Researching sex-related anglicisms in the Spanish digital press: uses and functions

Abstract

Anglicism is one of the linguistic resources of taboo naming. Spanish people turn to English borrowings to talk about a wide range of sex-related topics, like sexual practices, homosexuality, prostitution or pornography, to name a few. As the presence of anglicised forms in discourse is not at random, it is the purpose of this article to gain an insight into the role that pure or non-adapted anglicisms perform in the Spanish digital press and, in this way, reveal their expressive and axiological values. The research methodology followed corresponds to the adoption of a “bottom-up” approach: first, linguistic data are collected; second, that data are classified, interpreted and documented in context; and third, some conclusions are reached from the analysis. The research carried out demonstrates that the pure anglicisms used to designate sex-related concepts, including the metaphorical ones, fulfil referential, textual and expressive functions: not only do they provide a concise and neutral alternative to the topic, but they also perform different X-phemistic functions, ranging from attenuation to offence, provocation or group identity.