Dirty Words

It's high time the American Heritage Dictionary included "shit." In the real world (my world!), no one says "excrement" or "feces" or "defecation" in ordinary discourse. My Oxford, on the other hand (gotta love those Brits!), not only defines "shit" but provides numerous helpful examples of practical everyday usage, like "shit faced," "shit a brick," "shit for brains," et al. Even the magisterial Oxford lexicographers, however, were apparently unwilling (or unable) to tackle the etymology of "Are you shitting me?"

"Tit" is vulgar slang for "teat." Go figure!

There are no such things as "dirty words"--only dirty minds.