I hate the c-word, both when used to refer to female genitalia and when used to refer to a person. Again, this is idiosyncratic, but I find it very vulgar; any occasion I might have to use it, I would stop myself and say "bitch" or "asshole" instead. The c-word just seems too misogynistic to me, based on my experience with it. (Not saying that everyone who uses it hates women!! Just that it has too many associations for me.) Not a big fan of "pussy" either, tbh.
Understandable; there are some misogynistic attitudes underlying the words' traditional use. But the thing is, profanities have a way of becoming divorced from their literal/original meaning over time. Very few people today would hear "punk" and think of a prostitute or hear "golly" and think of a blasphemous reference to an embodied God. The British slang term "sod" is short for "Sodomite," but I doubt the people who use it as a mild, even somewhat affectionate label ("the poor sod") have any intention of conveying such a meaning. I think that in some cultures the c-word is becoming similarly divorced from its origins, and sooner or later you just have to accept that the people using it have no intention of invoking its original derogatory meaning. But the culture is still in transition when it comes to that particular word, so it's a tricky one.
And I can sympathize with the difficulty in letting go of one's offense at the original meaning. Personally I can't stand it when people use "balls" as a synonym for courage or strength, because I find it deeply sexist. For all I know, maybe they aren't thinking in terms of its original meaning at all, but it's hard for me to forget it.
) or kiddies. I know kiddies hear it from the parents, friends and on TV, but they don't need to hear it from me if they're around 16 or younger.
