Daily Literary Quote
“Time changes all things; there is no reason why language should escape this universal law” - Ferdinand de Saussure Journal Prompt What are some (appropriate) English words whose meanings have changed over time? How do the earlier meanings compare with today's meanings? Why do you think language changes over time?
61 Comments
Gage Bill
9/22/2020 12:12:05 pm
Cap since it meant like hat but now days it means you’re lying
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Brooke
9/22/2020 12:18:51 pm
I call cap
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Colton
9/22/2020 12:12:57 pm
Lol used to mean Lots of love, it now means laugh out loud.
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Gage
9/22/2020 12:13:42 pm
Yeah I just realized that lol
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Karissa
9/22/2020 12:14:57 pm
This is a good one
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Tori
9/22/2020 12:17:35 pm
I didn’t know that, that is a good one.
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Anthony
9/22/2020 12:23:09 pm
LOL
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Joey A
9/22/2020 12:25:34 pm
Wow I just learned that I’ve never seen it used as “lots of love “ but all the time I’ve used lol I mean “laugh out loud” that very interesting
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Kendall
9/22/2020 12:13:21 pm
Silly used to mean blessed with worthiness
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Kendall
9/22/2020 12:15:01 pm
Now it means silly
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Joey
9/22/2020 12:23:09 pm
I didn’t know that at all and that’s awesome
Wyatt Linger
9/22/2020 12:15:43 pm
Huh that’s crazy!
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Lani
9/22/2020 12:19:36 pm
These are very interesting
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Karissa
9/22/2020 12:13:24 pm
A word that has changed over time is tea the earlier meaning of this word was just something that you drink for special events but in today’s meaning it is used to describe drama or talking about something interesting (“alright give me the tea”). I think language changes over time because as the decades go by teenagers come up with slang.
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Taylee Matthews
9/22/2020 12:14:26 pm
Dude that is so true
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Wyatt Linger
9/22/2020 12:15:08 pm
I didn’t know that!
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Gage
9/22/2020 12:15:37 pm
Everyone does it now days
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Brooke
9/22/2020 12:15:42 pm
I agree with your statement.
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Tori
9/22/2020 12:19:35 pm
I like how you explained everything.
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Wyatt Linger
9/22/2020 12:13:36 pm
Corona is a word that has changed for the world it used to only be referred to only as a beer and never seen as a virus now it is seen as both. When it was a beer it was something happy people would joke about and celebrate with, now when people hear it all they think of is the disease depending on how you use it and it brings sadness for all the virus has done. Languages change over time because we are constantly inventing and coming up with new items that may have the same term like corona and so the language develops with it.
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Kendall
9/22/2020 12:15:33 pm
That’s true
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Faith
9/22/2020 12:16:51 pm
This is very good
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Lani
9/22/2020 12:20:52 pm
Very interesting concept. Well said.
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Nicki
9/22/2020 12:13:40 pm
Dog: use to just mean the animal but now can also mean friend or dude.
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Karissa
9/22/2020 12:14:38 pm
That’s a good one
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Sammy
9/22/2020 12:14:23 pm
When I think of words that have changed meaning I think of awful. It was originally used to describe something great and worthy. It now means something undesirable. It is a drastic change from what it started out as.
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Nicki
9/22/2020 12:16:20 pm
I never thought of that.
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Lexi
9/22/2020 12:16:41 pm
That’s very true. It flipped meaning completely
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Jordan
9/22/2020 12:21:38 pm
That's a completely different meaning than it originally had.
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Brooke
9/22/2020 12:14:28 pm
Some words that have changed through the years has been “drip”. It usually meant like I drip of water or anytype of liquid, but now a days it means like a really good style. It changes because everybody has a different view on what means what now. They still mean the same thing but people just use drip as many different meanings.
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Faith
9/22/2020 12:16:02 pm
This is a good one!
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Sammy
9/22/2020 12:16:29 pm
Slang is definitely one of the most prominent ways language has changed.
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Faith
9/22/2020 12:15:20 pm
Flirting used to mean flicking something at someone and now it means you are attracted to someone and you are showing it. As younger generations grow up they take the words and make them to what they want the word to mean.
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Nicki
9/22/2020 12:17:22 pm
I didn't know that.
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Taylee Matthews
9/22/2020 12:18:19 pm
Woah really?!?
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Miriam
9/22/2020 12:21:42 pm
That is so intriguing! I would have never thought that.
