relationship
between the characters of man and woman with the usage of euphemism in their daily spoken
language. Next, I would like to investigate the usage of euphemism of people from different
1
Cliffnotes, English Grammar
2
background. In order to achieve this objective, I will compare the usage of euphemism with their
background such as hometowns, parent occupation and usage of English at home.
1.3 Hypothesis
1. It can hypothesise that women use more euphemism than men because I believe women
character are more polite compared to the men. Apart from that, men are straight forward
person where they are less emotional thus they can accept the hard fact of life while
women are more emotional thus they use euphemism to comfort themselves.
2. The usage of euphemism among student living in the city is higher compared to student
living in the suburb or the rural area. This is because they are not exposed to euphemism
during primary schools and even by their parent since their language at home is Malay.
On the other hand, students live in the city use English more frequently.
3
2. Methodology
2.1 Choice of college
After some consideration, I choose Kolej Mara Banting (KMB) as the target school to run the
experiment due to easy access to the student as well as the teacher. Besides that, euphemism is
taught in the Theory of Knowledge (TOK) classes. Hence, all the students in KMB have some
knowledge on euphemism. The key here is to see how often the student used after being taught in
class.
2.2 Choice of student
To run the experiment, I have choosen the Kolej Mara Banting (KMB) students since
they are the professionals of next generation. Since most of them are future doctors, I find that
euphemism is important part in their communicative skills. Doctors have to be polite and
comforting even when they delivered bad news, thus usage of euphemism will be appropriate
and handy. Apart from that, KMB students are the suitable target group because they had be
taught on euphemism in classes and we can see how often they use euphemism in the daily
spoken language. Students are choosen from different gender to see the relationship between
genders and the usage of euphemism in daily spoken language.
4
2.3 The experiment
Two stimuli are prepared where the first one is a role play and the second one is a
questionnaire. For role play, the students are required to play the role of a student is different
situation and use euphemism appropriately. The range of euphemisms and number of students
that used euphemism are recorded to compare the data between man and woman. Then, their
response will be transcribed to be analyse.
Then, the students are then required to answer the questionnaire to evaluate their
knowledge on euphemism. From this questionnaire, I can deduce a relationship between the
knowledge of euphemism and the rate the students use them in daily spoken language. Apart
from that, the background of the students is recorded to evaluate the effect of their background
on their English spoken language.
Limitation of the experiment
1. The role play does not actually represent their rate of euphemism use in their daily
spoken language since they have to act it out. However, I try to reduce the weakness by
preparing situation that is relevant to the daily student lives. Thus we can see the usage f
euphemism among the student daily.
5
3. Data Collection
3.1 Questionnaire
From the questionnaire given to 20 students consist of 10 students for each gender, I
found that generally, most of the students know about euphemism. There are 9 girls and 8 boys
that know euphemism and all 17 students stated that their knowledge on euphemism is just
adequate. There are 3 students from Kolej Mara Banting who never heard about euphemism
before. One of them stated that they never heard the term “euphemism”.
Out of 17 that know euphemism, only 4 students (2 girls and 2 boys) use euphemism
frequently in their daily spoken language. Then, there are 10 students (6 girls, 4 boys) answered
they use euphemism sometimes while talking in English. The other 6 students (2 girls and 4
boys) and stated that they did not use euphemism in their daily spoken language although 3 of
them actually know about euphemism.
Number of student that know euphemism

10
9
8
7
6 Number of student that know
euphemism
5
4
3
2
1
0
Girls Boys
6
Graph 1 Graph shows the number of students that know euphemism
For the section 2 of the questionnaire, the students are required to fill the euphemism for
6 chosen words. Students will be given marks for every correct euphemism thus the total score is
6. From all the 20 students, only one girl and one boy managed to get all the euphemisms right.
They are wide range of euphemism use by the student. For example, golden age and prime age
are some of the euphemisms use by the student for old person. The students also use backside or
behind for buttock. The score of the students is recorded and a graph was plotted.
Score for questionnaire

8
5
Boys
4 Girls
No. of students
3
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Score
Graph 2 Graph shows score of students for the questionnaire (Section 2)
From the graph, I can see that girl students have higher average score compared to the
boys. The girls have an average score of 4.6 while boys’ average score is 4.3. Out of the 6 words,
all the students know the euphemism for old person and blind people. However, only 2 students
got marks for answering the euphemism for garbage man which is sanitation engineer.
7
Through the questionnaire, we can see students are familiar with euphemism for the
words that they seldom use in their spoken daily language. Apart from that, the data collected
shows that girls have better knowledge of euphemism compared to boys and they use euphemism
more frequently in their daily spoken language.
3.2 Role play
The 20 students who answered the questionnaire are then asked to participate in the role
play. The role play is divided into two sections which is informal settings and formal settings.
Informal settings are situation that occur between students and formal settings are between
student and teacher or the authority. This is to test the rate of euphemism they use between two
different situations.
In order to test the level of euphemism the student use, the student that uses euphemism
in each scene will be given one mark. There are total of six scene consisting three informal
settings and three formal settings. The mark for each student was recorded to compare the usage
of euphemism between girls and boys.
For each scene, there is wide range of euphemism use; nevertheless they will be given
mark as long as the student uses euphemism to replace the offensive word. For instance,
euphemism for fat person is horizontally challenge, overweight and etc. The score for each
student is recorded and plotted into a graph.
8
Score of students in role play

