What word is $%£*&? (Swearing question)

[Revenant Threshold]

Often in comics you get these strings of symbols instead of swearing. Usually when it's something like, "You're a $%£*&!" I assume the "deleted" word is bitch; a five-lettered noun expletive. But often it's more along the liens of "You're a $%£*& idiot!"; and I can't think of a five-lettered adjective expletive. Is there one i'm overlooking, or does the number of symbols really not matter and i'm just very pedentic?

[gotpasswords]

The grawlix means nothing specifically other than words that can't be printed in a family newspaper.

[naita]

I assume your confusion stems from comparison with the similar practices, popularised on the internet, of just changing part of a swearword, such as asterixing the vowels, or turning them into leet speak (eg. @$$). This doesn't actually change the content of the text, but it makes it acceptable to mindless computer censoring, and, for some odd reason, to many forum moderators.

Grawlix on the other hand completely obscures the offensive word. The cartoonist doesn't even have to have one in mind. Although in a non-ASCII environment such as a comic strip they can be more elaborate and pointed than the standard #¤£$€, such as having sculls and crossbones, mushroom clouds, head stones, nooses, etc, to replace an elaborate and violent threat.

[Rigamarole]

Funny, it usually doesn't have the "£" sign incorporated, as that's not a character on most people's keyboards. (by most people, I mean Americans. I assume it's on British keyboards? I'm interested because you also used a dollar sign. Do you have both, or did you go into the character map for one?)

[Myglaren]

Both them m£&^%@>'s appear on UK keyboard$

[Revenant Threshold]

Both. The symbols I get with shift-clicking the numbers are !"£$%^&*().

[Walloon]

You shouldn't assume a one-on-one character replacement for the offending word. Five nonsense characters do not necessarily mean five letters.

[Rigamarole]

Ah, so you don't have the @ symbol. (that's the one we have instead of the £, and if I was substituting a swear word it would probably look like this: "$#&*(@!")

[Myglaren]

Originally Posted by Rigamarole

Ah, so you don't have the @ symbol. (that's the one we have instead of the £, and if I was substituting a swear word it would probably look like this: "$#&*(@!")

But we do! otherwise how would emails work. @

[Rigamarole]

Originally Posted by Myglaren

But we do! otherwise how would emails work. @

Revenant Threshold said:

Originally Posted by Revenant Threshold

Both. The symbols I get with shift-clicking the numbers are !"£$%^&*().

So I imagine you have it on another area of the keyboard, rather than over the numbers (where one usually goes to make these grawlices). We have it over the number 2.

[Jean Poutine]

My standard US keyboard has no Sterling Pound sign- you have to know the secret way to type in keys to get it, which I don't. Above 1234567890 on the keybaord are:

!@#$%^&*()

[Myglaren]

Wikepedia has images of the majority of keyboard layouts, including the UK one.

[Revenant Threshold]

Originally Posted by Myglaren

Wikepedia has images of the majority of keyboard layouts, including the UK one.

My keyboard is exactly the same as the UK one shown there. So..cool.

[Rigamarole]

Originally Posted by Myglaren

Wikepedia has images of the majority of keyboard layouts, including the UK one.

This is useful information. Now when we see a grawlix, based on the symbols used we can reasonably determine the nation of origin of the artist.

[robcaro]

I get the £ sign by setting the num lock on and typing Alt 0163 on my US keyboard.

[Antigen]

Originally Posted by Myglaren

Wikepedia has images of the majority of keyboard layouts, including the UK one.

Ah yes, my fun adventures in a Berlin internet cafe, hunting for the @.

Crazy Europeans and their AltGr key.

[Revenant Threshold]

Originally Posted by robcaro

I get the £ sign by setting the num lock on and typing Alt 0163 on my US keyboard.

I think there's a site somewhere out there that lists all the different symbol codes - and if memory serves me correctly, it's a Doper's site.

[robcaro]

Originally Posted by Revenant Threshold

I think there's a site somewhere out there that lists all the different symbol codes - and if memory serves me correctly, it's a Doper's site.

That is good, but you can just pull up the Character Map and get all the characters that are available to you.

[Rhubarb]

Originally Posted by robcaro

That is good, but you can just pull up the Character Map and get all the characters that are available to you.

Or you can copy and paste directly from the character map.

my 2 <alt 0162> worth.

[brujaja]

Grawlix! Wow!! How could I have been calling myself a f*%&#@g know-it-all for all these years, and not known that?!

[Martini Enfield]

The funny thing is that not only does "Grawlix" sound like a character from an Asterix comic, they're extensively used in Asterix comics (comix? ) to great effect- they just seem to work especially well within the context of the Asterix universe, for some reason.