Lists of words considered rude, obscene, inappropriate.
Resources
- Github repositories tagged “profanity filter”
- IFTAS Reserved Words List
- badwords.json (Darius Kazemi)
- Bluesky slurs list
- Shutterstock List of Dirty, Naughty, Obscene, and Otherwise Bad Words (over 25 languages)
- Public attitudes towards offensive language on TV and Radio: Quick Reference Guide (Ofcom)
- Words That Google Instant Doesn’t Like (2600)
Unintended Consequences
Be cautious when using word filters in any language. Known issues include:
- the Scunthorpe Problem, which describes the unintentional blocking or false positives where acceptable words contain unacceptable text strings e.g. assistance should not become ***istance;
- context concerns, especially where lived experience is being discussed, e.g. compare “you are a Slur” with “I was walking down the street and someone called me a Slur”;
- reappropriation, the cultural process by which a group reclaims words that were previously used to disparage of that group.
Reappropriation
- A Former Slur Is Reclaimed, And Listeners Have Mixed Feelings (NPR)
- The Slants on the Power of Repurposing a Slur (NY Times)
- How to stop baseballer’s name from reading like anti-Jewish slur (Times of Israel)
- Reappropriation (Wikipedia)
