Download a list of swear words (they're free as in beer and free as in speech):
swearWords.xmlWe've got a list of Frequently Asked Questions and some links to other resources on swearing, including other sites offering free or commercial lists of bad words (often better than the ones we offer).
Links to other resources on swearing, including other sites offering free lists of bad words (normally better than we offer).
By their very nature these lists of swear words contain material many will find offensive. But that's kind of the point!
These lists are free to download. You may use them for any purpose you wish and may copy, modify and distribute them freely. The swear words lists are provided "as-is" without any warranty or guarantee whatsoever. Don't blame me when the users of your forum, blog or community find more creative ways of offending people.
There are a bunch of other websites where people have done exactly the same thing as us. Here are a few.
I like this one, it's clean and simple, and lets you customise the list according to US style file ratings (eg, PG-13)
This one's a commercial service, no idea how good it is, or who would pay for it, but they obviously make enough money to hire a web designer so they're probably pretty good.
This one's a little broken, but again I'm wowed by the fact it has better design than my site. Shame about those SQL errors!
At some point, yours truly will write up how I've written the swearword highlighter used on this site, and another like it, but until then:
Exactly what it says on the tin. I don't really know Python, so I can't comment on how good it is. Substitutes words for slightly censored words.
This is an interesting argument, and believe it or not I would never reccoment automatic censoring, it doesn't really work. My experience is with a site with human moderators, where we provide automatic tools to give those people a running start. There's just no substitute for the Mk1 Human Eyeball. There are more places out there where this point is argued, but on re-reading, all the ones I've bookmarked are just a bit dull.
Jeff Atwood rants
Wikipedia articly on one of the most obvious problems with simple blacklist only automatic filtering
You gotta admit, there's a certain satisfaction in swearing with feeling and a simple (if childish) joy in just swearing gratuitously.*
A surprisingly fun read, also has some good references.
The Lovely Mr Fry defends swearing in the BBC 4 program "Guilty Pleasures" I think.
Ahhh, H2G2 is like Wikipedia but with a much needed sense of humour.
Steven Pinker talks about the sometimes absurd thresholds society puts on acceptable levels of swearing.
The Ferret.com speculates on what will be the emerging swearwords of the future.
Charlie Brooker rants about the kind of people who like to take offense. Well worth reading the rest of his articles too.
* Yes I know I don't swear on this page, but that's because I suspect it would be bad SEO