License Plate Ideas Had Better Be Clean—Here Are Many That Weren't

• From the puerile to the racist, thousands of offensive license plates were rejected by DMVs across the country last year, just as they do every year.

• Don't look for LATE AF or WEED42O on any cars on the road, because vulgar phrases and drug and sex references were all caught and weeded out last year.

• We don't mind the authorities making sure offensive internet meme jokes stay away from license plates, but we're not as sure about rejected plates like GRLBOSS or EWWW G4S.

There are limits, people. More than 750 car owners in Ohio submitted personalized license plates that the authorities at the state Bureau of Motor Vehicles denied. Hundreds more were attempted in Oregon. Down in Texas, over 5000 people tried last year to slip a few naughty words past the poor people at the DMV.

The rules about what phrases or letter combinations are allowed or not allowed vary from state to state, but KHOU in Texas explains that the general rule is not to permit anything that could be considered indecent, vulgar or derogatory. Texas also states that plates referring to "race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation are also not allowed, whether they are derogatory or not."

You're likely reading this with some curiosity about the potentially inappropriate and offensive language people tried to put on their plates, but we're still going to issue a content warning for, well, potentially inappropriate and offensive language. So, be prepared, this list may get inappropriate AF.