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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Euphemism \Eu"phe*mism\ ([=u]"f[-e]*m[i^]z'm), noun [Gr. ? fr. ? to use word of a good omen; e'y^ well + ? to speak: cf. F. euph['e]misme. See {Fame}.] (Rhet.) A figure in which a harsh or indelicate word or expression is softened; a way of describing an offensive thing by an inoffensive expression; a mild name for something disagreeable.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
euphemism
noun: an inoffensive expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive [ant: {dysphemism}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
36 Moby Thesaurus words for "euphemism": Gongorism, affectation, affectedness, amelioration, artfulness, artifice, artificiality, cushioning, elegance, euphuism, exquisiteness, formalism, formality, goody-goodness, goody-goodyism, hyperelegance, indirect, manneredness, mannerism, mild, mitigation, mollification, overelaboration, overelegance, overniceness, overpreciseness, overrefinement, pedantry, preciosity, preciousness, precisianism, pretentiousness, purism, substitution, unnaturalness, vague
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