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The "adult" in adult entertainment

By C.S. Wiggins

If you're a grammar snob, or maybe you're just terrified of sounding less-than-literate, check out The Grammarphobia Blog. Yesterday's entry: adult entertainment. There we learn that "[t]he use of 'adult? as a euphemism for sexually explicit (as in 'adult cinema' or 'adult entertainment') dates from only 1958, according to the OED. The earliest published reference for 'adult' used to refer to the elderly (as in 'adult home') dates from 1968."

Many nouns are perceptually sullied when paired with the adjective "adult." To name a few: diaper, education, living facility, directory, game, joke, toy, novelty, and of course, entertainment. You hear "diaper" and think about cute babies. Throw the moniker adult in before it, and you're trying to change your mental channel. That's just one adult's opinion.

Full post as published by Meeting the Sin Laws on November 23, 2007 (boomark / email).