jim (02/11/83)
George Otto lists examples of words whose meanings have been reversed (obversed?) by usage, leading to confusion or surprise, words such as "decimate." One of my favorites is "comprise". Originally it meant "to include" or "to be composed of", but recent usage has turned it into a synonym for "compose", as in "The computer is comprised of a processor, memory, and peripherals".
benson (02/11/83)
I think that "comprise" has aquired its new meaning through confusion with "compose", since the sentence: "The computer comprises a processor, memory, and peripherals." is okay by me. The confusion stems, in my opinion, from a desire to sound learned. I see this tendency in myself and in others who use "reticent" when they mean "reluctant". By the way, I like these natural language jaunts, but I find it difficult to avoid sounding prescriptive, both here and in my work with others. Any suggestions ? Peter Benson ITTDCD !decvax!ittvax!dcdwest
debray (02/12/83)
Heavens! All this time I'd been under the impression that "the computer is comprised of ..." was terrible grammar!!! (-: Saumya Debray sbcs!debray
ljm (02/12/83)
Nothing annoys me more than hearing someone say "The system is comprised of", rather than "The system comprises..." Yes, if enough people do it, then it will probably become "current usage" and we'll all have to put up with it forever, but I'd much rather see stiff penalties for current mis-users now to prevent such a perversion... Fed up with lazy language users, Lou Mazzucchelli decvax!brunix!ljm
goutal (02/13/83)
For what good it may do, I hereby post my vote in favour of retaining the original meaning of "comprise" and of doing serious damage to those who use it as if it were "compose". <begin minor flame> I go by the general principle that any change in the language which increases its power is good, while any change in the language which DEcreases its power is bad. For example, the creation of a word where there wasn't one before is good; the confusion of one word with another, especially its opposite, is bad. Maximize information; minimize entropy. <end minor flame> -- Kenn
guzis (02/14/83)
I vaguely remember an 18th century report of a description of one of Sir Christopher Wren's buildings as - "both artificial and awful" Which was intended as a compliment! Artificial = having the qualities of an artifice; Awful = inspiring or creating a feeling of awe. Though, I'll grant "awful" was probably spelled "awefull". interesting how both words have acquired a negative connotation. - Chuck Guzis ...fortune!guzis
crs (02/18/83)
I (think I) (mostly) agree with Lou Mazzucchelli; ...comprised of... REALLY grates on my ears. On the other hand, how about we suspend the stiff penalties when I screw up? Charlie Sorsby ...!lanl-a!crs