"The word silly is a classic example of pejoration, or gradual worsening of meaning. In early Middle English (around 1200), sely (as the word was then spelled) meant 'happy, blissful, blessed, fortunate,' as it did in Old English.
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1. worsening state: a worsening, deterioration, ... 2. change to negative meaning of word: a change over time in the meaning of a word so that it becomes less favorable or more negative. An example is the English word "cunning," formerly used to mean "learned" but now used to mean "cleverly deceitful."; ... [Mid-17th century. <
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Semantic change - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Semantic change , also known as semantic shift or semantic progression describes the evolution of word usage — usually to the point that the modern meaning is radically different from the origina...
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Oxford English Dictionary - Its first citation in this sense is from 1889: "Their [sc. words'] degeneration (technically termed pejoration;…) is often due to a selection and specialization of some ethically lower connotation which may be implied in them.";
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This process of language change, whereby a word meaning "worsens", i.e. becomes less favorable, is called pejoration. The opposite process is amelioration, i.e. a word meaning gradually becomes more favorable.
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Pejoration - Definition of Pejoration at Dictionary.com a free online dictionary with pronunciation, synonyms, and translation of Pejoration. Look it up now! ... Use pejoration in a Sentence...
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A Wisdom Archive on pejoration ... ARTICLES RELATED TO pejoration ... More material related to Pejoration can be found here:
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pejoration: Definition and Pronunciation ... World & News ... Find definitions for:
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Definition of pejoration in the Online Dictionary. Meaning of pejoration. Pronunciation of pejoration. Translations of pejoration. pejoration synonyms, pejoration antonyms. Information about pejoration in the free online English dictionary and encyclopedia. ... pejoration; pejoratism; pejorative; pejorative;
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Definition of pejoration from Webster's New World College Dictionary. Meaning of pejoration. Pronunciation of pejoration. Definition of the word pejoration. Origin of the word pejoration. ... Dictionary Home » Webster's New World College Dictionary » pejoration...
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