The Existence of Distance Iconicity in English Euphemism

Distance iconicity means the linguistic distance of expressions corresponding to the conceptual distance between them.Distance iconicity is reflected in English euphemism at syntactic,textual and pragmatic levels.At syntactic level,distance iconicity is reflected in the use of past tense,transferred negation and indirect causative,in the use of indirect approach at textual level and in the expression of social distance at pragmatic level.Distance Iconicity provides a new perspective for the understanding and mastering of English Euphemisms.