本文结合已有的委婉语定义,从委婉语过去及现在的使用现象入手,将委婉语分为旧、新两个阶段,并分别总结出新的定义。新旧之区别在于旧委婉语以“词语替代”为主,运用在避讳禁忌等功用方面;新委婉语以表达效果为主,并逐渐演变为语言艺术。 Based on the definition of euphemism, this essay divides euphemism into two stages: old and new, starting with the past and present phenomena of euphemism, and concludes new definitions respectively. The difference between the old and the new is that the old euphemism is dominated by “lexical substitution ” and used in such taboo functions as Taboos; the new euphemism is dominated by expression effect and gradually evolved into language art.