How did the word ‘discursive’ end up having two contradictory meanings ‘rambling’ in common usage and ‘coherent ‘ in a philosophical sense ?
The root is the Latin discurrere, to run about; to run off in several directions. This gives us Middle French discourir, to run around or run about or (in the mental sense) in speaking or writing, to move from point to point.
Obviously, moving from point to point can be either orderly (moving from one point to the next in a structured way, with an end-point in mind) or chaotic (randomly moving between unconnected or only vaguely related points). Both senses appear to have entered the English language at about the same time, in the late seventeenth century.
Thank you UDS1.
Since this obviously isn’t a game, let’s move this to FQ (from Thread Games).