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As a writer, it saddens me to see words or phrases misused, abused, and misapplied on a consistent basis. What's worse is that when words or phrases are misused, abused, and misapplied to the extent that the misuse catches on by the masses and is repeated over and over, the word or phrase loses its original meaning/definition and takes on a new meaning or at least a new nuance. In essence, the original meaning of the word dies.
When words or phrases are misused, abused, and misapplied to the extent that those words take on new meanings, we wordsmith purists must ultimately bend to the misuse and recognize that the word or phrase now means something different than what it originally meant. It is at that time that I hold a funeral and memorial service for these words. I lay them to R.I.P., and I, unhappily, acquiesce to the new definition. However, as much as I hate to see words lose their original definitions and take on new meanings, that very fact is what is exciting about the English language. It is alive and pulsating and changing! I've actually heard people say that their favorite dictionaries are those published in the late 1900's. Why? If you wish to properly communicate, you must understand and work with the present lexicon. My favorite dictionary is always the new one coming out next year. While we might not like the changes to the meanings and nuances of words, we must face them and even embrace them if we are to be able to communicate with others in our time and culture. I would like to list one phrase and two words and their original meanings and where they are in today's syntactical climate. Are they dead or just wounded? 1. Lion's Share: Originally meant 100% or the entire portion. However, these days, the term “lion's share” typically, this means “most” or the “larger portion.” If I said that Bob did the lion's share of the work, it means that Bob did most of the work. But that's not what it meant originally. The phrase “lion's share” comes from Aesop's fable “The Lion's Share.” In this fable, the lion got the whole thing, not just most of it. The fable is short and reproduced here below:
So, with great sadness, I lay the old definition of “the whole thing” to rest, and I sadly accept the new use (misuse) of the phrase lion's share to mean most or the larger part. 2. Decimate: Originally meant 10%, or one-tenth. As you can easily see, the word decimate comes from the word decimal, which pertains to tenths or to the number 10. So, to decimate something was to destroy one-tenth of it. Yet, today, people use the term decimate to mean simply destroy. For example, someone might say that the city was totally decimated by an earthquake. By that, they mean that the entire city was destroyed. One might say that half the farmer's crops were decimated by locusts. So, it no longer means only 10% or one-tenth. 3. Oxymoron: Originally meant a rhetorical device that uses seemly opposite or contradictory terms for effect but the result is something that is in fact real. This one seems to be difficult for many people to understand. So, let me give examples to help clarify. You can buy “jumbo shrimp” at the market. Now, the terms jumbo and shrimp seem contradictory, so you have an interesting play on words, but the fact is, “jumbo shrimp” is a real thing (and they taste great!). However, these days, people incorrectly use the term oxymoron to mean contradictory. For example, a “married bachelor” is not an oxymoron. Why? Because it is something that is not real. The term “married bachelor” is simply a contradiction, not an oxymoron. How about a Christian atheist? Is that an oxymoron? No. Why? Because it is something that is not real. There is no such thing as a Christian atheist. So, Christian atheist is not an oxymoron; it is a contradiction. However, modern misuse of the term oxymoron to mean a contradiction has led people to think that the term oxymoron is synonymous with contradiction. It isn't. I'm sorry, but I'm not ready to lay the original (and correct) definition of oxymoron to rest. And, I encourage you to use the term correctly and gently correct those who use it incorrectly. Although, a recent attempt of mine to do that turned pretty ugly when the person I was trying to help became offended and verbally abusive. (By the way, did you catch the oxymoron in that last sentence? petty ugly.) Here are a few more oxymora that you might enjoy: final draft - random order - working vacation - small fortune - freezer burn - soft rock, and one made famous by Charlie Brown: good grief. Remember, an oxymoron is not something that is simply a contradiction nor is it simply two things that do not go together. An oxymoron is a rhetorical device that only “appears to be contradictory,” but is in fact a real thing. So, there is no R.I.P. for the correct usage of the term oxymoron because it is not yet dead! The Original Meaning of Oxymoron: Live long and prosper!
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