What is a retronym? | | Technology changes fast — and so do our words. Labels such as "analog clock" and "manual transmission" are retronyms, words that have been created to distinguish from another form. | |  | Stewart Edelstein |
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| |  | | I nnovation sometimes requires differentiation between two or more types of the same thing. For example, at one time a guitar was, well, just a guitar. But technology progressed, and beginning in the 1930s, adjectives were required to differentiate between acoustic guitars and electric guitars.
These are retronyms — terms adopted to distinguish an older version from more recent versions. They're typically created by adding an adjective before a base term to describe similar items. "Retronym" is from the Latin retro, meaning "backward," and the Greek ónoma, meaning "name." |
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Emoji Decoded | |  | | Scarf | | | Meaning: Indicates a knitted scarf worn for warmth.
Evolution: When a scarf is not just a scarf, look to the Swifties. This emoji was popularized through the whirlwind of Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhaal's long-ago romance and brought to light again with the rerelease of "All Too Well" on "Red (Taylor's Version)" in 2021. Social media postings were overrun with red scarf emojis, in reference to the breakup and the song.
Usage: [Responding to a text about a friend's breakup:] OMW with cookies & wine. ready for all too well 🧣on repeat all nite 💔🍪🍷 |
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| | Scarf | | | Meaning: Indicates a knitted scarf worn for warmth.
Evolution: When a scarf is not just a scarf, look to the Swifties. This emoji was popularized through the whirlwind of Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhaal's long-ago romance and brought to light again with the rerelease of "All Too Well" on "Red (Taylor's Version)" in 2021. Social media postings were overrun with red scarf emojis, in reference to the breakup and the song.
Usage: [Responding to a text about a friend's breakup:] OMW with cookies & wine. ready for all too well 🧣on repeat all nite 💔🍪🍷 |
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Have you read? | |  | | Edgar Allan Poe: The Master of the Macabre | | | | This biography reveals how Edgar Allan Poe's personal demons fueled his gothic imagination, tracing the writer's journey from his troubled childhood through his struggles with alcoholism, financial instability, and grief. The author analyzes Poe's masterpieces, including "The Raven" and "The Tell-Tale Heart," while also exploring his pioneering contributions to detective fiction and literary criticism. | | | | Samantha Abernethy, Word Smarts Writer | | | | We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. |
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| | Edgar Allan Poe: The Master of the Macabre | | | | This biography reveals how Edgar Allan Poe's personal demons fueled his gothic imagination, tracing the writer's journey from his troubled childhood through his struggles with alcoholism, financial instability, and grief. The author analyzes Poe's masterpieces, including "The Raven" and "The Tell-Tale Heart," while also exploring his pioneering contributions to detective fiction and literary criticism. | | | | Samantha Abernethy, Word Smarts Writer | | | | We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. |
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You might also like | |  | | | | Why Fall Is Called 'Fall' — And Sometimes 'Autumn' | | "Fall" and "autumn" are to the seasons what "fries" and "chips" are to a certain type of fried potato — the words may imply the exact same thing, but they have varying usage by American and British English speakers. |
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