8
5
Boys
4 Girls
No of student
3
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Score
Graph 3 Graph shows the score for student in the role play
According to the graph, the average score for students is 4.4. This shows that on average,
the student of KMB does use euphemism sometimes in their daily spoken language. However,
from the role play done, there is slight different in the usage of euphemism between boys and
girls where score for girls is 4.3 while the boys score is 4.5. Thus, I can say that boys use more
euphemism in their spoken language compared to the girls by referring to the data collected from
the experiment done.
Although the average rate of euphemism use between boys and girls is just about the
same, both genders shows significant different in the usage of euphemism in different settings.
Referring to the data collected, boys prefer to use euphemism in formal settings when they had
conversation with the teachers or the authority. In contrast, girls tend to use more euphemism in
informal settings since girls are a more sensitive with offensive word when being with friends.
9
There are six boys that got full mark of three for formal settings while the other four only
managed to use euphemism in two out of the three formal situations. On the other hand, most of
the girls score better mark in the informal settings where four girls got full mark and the other
got two out of three.
10
4. Data Analysis
4.1 Characteristics of boys and girls
After the experiment had been done, we can see that students of Kolej Mara Banting use
euphemism sometimes while talking in English. However, from the data collected through the
questionnaire, girls have better knowledge of euphemism which means they have wider range of
euphemism compared to the boys. This is because girls done more reading compared to boys
thus they will find many euphemisms for words that they usually use in their daily spoken
language.
Although girls seem to have wider range of euphemism, both boys and girls use same
level of euphemism in their daily spoken language. However, boys and girls tend to use
euphemism at different situation. Boys tend to use euphemism while having formal conversation
and girls use euphemism when they are with friends or informal settings.
I believe boys use more euphemism during formal settings because they are very reserved
when they are with someone important or the authority. They want to be look as a gentleman and
a very polite person since man are known for their rough characteristic. On the other hand, when
boys communicate among themselves, they are straight forward and very rough. Thus,
euphemisms are unnecessary for them during informal conversation. That is the reason for boys
to use more euphemisms during formal conversation compared to informal situation.
In contrast, girls are known for their softness and politeness while mingling with people.
Thus, even though they do not use euphemism in formal conversation, they still sound polite
because of their soft voice. However, since girls are shy, they tend to use euphemisms that
replace words that is embarrassing them such as menstruation or going to the toilet during formal
11
settings. Through the experiment, I find that girls use more euphemism when talking to their
friends rather than their teacher. This is because girls are sensitive and more emotional than
boys, thus girls usually does not communicate using offensive words to prevent them from
hurting their friends. Using euphemism will eventually help them to deliver their message to
their friends politely without hurting them with offensive words. For instance, calling other girl
fat is very wrong among the girls, hence they always use euphemism to replace the word fat
when they are communicating with each other.
Thus, by analyzing the data collected from the questionnaire and the role play, I can
conclude that boys use more euphemism compared to the girls although girls seem to have better
understanding of euphemism. Apart from that, girls and boys tend to use euphemism in different
situation due to different characteristic of boys and girls.
12
4.2 Hometown
From the questionnaire given to the 20 students, the entire hometown of the student is
collected to determine the relationship between student’s background and the usage of
euphemism. Then, the hometown of the student will be divided into three categories which is
city, sub-urban and rural area.
The hometown of the student is then compared with the score of the student in the
questionnaire and the role play. After analyzing the data, I find that there is a significant
relationship between their hometown and usage o f euphemism. I discovered that student form
Kuala Lumpur and other city like Pulau Pinang use more euphemism. The reason might be they
use English more frequently at home compared to students that live in sub-urban or rural area.
Students who live in the city will have higher chances to apply euphemism in daily
spoken language since they use more English. For instance, they can speak English with their
parents or maybe the tourist at the city. When they are familiar with the language, they will be
comfortable to use them and know to put word appropriately.
However, students who live in outskirt area are less fortunate since they seldom use
English at home. Their parents might not be well educated on English language thus they prefer
to talk in Malay. Apart from that, people in rural area does not have the chance to speak in
English because people from that background think that people are snobbish when they talk in
English. This is one of many cultures that prevent students from developing their English while
at home.
13
Therefore, from the experiment that had been done, there is a relationship between the
student background and his/her usage of euphemism. If the student English frequently, he or she
will use more euphemism in daily spoken language. Practice make perfect!
14
5. Conclusion
Based on the analysis, it can be concluded that boy students use more euphemism in their
daily spoken language compared to the girls. However, from the questionnaire, girls show better
knowledge and example of euphemism for selected words.
From the experiment done, boys use more euphemism since they want to be look as a
polite and gentle person. Since rough and rude are some general characteristics of men, boys use
euphemism in order for them to look more polite while having conversation. However, boys do
not use much euphemism while communicating among themselves since they are more straight
forward and rough.
In contrast, women or girls symbolize politeness and softness. Thus, with soft voice girls
sometimes are considered polite without using euphemism. Although they are more emotional
and sensitive, girls could accept bad news whereas boys prefer only good news. Generally, irl
students of KMB use less euphemism than boys but they do use more euphemism while having
informal conversation. Girls are caring and will always try not to hurt other feelings. Hence,
when talking with friends, girls prefer to use euphemism to replace offensive words to prevent
them from hurting their friends.
Other than the characteristics of boys and girls, the usages of euphemism among KMB
students also depend on their background or hometown. Through the experiment, I learned that
student who live in the city will use euphemism frequently since they are more familiar with the
language. In contrast, students from sub-urban and rural area do not have the opportunity to
speak English frequently due to parents education as well as their culture at home.
15
Thus, it can be concluded that among KMB students, boys use more euphemism
compared to the girls. Hence the first hypothesis could not be accepted. Howver, the second
hypothesis can be accepted since from the experiment, it is shown that students living in the city
use more euphemism in their daily spoken language.
16
17
Questionnaire for extended essay
Section 1 Personal background
Gender : M/F
Hometown :
Mother tongue:
Previous school :
How long have you been learning English? ______________________
How often do you read English books? ____________________________
Do you know what euphemism is?
Yes [ ] No [ ]
How much do you know about euphemism?
Expert [ ] Adequate [ ] None [ ]
Do you use euphemism in your daily spoken language?
Yes [ ] No [ ] Sometimes [ ]
18
Section 2 Euphemisms
Words Euphemism
Old person
Garbage man
Fart
Blind
Poor
Buttock
Role Play for Extended Essay
19
There are few situations below that related to KMB students daily life. The situations are divided
into two categories which is informal and formal settings. Students are required to act the play
and play their role as assigned in the scene.
Informal setting
Scene 1
There is a new student that joins your class today. He weighted at 220 pounds and his waist is
42. How would you describe him to your classmates?
Scene 2
You have problem with you roommate because he is dirty and smelly. As a friend, how would
you tell him that he is smelly and dirty?
Scene 3
You are doing your external CAS at Special Education Centre in Semenyih. There are some
students who are mentally retarded. What would you tell to a friend if he/she asks you about the
student in the centre?
Formal setting
Scene 1
You teacher ask you about your dad occupation. However, your dad is currently unemployed.
So, how would you tell this to your teacher without embarrassing your father?
Scene 2
20
You just receive a message from the school that Ali’s grandfather died in the morning. How
would you tell Ali about this devastating news?
Scene 3
During Biology class, you feel uncomfortable and want to go to the toilet. How would you ask
permission from your teacher?
21

