The Unexpected Evolution of Language (6 page)

The word was moribund for most of the rest of the twentieth century, until sexual scandals involving politicians became the infotainment events they remain today. Suddenly, it seemed, all manner of presidents, presidential hopefuls, and televangelists were squiring bimbos on the side.

The word caught on once again, and it’s still going strong. Ironically, in light of its “male” origin, the word “himbo” was coined in the 1980s to describe male bimbos.

blank

ORIGINAL DEFINITION:
type of coin; white; shining

NEW DEFINITION:
unfilled space

For a word that basically means “nothing,” as in no writing, a spot where a picture used to be on a wall, or an empty stare, “blank” has had—and continues to have—a pretty fulfilling life.

Most of “blank’s” root words are akin to “white” or “shining.” That’s one reason a common coin during the reign of Henry V was called a “blank.” It was really shiny. It also wasn’t worth much, so “blank” and “worthless” began a relationship.

For a time, during the sixteenth century, the most common meaning of the word “blank” was the white space at the center of a target. The center of the target was white, but it was also empty until filled by arrows. Thus, a connection between “blank” and “empty” was formed.

Also during that century, losing lottery tickets were called blanks, which gave rise to the still-extant expression, “to draw a blank.” Again, there was a connection made between “blank” and “nothing” since a losing lottery ticket is worth nothing.

By the nineteenth century, “blank” started to be used in place of dirty words, e.g., “You son of a blank.” Not long after, it was used—without the word “cartridge”—to describe a harmless bullet. Perhaps the connection is to a blank stare that one sometimes associates with soldiers who have been too long in battle.

From all these associations—empty, worthless, nothing—comes the current-day meaning of “blank.”

bleak

ORIGINAL DEFINITION:
pale

NEW DEFINITION:
hopeless; depressing

At one time, something “bleak” was simply pale. “Bleak” derives from older words that developed into the word “bleach.” Therefore, someone’s tunic might be “bleak” from being out in the sun, or someone’s face would be “bleak” from not getting enough sun.

By the early 1700s, the word made a metaphoric shift. If something was “bleak,” meaning “pale,” then it had been used up or abused or drained of its liveliness. Thus, something “bleak” became something hopeless and depressing, something drained of vitality.

Bleak House
, Charles Dickens’s tenth novel, captures well the transition of the word. The novel focuses on a court case that drags on for years, allowing the property at the case’s center to become a slum, thus making it both “paler” and increasingly hopeless for its denizens.

Bleak Fish

Unless you know that “bleak” once meant “pale,” you will probably wonder why a common species of fish is known as a bleak.

The common bleak is a small-mouthed, pointy-headed fish that, while sometimes eaten, typically is used as a bait fish. The fish are, as “bleak” once suggested, very pale and opalescent. In fact, when they’re not being used to catch larger game fish, a bleak’s scales often are used to make artificial pearls.

bless

ORIGINAL DEFINITION:
to mark with blood

NEW DEFINITION:
to praise; glorify

The roots of this word all suggest blood, as in the type one might spill sacrificially on an altar. This meaning of “bless” endured through the Old English period. In effect, “bless” is left over from pagan rituals, during which one would give thanks to a god or some gods by slaughtering animals and leaving their blood on an altar. Of course, such rituals are found throughout the Old Testament as well. Remember, for example, that Abraham was able to substitute a goat for his beloved son Isaac when God asked for a sacrifice.

As Christianity took over the West, “bless” changed in meaning. Christians no longer believed in the validity of blood sacrifices, save that of Christ himself, so “bless” developed an image problem. By the Middle English period, “bless” kept the meaning of “to give thanks and praise” but lost the need for animal slaughter and blood spills.

Somewhere along the way, “bless” also took on another meaning. In addition to praise and glorify, “bless” also means “confer happiness upon.” There’s no reason, based on “bless’s” history, that this should be one of its meanings. It’s due to a semantic mistake. Folks just got “bless” and “bliss” mixed up.

bohemian

ORIGINAL DEFINITION:
gypsy

NEW DEFINITION:
nonconformist writers and artists

The French word “bohémian” meant “gypsy,” and “gypsy” comes from a Latin word meaning Egyptian. Yet the meanings of both of these terms—gypsy and bohemian—are wrong. The Romans wrongly believed the gypsies were from Egypt, and the French wrongly believed they were from Bohemia.

