“My friends tell me that swear words aren’t bad unless you’re using them to offend someone. Are there times when swear words are okay?”

Swear words are never okay. The truth is that they are always offensive. Saying that they won’t offend someone is just an excuse.

Think about it. What is worse than offending God? And one of the most common ways of swearing is to use God’s name with disrespect. Many people think that’s no longer a big deal, but it is. How do you think Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ feel when we use Their names or titles in a hateful or casual way?

Swearing isn’t just about certain words. It’s about your attitude. Unclean speech is bad because it fills your mind with unclean things. Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said, “The language we use projects the images of our hearts, and our hearts should be pure.” He added that profanity and vulgarity “are sins that separate us from God and cripple our spiritual defenses by causing the Holy Ghost to withdraw from us” (“Reverent and Clean,” Ensign, May 1986, 49). On the other hand, using clean language sends a signal to people that you want to be clean.

The language you use also says a lot about how you deal with other people. Does what you say make it easier for those around you to live the gospel? Shouldn’t you use language that will lift them up, whether or not they share your beliefs? In the Bible, Paul said it this way: “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers” (Eph. 4:29).

So don’t use language that is vulgar, unkind, sarcastic, or rude. It dulls your spiritual sensitivity. It has a bad effect on you and on those around you.

President Gordon B. Hinckley said, “Conversation is the substance of friendly social activity. It can be happy. It can be light. It can be earnest. It can be funny. But it must not be salty, or uncouth, or foul if one is in sincerity a believer in Christ” (Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley [1997], 494).