The article, "Words Don't Mean What They Mean", attacks the use of euphemism and indirect language. Often many people use indirect speech as a method of showing respect or to avoid the harsh effect using direct words. Steven Pinker's purpose of this article was to show the audience how language can be altered to camouflage the harsh of a speaker's words. A specific choice of sentence structure can allow the recipient to misinterpret the intent of the speaker. An example was given in paragraph 1, "You know what I wish... Wouldn't that be a relief?". The sentence appears to be in the form of an interrogative sentence but her attitude towards the subject says otherwise. The speaker manipulated her sentence structure to lighten the situation. The speaker was masking the fact that the situation is quite bothersome, in attempt to avoid the consequence of appearing unpleasant. Euphemism works in the favor of the speaker to avoid a rude display of manner. Words and sentence structure can influence our perception of one another and so choice of words can be really important. Our tone gives an impression on people. Euphemism and indirect language serves to leave a positive impression of the speaker on others. Language can be very expressive and people are exposed to this powerful tool everyday. Whether the speaker is cautious with their words depends on them but one misuse of a word can work against a person.