Bohemia, which no longer exists, was in central Europe. It occupied what is now the western two-thirds of the Czech Republic. These “bohemians,” as the word became in English, were itinerants. They had no permanent home, and many looked down on them. Some believed they dabbled in magic, and others thought they were intrinsically dirty. Still others thought they were charlatans (see entry for “charlatan”) who made their living selling worthless elixirs.

The word changed thanks largely to the author William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863). His most famous novel,
Vanity Fair
, featured a protagonist named Amelia Sedley, and her foil, Becky Sharp.

Sharp is described as being the daughter of parents who were “bohemians” by choice. Sharp herself is an actress, singer, and musician. The popularity of the novel—and of Sharp—transformed “bohemian” from a gypsy to an artistic person who lives, like a gypsy, outside of mainstream society. For that matter, “gypsy” now has less to do with ethnicity—as far as most are concerned—than it does with someone who is a free spirit. Essentially, “gypsy” and “bohemian” now are synonymous.

boulevard

ORIGINAL DEFINITION:
top of a military rampart

NEW DEFINITION:
broad thoroughfare

“Boulevard” comes from the same root as “bulwark,” and the root words mean “tree trunk” and “work.” The idea was that the defensive ramparts, or walls, of a town were built of tree trunks, and, obviously, it took a lot of work to get all those trunks lined up in proper protective positions.

When a village no longer needed its “boulevards,” they often would be torn down and replaced with flat streets. The French continued to call these routes “boulevards.”

The width of paths that once were city walls was much greater than the width of the average city street. Thus, “boulevard” came to refer to any particularly broad street, especially if it was decorated with trees. Given that “boulevards” once were trees, this seems appropriate.

Nowadays, “boulevard” is, for most people, synonymous with street, lane, way, drive, etc. It’s just a generic word for street that city planners sometimes choose because it sounds romantic. Boulevards aren’t necessarily wider than any other throughway.

bravery

ORIGINAL DEFINITION:
boasting; defiance (negative connotation)

NEW DEFINITION:
courage (positive connotation)

The words from which “bravery” originates aren’t positive. Italian and Spanish words suggest rashness, akin to “bravado,” while an earlier Latin word carries with it the sense of someone not “brave” but “barbarous.”

Thus, “bravery” used to carry with it a suggestion of daring … but in a pejorative sense. If one were “brave,” then one was probably foolhardy in the face of danger. He or she was the kind who would attack even when seriously outnumbered.

By the late sixteenth century, “bravery” began to transform into a laudable quality. It became a compliment, rather than an insult. By this time, most likely, even rash acts of courage were considered manly and reflected well on a king’s leadership.

The word’s original meaning is still reflected in a less-common use of the word “bravery.” In addition to “courage,” “bravery” also refers to fine clothing, the kind one might boast about or show off in.

broadcast

ORIGINAL DEFINITION:
act of scattering seed

NEW DEFINITION:
transmission of a radio or television program

Many of the words in this book changed meaning as Middle English transformed into Modern English, but “broadcast” is one that owes its most common current meaning to an important modern invention: radio.

When everyone farmed, a “broadcast” was a scattering of seed. Picture serfs out on huge, craggy landscapes throwing out handfuls of seed for their lords and ladies, dreaming of the day they might have a little land of their own.

Long before the advent of modern broadcasting, the word “broadcast” took on a figurative meaning. As early as the late eighteenth century, the word was used to describe anything being spread: news, disease, new inventions, etc. It’s no coincidence that the word shifted at this time, during which the industrial revolution was in full swing and the Western world was becoming less agrarian.

When radio became the, um, television or Internet of its day, “broadcast” was used figuratively to describe the programs that were “scattered” to the masses. Thus, by the 1920s, “broadcast” had almost nothing to do with agrarian seeds and everything to do with urban radio transmissions. When television became king, “broadcast” transferred to that medium as well.

The First Star of Broadcasting

Most fans of the boob tube have never heard of Stooky Bill, but they wouldn’t be enjoying the latest product-pushing “reality” series if it weren’t for this guy, who was a real dummy.