Bloody swear word?

[Sarah Leigh ...]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "kelleyaynn" <kelleyaynn at y...> 
wrote:
>
> I've been reading some fanfics, and it appears that the word "bloody" 
> is actually a swear word in British English. ??????  As an American, 
I 
> have no clue. It sounds like a fairly innocuous word. Along the lines 
> of "blasted fool" and "bloody fool" meaning essentially the same 
> thing. It seems odd that a word could be completely innocent in one 
> context ("bloody bandages" or "a bloody cut") yet offensive in 
another 
> ("bloody git"). 
> 
> Can anyone clarify this for me?

Oh yes, Bloody is not a word that your parents were happy for you to 
repeat - hence the reason that Britsh children giggle a lot when they 
come across a 'Bloody Mary' or a bloody battle.  So Ron saying it is 
pretty risque really for a children's book. (Although the added 
obscenity of him telling Harry to p**s off in the film was far more 
shocking)  Does sarcasm come off well on e-mail?  I think not.
 Sarah xx