Sentence:  Swearing doesn't just mean what we now understand by "dirty words". It is entwined, in social and linguistic history, with the other sort of swearing: vows and oaths. Consider for a moment the origins of almost any word we have for bad language – "profanity", "<WSD>curses</WSD>", "oaths" and "swearing" itself. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A vulgar epithet.