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Lexi A
9/22/2020 12:15:22 pm
A word that’s meaning has changed over time would be naughty. Naughty used to mean having nothing then became to mean evil. It now means not behaving. The early meaning was found from the word naught meaning nothing. Words change over time as new ones are found and sometimes replaced or changed to make more sense.
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Sammy
9/22/2020 12:18:29 pm
I think some of this could be due to the Latin roots. I didn't know this one.
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Avery Cole
9/22/2020 12:19:20 pm
I never heard that before!
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Tori
9/22/2020 12:15:46 pm
The word silly first had the definition of being being blessed with honor but in today’s culture silly means to be funny or goofy. I think the reason why language is changing is because new generation have put their own twist on certain words and that’s why they change throughout the generations.
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Lexi
9/22/2020 12:17:36 pm
I agree with your last sentence.
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Avery Cole
9/22/2020 12:18:36 pm
Never knew that’s what it really meant!
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Miriam
9/22/2020 12:23:08 pm
Does that mean that if you are a silly person then your blessed with that silliness to brighten others peoples days?
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Caden
9/22/2020 12:17:04 pm
The word awful went from something meaning amazing or awe inspiring to something that means horrible and unwanted
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Matt
9/22/2020 12:17:07 pm
The word gay used to mean happy, now it means attraction to the same gender.Language changes over time to best fit our understanding and needs.
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Jordan
9/22/2020 12:23:14 pm
I appreciate that you used this as an example seeing as it is used as and insult these days.
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Avery Cole
9/22/2020 12:17:15 pm
The word “nice” used to mean silly, foolish, and simple. That is far from the meaning it has today. Nowadays we use it as a compliment. Language changes over time because of culture, as culture changes so do words.
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Anthony
9/22/2020 12:18:14 pm
Wow I did not know that.
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Colton
9/22/2020 12:22:06 pm
Thats interesting i wonder how one word change meaning that much?
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Anthony
9/22/2020 12:17:28 pm
The meaning of the word Apple has sprouted a new meaning recently. It now refers to the biggest and best personal tech company in all history. Whereas before it signified a mere fruit. Language changes because everything else changes around it.
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Emma Dahle
9/22/2020 12:23:00 pm
That’s a good point, that Apple (the company) changed the definition of the fruit apple.
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Lani
9/22/2020 12:18:33 pm
Nimrod used to be used to describe a skillful hunter but because of Bugs Bunny we now use it to describe someone who is stupid. Language changes because we always have new definitions that need new words and vice versa. And other times language changes because new slang forms. Certain aspects of language are just fads that we all jump on then leave behind to make room for the next. At the very least I think if anything else we'd change our language simply because we'd get bored
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Anthony
9/22/2020 12:22:06 pm
That is a good example.
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Colton
9/22/2020 12:24:27 pm
I wonder if the change in meaning was meant to target hunters
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Miriam
9/22/2020 12:18:59 pm
The word that is commonly used when talking to a friend before a sentence is dude. It is an easy word to use when trying to get someone attention such as “Hey dude...”. The actually definition is way different then how it is used. Dude is what they call the poop on an elephants butt. So now everyone is calling their friends a piece of poop that belongs on an elephants butt.
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Emma Dahle
9/22/2020 12:21:25 pm
That’s interesting, I never knew the actual definition of dude.
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Emma Dahle
9/22/2020 12:19:18 pm
Many words change meaning over time. The first word that comes to mind for me is the saying, “that slaps”. The definition of slap or slaps is to hit someone with a palm of a hand but it has recently changed to a slang, meaning to be excellent or amazing. Language adapts with humanity, people have many different views or uses on a word.
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Jordan
9/22/2020 12:20:43 pm
An example of a word that has changed over time is the word pretty. It used to mean crafty and cunning and now it is used to compliment someone, most times on their outfit or something like that. Language has changed over the years because teenagers come up with slang words or stuff like that.
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Matt
9/22/2020 12:21:41 pm
Very nice!
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Taylee Matthews
9/22/2020 12:21:05 pm
A word that has changed over time that first comes to my mind is lol. It first means lots of love but nowadays it’s laugh out loud. So many words have changed! But this is the first that comes to my mind.
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Joseph
9/22/2020 12:21:33 pm
K use to be just mean “ok” now k is secret for being mad to the person your talking to and not wanting to takk about it
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