Euphemisms in South African English economic discourse: Socio-cultural aspects

South African English economic discourse remains underexplored despite its significance in shaping public perception and policy in the region. One of its critical understudied facets are euphemisms, which are heavily influenced by historical and social background and play a crucial role in moderating sensitive issues and managing communication across diverse societal norms. This study aims to fill this gap by identifying how euphemisms reflect and respond to South Africa’s socio-cultural setting. The study involved compiling a corpus of approximately 500,000 words sourced from speeches, interviews, and publications by South African specialists with subsequent identification of euphemisms. As a results, 338 euphemisms were found in the corpus. Through continuous sampling, the study then identified, categorized, and quantitatively assessed the socio-cultural aspects of euphemisms across various economic discussions. According to the study results, euphemism in South African English economic discourse correspond to five main thematic groups: Economic and Racial Inequality, Corporate Governance and Ethics, Impact of Migration, Healthcare Economics, and Influence of Globalization. Each thematic group demonstrates patterns of euphemisms occurrence that reflect intentional communication efforts to address or mask sensitive socio-economic issues. The study results posit that euphemisms emerge as a frequently leveraged linguistic device moderating South African English economic discourse. They reflect an adaptive response to South Africa’s socio-cultural setting where managing the multifaceted societal norms and historical sensitivities is imperative for effective communication and policy dissemination. The study argues for closer examination of the linguistic composition of South African English economic discourse. The findings contribute to the fields of sociolinguistics and intercultural communication as they expose how euphemisms function as a tool for managing complex socio-economic processes.