Semantic Change: Words That Rise and Fall in Value

Learn how words can gain or lose positive associations over time.

Besides changing in range, words can change in value. Amelioration is when a word's meaning becomes more positive. Pejoration is when it becomes more negative. 'Nice' comes through Old French from Latin nescius, 'ignorant'; in Middle English it often meant foolish, and only later shifted toward 'pleasant. ' 'Knight' comes from Old English cniht, a boy or servant, and rose to mean a noble warrior. Moving the other way, 'silly' comes from Old English saelig, 'happy' or 'blessed,' and drifted downward to 'foolish.

' 'Villain' comes from Late Latin villanus, a farm worker, and fell to mean a wicked person, partly because of class prejudice. Worked example: if a sixteenth-century character is called 'nice,' a modern reader may assume praise, but the author might mean fussy or overly precise. Always check the date of a text before trusting a word's tone.

• 1Amelioration: a word becomes more positive (nice, knight).
• 2Pejoration: a word becomes more negative (silly, villain).
• 3Check a text's date before trusting a word's tone.