A pejorative or slur 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
Late Latin ( la, Latinitas serior) is the scholarly name for the form of Literary Latin of late antiquity.Roberts (1996), p. 537. English dictionary definitions of Late Latin date this period from the , and continuing into the 7th century in t ...
past participle stem of ''peiorare'', meaning "to make worse", from ''peior'' "worse".
Pejoration and melioration
In
historical linguistics
Historical linguistics, also termed diachronic linguistics, is the scientific study of language change over time. Principal concerns of historical linguistics include:
# to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages
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, 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.
See also
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Approbative
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Defamation
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Dysphemism
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Fighting words
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Graphic pejoratives in written Chinese
Some historical Chinese characters for non-Chinese peoples were graphically pejorative ethnic slurs, where the racial insult derived not from the Chinese word but from the character used to write it. For instance, written Chinese first transcribed ...
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Insult
An insult is an expression or statement (or sometimes behavior) which is disrespectful or scornful. Insults may be intentional or accidental. An insult may be factual, but at the same time pejorative, such as the word " inbred".
Jocular ex ...
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Judgmental language
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List of ethnic slurs
The following is a list of ethnic slurs or ethnophaulisms or ethnic epithets that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given ethnicity or racial group or to refer to them in a derogatory, pejorative, or ...
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List of religious slurs
The following is a list of religious slurs or religious insults in the English language that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about adherents or non-believers of a given religion or irreligion, or to refer to them in a derogat ...
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Profanity
Profanity, also known as cursing, cussing, swearing, bad language, foul language, obscenities, expletives or vulgarism, is a socially offensive use of language. Accordingly, profanity is language use that is sometimes deemed impolite, rud ...
References
Further reading
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External links
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{{Authority control
Bullying
Connotation
Criticism
Prejudice and discrimination