Pejorative
Introduction A '''pejorative''' word or phrase, '''slur''', or '''derogatory term''' is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or a disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hostility, or disregard. Sometimes, a term is regarded as pejorative in some social or ethnic groups but not in others or may be originally pejorative but later adopt a non-pejorative sense (or vice versa) in some or all contexts.
Etymology The word ''pejorative'' is derived from a Late Latin past participle stem of '''', meaning "to make worse", from '''' "worse".
Pejoration and melioration In historical linguistics, the process of an inoffensive word becoming pejorative is a form of semantic drift known as '''pejoration'''. An example of pejoration is the shift in meaning of the word ''silly'' from meaning that a person was happy and fortunate to meaning that they are foolish and unsophisticated. The process of pejoration can repeat itself around a single concept, leaping from word to word in a phenomenon known as the euphemism treadmill, for example as in the successive pejoration of the terms ''bog-house'', ''privy-house'', ''latrine'', ''water closet'', ''toilet'', ''bathroom'', and ''restroom'' (US English).When a term begins as pejorative and eventually is adopted in a non-pejorative sense, this is called ''melioration'' or ''amelioration''. One example is the shift in meaning of the word ''nice'' from meaning a person was foolish to meaning that a person is pleasant. When performed deliberately, it is described as reclamation or reappropriation. An example of a word that has been reclaimed by portions of the community that it targets is ''queer'', which began being re-appropriated as a positive descriptor in the early 1990s by activist groups. However, due to its history and – in some regions – continued use as a pejorative, there remain LGBT individuals who are uncomfortable with having this term applied to them. The use of the racial slur ''nigga'' (specifically the -''a'' variant) by black Americans is often viewed as another act of reclamation, though much like ''queer'' in the LGBT movement, there exists a vocal subset of black people that object to the use of the word under any circumstances.
See also * Approbative* Defamation* Dysphemism* Fighting words* Graphic pejoratives in written Chinese* Insult* Judgmental language* List of ethnic slurs* List of religious slurs* Profanity
References
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