Brits have ranked the most offensive swear words but it makes us all look like wet wipes

A new YouGov survey has delved into the controversial topic of swear words, ranking the most offensive in a move that makes our entire country look like little babies. Prepare yourself for a lot of asterisks.

Swearing has long been a divisive topic, and in more modern times, it seems that people use it as a form of punctuation rather than as the occasional jab. According to the new poll, 57 per cent of Brits swear most days, with only 8 per cent never uttering a word that would land them coughing up cash for the swear jar. Not sure I quite believe that one.

There’s also a clear sex divide when it comes to swearing, with 41 per cent of men swearing most days and 33 per cent of women. As you might expect, younger people care less about swear words than their older peers. A staggering 30 per cent of 18 to 20-year-olds think positively of swear words compared to just four per cent of those over the age of 65.

Now, onto why you’re really here: To find out which swear words British people find most offensive.

The official ranking of the most offensive swear words, according to Brits

Which swear words do Britons find the most offensive?

C*nt: 82% say very or fairly offensive
Motherf*cker: 70%
Fatherf*cker: 62%
B*tch: 55%
F*ck: 53%
W*nker: 53%
B*stard: 45%
P*ssy: 44%
Pr*ck: 42%
Tw*t: 40%
A*sehole: 39%
D*ckhead: 39%
Son of b*tch: 36%
C*ck: 34%
T*sser: 31%… pic.twitter.com/jovGbrSxdl

— YouGov (@YouGov) April 25, 2025

I’m willing to bet you can guess which swear word was topping this list, after all, we’ve heard “I just hate that word” for literally decades. Still, here’s the official list ranked by which swear words Brits find very offensive:

• C**t – 57 per cent
• Motherf**ker – 33 per cent
• Fatherf**ker – 32 per cent
• F**k – 20 per cent
• B***h – 14 per cent
• W**ker – 13 per cent
• B*****d – 12 per cent
• P***y – 11 per cent
• Tw*t – 11 per cent
• Pr**k –  eight per cent
• Assh*le – seven per cent

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• D**khead – eight per cent
• Son of a b***h – eight per cent
• C**k – seven per cent
• To**er – four per cent
• Be****d – five per cent
• K**b – four per cent
• D**k – five per cent
• Fanny – six per cent
• Sh*t – four per cent
• Douchebag –  four per cent
• Bullsh*t – a minuscule amount

There were also tons of other options on the list with a really tiny number of people who found them offensive. They included: Sh*te, effing, p*ss, git, ass, bugger, pimhole, balls, feck, twist, bum, cr*p, bloody, berk, damn, heck, poo, and hell.

People have been reacting to the poll on Twitter, with one pointing out: “Who decided to include Fatherf**ker? This is literally the first time I have ever heard of it. Equality?”

“A good percentage of these are terms of endearment,” another argued.

Someone else wrote: “None of these are offensive, these people are just wet wipes. Not liking the word is different, words such as c**t and moist people don’t tend to like the sound of. Also, I’ve never heard anyone be called a fatherf**ker.”

Now you know which to employ next time the extended family come round.

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