dou·ble-en·ten·dre (dbl-än-tändr, d-blä-tädr) KEY
NOUN:
A word or phrase having a double meaning, especially when the second meaning is risqué.
The use of such a word or phrase; ambiguity.
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ETYMOLOGY:
Obsolete French : double, double + entendre, to mean, interpretation AHD eu·phe·mism (yf-mzm) KEY
NOUN:
The act or an example of substituting a mild, indirect, or vague term for one considered harsh, blunt, or offensive: "Euphemisms such as 'slumber room' . . . abound in the funeral business" (Jessica Mitford).
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ETYMOLOGY:
Greek euphmismos, from euphmizein, to use auspicious words, from euphmi, use of auspicious words : eu-, eu- + phm, speech; see bh-2 in Indo-European roots
AHD A double entendre, most of the time, is not used as a replacement, but in and of itself. That is, the writer or speaker chose the word(s) specifically
because it would have a double meaning. I finally thought of an example: a man is recounting a visit wherein a buxom woman showed him her garden, and he says, "She has great cantaloupes". Had he not wanted to make the joke he might have simply said she has a nice garden.
