Years ago, an Internet NNTP poster's signature read in part "a
niggardly lover".
Of course, "niggardly" just means "stingy", so there was nothing
literally offensive in his signature.
However, I believe he chose this phrasing (instead of "stingy lover"
or "miserly lover") specifically to provoke and annoy people.
What word embodies this concept? Using an intentionally
offensive-sounding phrase to express an otherwise inoffensive concept?
Would this be the opposite of bowdlerization?
Best Answer
It is an interesting approach to baiting people. Bowdlerization and other forms of censorship could be considered "opposites" to this. I tend to prefer the contrast with the idea of minced oaths:
Meanwhile it shares many similarities with eggcorn:
The user seems to be attempting to create a malicious eggcorn in the reader's mind, replacing an archaic term with a more modern (and offensive) one. Indeed, seeing as the original word was primarily negative, a racial slur could introduce a meaning "different from the original, but plausible in the same context."
There have been numerous public controversies over this particular word pair. (Controversies about the word "niggardly")
Ultimately, though, I think the word to describe this behavior best might just be "trolling."