cunt

n

1a.

the vagina. This taboo word has ancient origins; related words exist in other European languages (French con, Spanish coho, etc.) and it seems that, in the unwritten prehistoric Indo-European parent languages, cu or koo was a word base expressing 'feminine' or 'fecund' and associated notions.

1b.

a woman or women in general. An extension of the above sense which is probably most commonly heard in the USA.

2.

a very unpleasant person. As well as being the most 'obscene' of the common set of sexually related taboo words, 'cunt' is also used to indicate extreme distaste or dislike. This usage, which is more noticeable in British and Australian English than American, is presumably inspired by deep-seated fear and loath-ing of women's sexuality, although in practice the word is usually applied to men.

From Anglo-Saxon times until the 14th century the word was in standard use, but was then replaced by euphemisms in all but rural dialect speech. Most dictionaries refused to acknowledge the word until the 1960s and it is probably the only word that is still banned from most British newspapers and television.