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cover of episode Is ‘sick’...good? What we think of posh language and class. Misunderseed

Is ‘sick’...good? What we think of posh language and class. Misunderseed

2025/7/1
logo of podcast Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing
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Mignon Fogarty: 我发现用“sick”来表示“好”的现象由来已久，并非新鲜事。这种词义反转的过程已经持续了数十年甚至数个世纪，以至于有时词义的翻转不仅仅发生在俚语中，也出现在官方用法中。例如，“bad”这个词在20世纪的大部分时间里，在爵士乐和嘻哈文化中被用来表示“好”。还有“nice”这个词，以前有“愚蠢”的意思，现在却表示“友善”。词义的变化也与社会价值观有关。当女性受到贬低时，与女性相关的词语也会带有负面色彩。但当社会对某个群体的看法变得积极时，用于描述他们的词语也会变得更加积极。作为语言使用者，我们应该认识到词义的流动性和社会性，理解语言的演变是自然而然的现象。我个人认为，俚语的出现是为了区分群体内外，是语言保持活力的表现。 Mignon Fogarty: 词义的转变是语言发展中常见的现象，例如从坏到好，或者从好到坏，有时还会来回变化。这种现象与社会规范的变迁密切相关。当女性受到贬低时，与她们相关的词语可能会带有负面色彩，但当女性的地位提高时，这些词语的含义也会变得更加积极。年轻人常常会创新俚语，赋予旧词新的含义，以此来区分群体内外。虽然特定的俚语可能会过时，但俚语本身和语义反转是语言中长期存在的特征，并且会一直存在下去。每一代年轻人在学习社区和文化语言时，都会对语言进行改造，增加新的词语和含义，并抛弃旧的用法。所以，我们不必对词义的变化感到惊讶或担忧，而应该以开放的心态接受语言的演变。

Deep Dive

Chapters
This chapter explores the evolution of word meanings, specifically focusing on how words with negative connotations can transition to positive ones. It uses examples like "sick," "bad," and "nice" to illustrate this semantic shift and the linguistic processes behind it.
  • Semantic inversion: words taking on the opposite meaning
  • Amelioration: words gaining positive connotations
  • Pejoration: words becoming more negative
  • Slang's role in meaning change
  • Arbitrary relationship between words and meanings

Shownotes Transcript

  1. Is “sick” really “good”? This week, we explore how words flip their meanings and why language changes over time. Then, we look at the 1950s idea of "U and Non-U English" and what it tells us about social climbing.

The "sick" segment was written by Natalie Schilling, a professor emerita of linguistics at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and who runs a forensic linguistics consulting firm. You can find her on LinkedIn.

The "posh" segment was by Karen Lunde, a former Quick & Dirty Tips editor and digital pioneer who's been spinning words into gold since before cat videos ruled the internet. She created one of the first online writing workshops, and she's published thousands of articles on the art of writing. These days, she leads personal narrative writing retreats and helps writers find their voice. Visit her at ChanterelleStoryStudio.com).

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