play along here
Words are kind of my thing. Being a former linguist who is still obsessed with languages, a former technical writer, and a current writer and editor, how words and language evolve interest me endlessly. So here’s a list of words that no longer mean what they once did.
1. bully
This word first appeared in the 1530s, and it has had a long path of change over the almost 500 years since that time. Back, back, back in a day, it meant “sweetheart” or “darling,” and it was used to refer to people of any gender. Over time, it’s also been used to describe an incredibly strong man, later a hired strongman. One of the weirder evolutions, and an oddly specific one, had “bully” meaning “the boss of a logging camp.” My favorite is its use meaning “several blennoid fishes.: Nothing more fun than a fish that resembles a blob of mucus!
2. fizzle
Another word harkening from the 1530s, “fizzle” once meant “to break wind quietly” rather than to something that begins well but ends rather feebly. Unlike “bully”, it didn’t have too twisty a path to its more modern meaning, maintaining its original definition until the 19th century when it began its evolution to what it means today.
3. torpedo
Once upon a time, the early 1500s, “torpedo” referred to an electric ray, the sea creatures with round bodies and short tails, containing electric organs. Later, it came to be used to refer to a class of underwater vessels created by David Bushnell, an American inventor. Only later did the word begin to refer to the self-propelled torpedoes of the modern era,
4. garbage
In the mid 1500s, “garbage” was not the refuse we consider it to be. Originally, it referred to the internal parts of an animal, the viscera. Only much later did it take on its current meaning.
5. meat
Prior to the 12th century, “meat” was more than just the flesh of an animal. Originally, it was used to refer to food, a word used to distinguish drinks from more solid consumables.
6. prestigious
Now, to be prestigious is to be honored, to be held in esteem. A rather positive meaning. However, the word once had more negative connotations. In the 1600s, the word meant “of, relating to, or marked by illusion, conjuring, or trickery.” It was only at the beginning of the 20th century that the word began to have its current meaning.
7. radical
Today, the word most often brings to mind the meaning of something that is very different from the normal/traditional, especially in terms of political and social views and practices. But from the 1550s, it related to the roots of things. Later, it became used in botany, referring to tubers that grow from a plant’s root. Both uses were literal, but over time, it became more figurative, referring to the roots or origins of systems and views.
8. clue
Today, we think of a clue as something that provides a hint or a guide to solve some kind of problem or puzzle. But once upon a time, a clue was a ball of thread or yarn. On the surface, these seem like disparate definitions. But in truth, the evolution of meaning can find its roots in mythology and folklore. A common trope in tales is that of the hero using yarn to help him or her find their way through a maze. That yarn was the guide that helped solve the puzzle.
9. nice
This word has undergone a complete 180-degree from its original meaning. Now, it means polite and kind, but there was a time that the word meant “trivial” or “foolish or stupid.” The earliest note of the word came in the 14th century, when it carried the same meaning of its Anglo-French origin. Later, in the 16th century, its meaning shifted, coming to mean “very particular” or “finicky.” It was only in the 19th century that it began to have its current meaning.
10. bimbo
Today, we think of a bimbo as an attractive but arguably vapid woman, a rather derogatory term. But the word originally referred to a man. When it first emerged in American slang in the early 20th century, a bimbo referred to a menacing bully. But in 1920, the song “My Little Bimbo Down on the Bamboo Isle” was written for a Broadway revue, referring not to a brute but to a voluptuous woman. The gender switch stuck.
11. alcohol
Instead of booze, “alcohol” was originally eyeshadow. Think “kohl,” the eye makeup choice of Cleopatra. Ancient Egyptians created their kohl from crushed and heated stibnite, producing a fine powder that was then mixed with animal fat to create a paste. In that form, it was called “al-kohl,” derived from an ancient Arabic word meaning “the stain” or “the paint,” Later, alchemists and scientists learned the term from Arabic textbooks and began applying the process to other substances, including distillation of wine to its purest essence… alcohol.
12. awful
In the 14th century, to say something was awful was a compliment rather than an insult. It inferred the subject was worthy of awe. Only much later were the more derogatory shades of meaning become attached to it. Those negative meanings are far more common usages of the word, but some of the original definition is still seen in phrases that use the word to describe something that is exceedingly great or large.
13. fathom
Now, this word has a pair of commonly used meanings. The first refers to understanding of something, and the second refers to a water-depth measurement of six feet. Before the 12th century, this latter meaning was its predominant use. In the 1600s, it evolved to use as a verb, meaning to probe, giving rise to its current verb use of understanding. But even before all of these uses, the word “fathom” meant “outstretched arms.” To fathom someone meant to encircle another with your arms. How does that lead to any of its later uses? Well, the original meaning of the word directly leads to the use of the word in terms of measurement. It was used to describe the distance, fingertip to fingertip, when one’s arms were stretched straight out to the sides.
And now you know!
This was great. I learned a lot!
Love that. I think we should bring back awe-full. I knew radical, only one.