If you’ve ever tried to type even a slightly inappropriate word into an iPhone or Android device, you already know that our modern phones are super uncomfortable with anything related to sex. But you may not know how far Google takes it these days. Wired investigated the banned word list inside Android 4.4 KitKat (Read: How Android KitKat is ruining my life) and found that, of its 165,000 word dictionary, Google bans more than 1,400 words from autocomplete and swyping support, and the rules are bafflingly inconsistent.
Some of the banned words include the typical dirty words, but also some very mild ones like: sex, butt, geek, panty, braless, Tampax, lactation, preggers, uterus, STI, LSAT, thud, morphine, condom, Klansmen, supremacist, screwing, lovemaking, coitus, and intercourse.
Oddly, Android will autocorrect Nazi, marijuana, methamphetamine, and even bong.
In other words, Android appears to be totally cool with you talking about pot, but don’t mention anything about sex. (Not that you’ll need to if you’re constantly typing about marijuana.) Android does not ban the words “munchies” or common snack foods.
You can, of course, disable keyboard content filtering if you can find it in Settings. And keep in mind that HTC, Samsung, and many other Android device manufacturers have their own keyboards, which likely come with their own filtered word lists. We entered many of these words on an HTC One Max and it offered them up as auto-correct suggestions just like you’d expect.
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