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Does the usage of euphemism in daily spoken language of English Azhar, Ahmad Azraf

among Kolej Mara Banting student different between gender?

1.1 Background of Euphemism

an intentionally indirect, obscuring or obfuscatory way.

1.2 Background of the experiment

background such as hometowns, parent occupation and usage of English at home.

2.1 Choice of college

2.2 Choice of student

genders and the usage of euphemism in daily spoken language.

2.3 The experiment

response will be transcribed to be analyse.

on their English spoken language.

Limitation of the experiment

euphemism among the student daily.

them actually know about euphemism.

Number of student that know euphemism

Graph 1 Graph shows the number of students that know euphemism

Score for questionnaire

Graph 2 Graph shows score of students for the questionnaire (Section 2)

more frequently in their daily spoken language.

3.2 Role play

of euphemism between girls and boys.

student is recorded and plotted into a graph.

Score of students in role play

the experiment done.

got two out of three.

4.1 Characteristics of boys and girls

to use more euphemisms during formal conversation compared to informal situation.

when they are communicating with each other.

situation due to different characteristic of boys and girls.

city, sub-urban and rural area.

comfortable to use them and know to put word appropriately.

knowledge and example of euphemism for selected words.

forward and rough.

them from hurting their friends.

use more euphemism in their daily spoken language.

Questionnaire for extended essay

Section 1 Personal background

How long have you been learning English? ______________________

How often do you read English books? ____________________________

Do you know what euphemism is?

How much do you know about euphemism?

Expert [ ] Adequate [ ] None [ ]

Do you use euphemism in your daily spoken language?

Role Play for Extended Essay

and play their role as assigned in the scene.

42. How would you describe him to your classmates?

you tell him that he is smelly and dirty?

student in the centre?

would you tell Ali about this devastating news?

permission from your teacher?

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