Jamie's cat dies while Jasper was cat$-$sitting for her. Jasper needs to tell Jamie what happened but feels that he needs to "soften the blow" and not simply tell Jamie that the cat died. He has thought of phrases such as "the cat bit the dust" and "the cat cashed in its chips." These types of phrases are known as which of the following?

a$.$ euphemisms

b$.$ genderlect

c$.$ purr words

d$.$ argots