| Ackowledgements | 第1-5页 |
| Abstract in English | 第5-8页 |
| Abstract in Chinese | 第8-10页 |
| Contents | 第10-12页 |
| Chapter Ⅰ Introduction | 第12-15页 |
| ·Need for the Study | 第12-13页 |
| ·Objectives of the Study | 第13页 |
| ·Organization of the Thesis | 第13-15页 |
| Chapter Ⅱ English Euphemism: An Overview | 第15-36页 |
| ·Definition of Euphemism | 第15-17页 |
| ·Previous Studies on Euphemism | 第17-21页 |
| ·Studies from the Rhetorical Perspective | 第17-18页 |
| ·Studies from the Semantic Perspective | 第18页 |
| ·Studies from the Sociolinguistic Perspective | 第18-19页 |
| ·Studies from the Fuzziness Perspective | 第19-20页 |
| ·Studies from the Pragmatic Perspective | 第20-21页 |
| ·Pragmatic Principle of Euphemism | 第21-33页 |
| ·Euphemism and Indirect Speech Act Theory | 第21-23页 |
| ·Euphemism and Cooperative Principle | 第23-28页 |
| ·Euphemism and Politeness Principle | 第28-29页 |
| ·Euphemism and Face Theory | 第29-31页 |
| ·Euphemism and Relevance Theory | 第31-33页 |
| ·Limitations of Previous Studies | 第33-36页 |
| Chapter Ⅲ The Theoretical Framework | 第36-46页 |
| ·Choice-making | 第36-38页 |
| ·Three Properties of Language | 第38-40页 |
| ·Angles of Investigation | 第40-44页 |
| ·Adaptation Theory Applied in the Present Study | 第44-46页 |
| Chapter Ⅳ Euphemism as the Realization of Adaptation | 第46-75页 |
| ·Linguistic Choices of Euphemism—Result of Linguistic Adaptation | 第46-47页 |
| ·Euphemism as Adaptation to the Mental World | 第47-62页 |
| ·The Role of the Mental World in Communication | 第48-49页 |
| ·Linguistic Adaptation to the Psychological Motivations | 第49-62页 |
| ·Adaptation to Politeness Motivation | 第50-55页 |
| ·Adaptation to Self-Defence | 第55-58页 |
| ·Adaptation to Achieving Nicer Effect | 第58-62页 |
| ·Euphemism as Adaptation to the Social World | 第62-70页 |
| ·The Role of the Social World | 第62-63页 |
| ·Linguistic Adaptation to the Social World | 第63-70页 |
| ·Adaptation to the Social Norms/Conventions | 第64-68页 |
| ·Adaptation to Institutional Power | 第68-70页 |
| ·Euphemism as Adaptation to the Physical World | 第70-73页 |
| ·Language as an Organism | 第71页 |
| ·Euphemism Treadmill | 第71-73页 |
| ·Summary | 第73-75页 |
| Chapter Ⅴ Conclusion | 第75-78页 |
| ·Major Findings | 第75页 |
| ·Implications | 第75-76页 |
| ·Limitations and Suggestions for Further Study | 第76-78页 |
| References | 第78-83页 |
| Publications | 第83页 |
