The philosophical literature has long debated whether trait-targeting pejoratives (e.g., whore, wino, bitch) and group-targeting slurs (e.g., nigger, faggot) form distinct categories, or whether the boundary between them reduces to extra-linguistic factors. We report five experimental studies comparing particularistic insults, trait/behaviour pejoratives, and group slurs (8 tokens per class). Studies 1–3 measure scalar dimensions (offensiveness, tabooness, dehumanisation); Studies 4–5 measure a
