That is quite possibly an anachronistic meaning. It may have meant that at one point but that original meaning has fallen out of favor or lost in the mists of time.

Seriously, if it was currently considered that bad, I would have gotten my face slapped off by nearly every gradeschool teacher I ever had.

I believe Hank Hill is quite fond of the word "heck" as well, and he's about the non-swearingest character around (that honor probably goes to Ned Flanders).

And looking at the list of entries again, nearly all the others are the way I'm familiar with it being used (i.e. less offensive replacement for "hell").

I'm not sure we can trust an author whose handle is "wetdickallnight". This sounds an awful lot like one of those wikipedia entries that gets edited to be something completely absurd.

Keep in mind: Urban Dictionary has a jokingly racous definition for every little thing. That's the very site's appeal.

I used to watch Cutey Honey, Dragon Ball Z, Akira, and various western and local adult language filled cartoons, such as Gustav, as a kid and nothings wrong with me 😀

Heck is an example of a minced oath.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minced_oath

Urban dictionary is wrong. The ck at the end does not come from the f*bomb. You also have to take into consideration that it's urban dictionary and anyone can post anything they want there and there are no editors. It's an even less reliable source of information than Wikipedia.

I would say that to English speakers, at least those I know, "heck" is a less vulgar/offensive word than "hell" or "**ck." And I wouldn't consider UrbanDictionary to be a reliable source of information - their standards for submission are very low (last I knew the only things they'd reject are things that reveal personal information or don't appeal to a wide audience). It's a useful tool for looking up vulgar and profane things, but you always have to meter what you're finding against something more reliable (like an actual dictionary) - remember that teenagers use UrbanDictionary as well, and many of them have just discovered vulgarity (and are eager to show off 😒).

I'd also say that there are children's movies and children's literature with more aggressive language (and more importantly thematic elements) than saying "heck" - I'd opine that only recently have things become so hyper-vigilant that English-language children's literature and television has turned into this saccharine nightmare. 😵

It's a minced oath alluding to the word "hell", which is fairly minor by modern standards. I don't really see what the big deal would be, unless one grew up in the 50s or something. MLP: FiM is still mainly targeted to children, as they are an easy audience to market to, let's face it, so they have to keep things appropriate for them, but at the same time, like many other cartoons, they do throw in some hidden adult humour and references to keep older viewers interested.

On a similar note, I've heard AJ say "horseapples" on a few occasions, and that's basically a much politer way of saying "horseshit". 🤣

Didn't Raphael used to say "Hell" in the old TMNT cartoons in the 80s? Or am I just remembering that wrong?

That said, most of the "bad" words I learned I learned off of parents or friends of parents. Nice job there. :P

But OMGAWD, calling a pony with weird eye positions "Derpy"?! Call the FCC!! That's just plain WRONG!!!!!1

*facepalm*

...words are words. I can't wait for the day when people stop getting offended by the words themselves and I often find myself wanting to beat people over the head with a TV showing that part from the ST:TOS episode "The Savage Curtain" where Lt. Uhura politely explains that in their time, people have learned not to fear words. >_>;

...I think I may've strayed off-topic a little bit. XD

If anything, the turtles would replace that with "shell"

And I do miss the word Derp when it refered to Rob Schneider.

Thank you guys, I appreciate your help 😀 I'm not a native speaker and while I get the general meaning of the word heck when it's used, but I'm often not so good when it comes to details.

btw, do the phrases "What in the hay <...>", "Where in the haystack <...>" also represent minced oath?

RacoonRider wrote:

Thank you guys, I appreciate your help 😀 I'm not a native speaker and while I get the general meaning of the word heck when it's used, but I'm often not so good when it comes to details.

btw, do the phrases "What in the hay <...>", "Where in the haystack <...>" also represent minced oath?

Yes. you start to stay the bad word but then substitute something else for it. That's pretty much the definition of a minced oath.

i know someone who will say that "heck" was a shortened form of "Hell Fuck" ...

Wiktionary reports the etymology of heck as hell, not a portmanteau of hell+f**k

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/heck#Etymology_1

Can't have hell without heck...good without evil...ok that's enough philosophising..🤣

RacoonRider wrote:

I started to notice Applejack using the phrase "What the heck" from time to time, it struck me during season 3.

Urban dictionnary states that it is a fusion of the words hell and **ck. It is used by saying "What the heck!" as a stand-in for hell or **ck but is really worse than saying "What the hell!" or "What the **ck!"

So is urban dictionnary wrong, or is MLP no longer a kid's show?

Is My Little Pony one of your favorites ? 😜

rgart wrote:

RacoonRider wrote:

I started to notice Applejack using the phrase "What the heck" from time to time, it struck me during season 3.

Urban dictionnary states that it is a fusion of the words hell and **ck. It is used by saying "What the heck!" as a stand-in for hell or **ck but is really worse than saying "What the hell!" or "What the **ck!"

So is urban dictionnary wrong, or is MLP no longer a kid's show?

Is My Little Pony one of your favorites ? 😜

It is! Especially the Apple family!

sliderider wrote:

RacoonRider wrote:

Thank you guys, I appreciate your help 😀 I'm not a native speaker and while I get the general meaning of the word heck when it's used, but I'm often not so good when it comes to details.

btw, do the phrases "What in the hay <...>", "Where in the haystack <...>" also represent minced oath?

Yes. you start to stay the bad word but then substitute something else for it. That's pretty much the definition of a minced oath.

Agreed on this. Same idea as saying "oh gosh" (or "oh geez") instead of "oh god" or "dang" (or "darn") instead of "damn" and so on. That said, not everyone who says those things would normally swear - some people really do just mean "dang" or "gosh" and may swear in a more "serious" situation.

Yes, MLP is of the devil.

Old, but gold. 😉