Processes of language change - changes in meaning/semantic change
Examples of amelioration
(1300 AD/13th century) nice which originally meant clumsy or stupid --> late 13th century it shifted to mean senseless, foolish or silly---> 14th century it shifted to mean fussy ---> precise and delightful --->17th century it meant kind or thoughtful
Examples of broadening
business meant being anxious and full of cares, but now it has broadened to include all kinds of work cool in the sense of style originally only applied to music
Some words shift word class as well
for example, from noun to verb, such as friend to friended/unfriended on social media
Examples of pejoration
silly originally meant blessed to be blessed was thought to be innocent, and not to have sufficient brains to work things out this is only a short step from being foolish, which is the current meaning of the word gaudy, pompous
Examples of narrowing
the earlier meaning of meat originally referred to all food, but now usually refers to food in the form of animal flesh girl originally meant young person hound meant any sort of dog and not a specific breed
Semantic change
the process of words changing meaning, including the following: narrowing, broadening, amelioration, pejoration, semantic reclamation.
Etymology
the study of the historical relation between a word and the earlier form or forms from which it has developed/the study of the ways in which words change their meaning
Pejoration
when a word takes on a more negative connotation over time/the reverse process by which the meaning of a word becomes more negative than its meaning in earlier times
Amelioration
when a word takes on a more positive connotation over time/the process by which the meaning of a word changes to become more positive
Broadening
when the meaning of a word becomes broader/denotative or more inclusive than its earlier meaning/the process by which a word expands from its original meaning and becomes more general
Narrowing
when the meaning of a word becomes narrower/denotative and more exclusive than its original meaning/the process by which a word takes on a more restricted meaning
Archaism
words which are no longer in everyday use or have lost a particular meaning in current usage
