1768: Censoring 'Belly' Oct 17, 2019

Following up on the term 'midriff' from yesterday, not only did the word 'riff' as 'stomach' not survive on its own, but even 'midriff' is something of a revived word. From the 18th century onwards, it fell into disuse, but was brought back in the 1940's as a way to avoid saying 'belly' in fashion. In those days though, it was supposed to mean 'the part of a garment which covers the midriff'; crop-tops weren't so popular back then. In fact, that word might sound innocent now, but in that time 'belly' was censored in films as well, so euphemisms were necessary.