Philly Swears More Than Most US Cities, New Study Says

PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia is often described as a city that is kind, but not nice.

For example, if you ask for directions from a local, you will likely get said directions but still be met with a few choice words, and even a curse word.

And that plays into the results of a new study by language learning app and e-learning platform Preply.

Preply recently released the findings of its study to show which cities in the nation swear the most.

"We surveyed over 1,500 residents of 30 major U.S. cities to determine which cities swear most frequently," Preply's report begins. "We asked them how often they swear, the situations they swear in the most, and even the age they uttered their first swear word."

Based on the average number of times residents swear per day, Philadelphia was ranked No. 4 as the most profane city in the nation.

Philly was tied for fourth with Dallas, Texas and Indianapolis, Indiana. Residents of Philadelphia and these two other cities swear 25 times a day, per Preply's findings.

The average number of daily swears across the nation is 21, according to Preply.

Also, Philadelphians were listed as having a 69 percent chance to swear while at work, the findings show.

Other overall findings in the study show the average age Americans start using swear words is 11, younger generations are more likely to use swear words, men (22 swears per day) also swear more than women (18 swears per day), and more than half of Americans use swear word substitutions — favorites include "fudge," "shoot," and "frick."

The top most profane cities in the nation are:

1. Columbus, Ohio
2. Las Vegas, Nevada
3. Jacksonville, Florida
4. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Dallas, Texas; Indianapolis, Indiana
5. San Francisco, California; Fort Worth, Texas; Louisville, Kentucky
6. Washington, DC
7. Los Angeles, California; Austin, Texas

The least profane cities in the nation are:

1. Phoenix, Arizona; Portland, Oregon
2. Boston, Massachusetts; Milawaukee, Wisconsin
3. San Jose, California
4. New York City, New York; El Paso, Texas; Chicago, Illinois
5. Detroit, Michigan; Seattle, Washington; Houston, Texas
6. San Diego, California; Charlotte, North Carolina
7. San Antonio, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; Denver, Colorado

See the full study's findings here.