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GCSE English Literature · key term
A mild or indirect expression used in place of a disturbing or unpleasant one.
Used by AQA, Edexcel, OCR and Eduqas
Paper 1, Paper 2
A mild expression that makes something unpleasant or serious seem less severe.
An indirect or softened expression used instead of naming something unpleasant explicitly.
A mild or reassuring expression used in place of something harsher or more disturbing.
Parts (a) and (b): Explain what a method achieves. For example, connect a euphemism to the violence it disguises, or a narrative interruption to the information it delays.
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A mild or indirect expression used instead of one that would reveal an unpleasant reality.
A mild or reassuring expression used instead of a harsher description.
An indirect or softened expression used in place of something disturbing or unpleasant.
Paper 1, Paper 2
A mild or reassuring expression used instead of a more direct or disturbing one, such as Squealer calling a reduction in food a ‘readjustment’.
Revise: SquealerIn Chapter 9, he calls reduced rations a ‘readjustment’. This euphemism makes deprivation sound like a neutral administrative change. Orwell repeatedly contrasts Squealer’s reassuring explanations with the animals’ cold, hunger and exhausting work.
A mild or reassuring expression used instead of one that would reveal an unpleasant reality.
A mild or reassuring expression used in place of a harsher one, sometimes to disguise an unpleasant reality.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of a harsher or more troubling one.
An indirect or softened expression used in place of something disturbing or unpleasant.
A gentler or less direct expression used in place of something painful or disturbing.
Paper 1
A mild or indirect expression used instead of a harsh or distressing one, such as 'completion' for death.
A mild or reassuring expression used instead of one that would reveal something disturbing or unpleasant.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of something disturbing or painful.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of a disturbing one. In Never Let Me Go, ‘completion’ conceals the donor’s death.
A mild or indirect expression that softens an unpleasant reality. In Never Let Me Go, ‘completion’ disguises a donor’s death.
Component 2
A mild or indirect expression used in place of something more disturbing or explicit.
Revise: EricEva never appears on stage, so the audience learns about this encounter through Eric’s retrospective account and the Inspector’s questions. This dramatic form matters: Eric controls the initial wording, but the questioning draws out facts that his euphemisms might otherwise obscure.
A mild or indirect expression used instead of a disturbing one; in Never Let Me Go, ‘completion’ disguises a donor’s death.
A mild or indirect expression used instead of something distressing. ‘Complete’ is the novel’s euphemism for a donor’s death.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of something distressing. In Never Let Me Go, the language of donation softens the violence of compulsory organ removal.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of a disturbing one. In Never Let Me Go, ‘completion’ conceals the reality of a donor's death.
A mild or indirect expression used instead of a disturbing one, such as ‘completion’ for the clones’ deaths.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of something distressing or harsh, such as ‘completion’ for a donor’s death in Never Let Me Go.
A mild or indirect expression used instead of one that would reveal something distressing or unpleasant.
A mild or reassuring expression used in place of something disturbing or harsh.
A mild or reassuring expression used instead of a more direct, unpleasant one.
A mild or indirect expression used instead of a harsher one, often concealing an unpleasant reality.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of something unpleasant or troubling, sometimes to conceal its seriousness.
A mild or indirect expression used in place of something disturbing, embarrassing or harsh.
A mild or indirect expression used instead of a more uncomfortable or explicit one.
