My wife heard this a few days ago from a high-school student.

She noticed something that the student had just drawn, told him that he was very artistic, and asked him what else he had created.

He said that creating “aerosol art” was one of his favorite activities.

My wife had never heard this phrase but recognized it right away for what it was: a euphemism for graffiti.

Contrary to my “Devolution toward Simpler” linguistic hypothesis, the student chose a four-syllable, ten-letter, two-word phrase over a three-syllable, eight-letter single word that says the same thing.

But that is a frequent characteristic of euphemisms: People go out of their way to avoid what they believe will be perceived negatively.

If you find yourself saying or writing a long phrase when you know that a shorter phrase or a single word will express the same thing, notice whether you are trying to hide a negative perception behind that long phrase.