The art of swearing

00:00 03:13

Mark Mason has narrated this article for you to listen to.

Sometimes it’s the only word that will do. Every journalist at Max Verstappen’s press conference last month understood him perfectly when he said his car was ‘fucked’, the adjective chosen not to convey mechanical failings but rather Verstappen’s emotions. But the Formula 1 authorities were displeased, and the driver has been punished.

Perhaps the FIA should listen to Billy Connolly. The comedian is a fan of the f-word, relishing its harsh consonants. He maintains there simply isn’t a polite equivalent to match it: ‘“Go away” just dissipates.’

Of course you can take it too far. Scattergun swearing is tedious, the words losing their power with each repetition. But sparing, well-timed use of an expletive or two can be hugely effective. As Connolly’s fellow comedian Arthur Smith argues, it’s absurd to describe swearing as ‘bad language’. He reserves that label for ‘er’, ‘like’, ‘you know’ and so on.