# Name a word that doesn't mean what most people think it means **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 9, 2009, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523 "2009-01-09T14:23:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/81 "2009-01-10T01:40:00Z")
This is as mucn origin as meaning, but **painstaking** is not _pain-staking_; it’s _pains-taking_. You don’t “stake pain” (whatever that might mean) when doing something painstaking. You “take pains.” ---
**Author:** ![Electric\_Warrior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@Electric\_Warrior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electric_Warrior)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/82 "2009-01-10T02:05:05Z")
**hopefully** – in common usage, this word is used to mean ‘if things go as I am hoping they will’ whereas its original meaning is ‘in a hopeful manner’. Of course I won’t get all up in arms about it because Merriam-Webster lists the common use as a definition and also says that people have been doing it since the 1930s. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/83 "2009-01-10T02:40:42Z")
**grotesque**. It means _excessively decorative_. ---
**Author:** ![AppallingGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9bd4f/32.png) [@AppallingGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AppallingGael)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/84 "2009-01-10T02:58:38Z")
1. Oxymoron. 2. Hysterical. 3. I’m still new here. ---
**Author:** ![MissGypsy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8491ac/32.png) [@MissGypsy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissGypsy)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/85 "2009-01-10T05:25:06Z")
I’m surrounded by people who use “ignorant” as a synonym for “rude.” I’m amazed my head hasn’t exploded, because every time I hear it, I want to smack someone on the head with a dictionary. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/86 "2009-01-10T05:26:39Z")
> [@MissGypsy](#): > > I’m surrounded by people who use “ignorant” as a synonym for “rude.” That’s ironic. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/87 "2009-01-10T05:30:05Z")
> [@MissGypsy](#): > > I’m surrounded by people who use “ignorant” as a synonym for “rude.” I’m amazed my head hasn’t exploded, because every time I hear it, I want to smack someone on the head with a dictionary. My mother has a friend who not only does this, but pronounces it “ignant.” I must have some kind of inherently superhuman self-restraint to not kill her. ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/88 "2009-01-10T05:34:23Z")
ME: I found that joke Mildred told about the octopus and the bagpipes very **bemusing**. BUDDY: You thought it was funny? I didn’t get it. ME: Exactly. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/89 "2009-01-10T05:44:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Slight hijack, and I apologize for this, but this thread got me thinking about one of my biggest pet peeves and I just had to mention it: The use of the words “peoples” and “persons.” > > People is already plural, dang it!! Quit adding an "s’ to it! > > Person is singular, quit trying to make it plural! > > Thank you for letting me vent. End hijack. People actually isn’t really a plural although it’s often used as such. It’s a collective noun like group or tribe or herd - a single entity composed of a number of individual objects. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/90 "2009-01-10T05:53:52Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > **grotesque**. > > It means _excessively decorative_. Not exactly. According to [Merriam-Webster](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grotesque), as a _noun_ “grotesque” means: > [@M-W](#): > > 1 a: a style of decorative art characterized by fanciful or fantastic human and animal forms often interwoven with foliage or similar figures that may distort the natural into absurdity, ugliness, or caricature b: a piece of work in this style This seems to indicate a fairly specific type of style - one I’m not acquainted with, so I find this interesting to learn. However, as an adjective, which is how it is normally applied, they list the definition as: > [@M-W](#): > > : of, relating to, or having the characteristics of the grotesque: as a: fanciful , bizarre b: absurdly incongruous c: departing markedly from the natural, the expected, or the typical Which is a little less specific, and does not necessarily have to mean “excessively decorative” as I would interpret it. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/91 "2009-01-10T06:09:03Z")
Sojourn. Many people seem to think it means “to take a trip,” probably from its resemblance to “journey.” In fact, it is a noun (not a verb) that means almost the opposite: a brief _stay_ in a location. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/92 "2009-01-10T06:09:50Z")
_Bring_. It means to cause a thing to be carried to where the speaker is. _Take_ means to carry a thing to somewhere else. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/93 "2009-01-10T06:16:12Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > Which is a little less specific, and does not necessarily have to mean “excessively decorative” as I would interpret it. Okay, but it still arguably doesn’t mean “ugly”, which is what people tend to use it for. It’s meant as _elaborately complex_, rather than just _unattractive_. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/94 "2009-01-10T06:26:02Z")
Comprise Epitome Apropos i.e. Stanch ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/95 "2009-01-10T06:32:50Z")
**epitome** was the first one that occurred to me. I don’t think I have asked anyone the meaning and got any other than some variant of, “a shining example”, “the absolute best of” etc. It means standard or typical. ---
**Author:** ![tr0psn4j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/96 "2009-01-10T06:37:23Z")
[boner](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=boner) ---
**Author:** ![Anomie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4491bb/32.png) [@Anomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anomie)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/97 "2009-01-10T07:30:15Z")
I’ll second infer/imply, and enormity when people really mean enormousness. …but frankly, this thread has been personally enlightening, to the point of humiliation. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/98 "2009-01-10T08:15:09Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Decimate. [[QUOTE=dictionary.com](http://QUOTE=dictionary.com)] 1. to destroy a great number or proportion of: The population was decimated by a plague. 2. to select by lot and kill every tenth person of. 3. Obsolete. to take a tenth of or from. Usage Note: Decimate originally referred to the killing of every tenth person, a punishment used in the Roman army for mutinous legions. Today this meaning is commonly extended to include the killing of any large proportion of a group. Sixty-six percent of the Usage Panel accepts this extension in the sentence The Jewish population of Germany was decimated by the war, even though it is common knowledge that the number of Jews killed was much greater than a tenth of the original population. However, when the meaning is further extended to include large-scale destruction other than killing, as in The supply of fresh produce was decimated by the nuclear accident at Chernobyl, only 26 percent of the Panel accepts the usage. [/QUOTE] I hadn’t known that there was controversy about killing things vs wiping things out. But I think most people use it now as the “large scale” killing definition. I’m pretty sure the 1 in 10 thing is really dated. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/99 "2009-01-10T08:43:54Z")
The use of “parameter” to mean “limit” grates on me, although I’ll admit that it may have become standard English through usage. I suspect the change happened because “parameter” and “perimeter” are so similar in sound. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523/100 "2009-01-10T12:58:07Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > People actually isn’t really a plural although it’s often used as such. It’s a collective noun like group or tribe or herd - a single entity composed of a number of individual objects. Then, why do you say “people are” and “the group/tribe/herd is”? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-word-that-doesnt-mean-what-most-people-think-it-means/480523.md?page=6)