# Names of some things have changed **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 3, 2016, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430 "2016-06-03T21:50:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/21 "2016-06-04T18:47:41Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > And “clockwise” is as good a term for something which has no external reference. Think “Right” v “Left” - define them without using terms which come down to “right” is right and “left” is left. Clocks, and yes, you can still get so-called “analog” clocks, move the way they do because they move like sundials; basically, they are mechanical sundials. We can keep “clockwise,” or we can say “sundial-wise,” which is a meaningless (to people who do not use sundials), but unchanging reference. Children are still taught to read analog clocks in school, because it helps them conceptualize time-- you know, how big a portion of a day two hours is. It will also help them later when they learn geometry. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/22 "2016-06-04T19:02:17Z")
> [@spamforbrains](#): > > consumption refers to any fatal wasting disease. It was often used to refer to cancer in the distant past when they couldn’t diagnose diseases very well. It does not mean the same thing as TB. It generally did refer to tuberculosis, however. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/23 "2016-06-04T19:09:27Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Later, 19th century psychiatrists introduced the Classical Greek-derived terms “idiot” and “moron” and the Latin “imbecile” as sterile and neutral clinical terms, but soon they too became stigmatized and the term “retarded” was introduced as a euphemism. One of my favorite trivia questions is “Who’s smarter? An idiot, an imbecile, or a moron?” Morons are smartest, then imbeciles, with idiots the least intelligent. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/24 "2016-06-04T21:30:11Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > **Retronyms** are another category of words the OP is looking for. A thing has a name; someone invents a new version of the thing, which becomes more popular than the original version; a new name (usually, a more descriptive phrase) now arises as the most common word for the original thing. > > Example: \*guitar \*—\> _acoustic guitar_ How about when an old thing gets renamed and new names get added: mail –\> e-mail, snail mail, voice mail, hate mail ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/25 "2016-06-04T22:58:44Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > **Retronyms** are another category of words the OP is looking for. A thing has a name; someone invents a new version of the thing, which becomes more popular than the original version; a new name (usually, a more descriptive phrase) now arises as the most common word for the original thing. > > Example: \*guitar \*—\> _acoustic guitar_ Used to be you had a “phone” on the wall of your kitchen. Then you had a “phone” in your kitchen and maybe a “cellular phone” on your belt. Nowadays you just have a “phone” in your pocket, and a “landline” in your kitchen. If it’s still there at all. Same with TV vs. “flatscreen TV,” which now would be “old-style CRT TV” vs. TV (pretty much assuming it is a flatscreen). ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/26 "2016-06-04T22:59:46Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > When I was a kid, “thongs” went on your feet, not up your ass-crack. Username/Post combo of the day! ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/27 "2016-06-05T02:06:55Z")
> [@12mgdaily](#): > > autism - Asperger’s > manic depressive - bipolar No, they are not new names for the same thing. Aspergers is a specificly mild symptoms to do with communication ; autism is the spectrum which can be the total inability like the idiot savant in the movie Rainman (Cruise’s character name was Rainman, what Huffman called Raymond … Huffman played the autistic.) ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/28 "2016-06-05T02:16:01Z")
> [@Isilder](#): > > No, they are not new names for the same thing. > Aspergers is a specificly mild symptoms to do with communication ; autism is the spectrum which can be the total inability like the idiot savant in the movie Rainman (Cruise’s character name was Rainman, what Huffman called Raymond … Huffman played the autistic.) Cruise’s character was Charlie. Hoffman’s character was Raymond. Charlie called Raymond Rain Man when he was a tot. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/29 "2016-06-05T02:33:33Z")
Somebody buys the naimig rights. Look at the names of sports events and venues. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/30 "2016-06-05T06:02:21Z")
> [@Me\_Billy](#): > > Terms needing to be changed… > > “Dial” a phone number. > “Clockwise”. > “CC” (Carbon Copy). > “Turn up” the volume. > “Ring up” your purchase. What’s wrong with “Clockwise”? Analogue clocks and wristwatches are still extremely prevalent; I’d suggest the vast majority of watches out there are analogue. Digital watches were an '80s/early '90s thing for the most part; although obviously there’s still some popular ones around nowadays (like the Casio G-Shock series). Also “Turning up” the volume is fine - heaps of audio devices still have dials on them which can be turned to increase or decrease the volume. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/31 "2016-06-05T06:50:24Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > Also “Turning up” the volume is fine - heaps of audio devices still have dials on them which can be turned to increase or decrease the volume. It doesn’t matter if devices still have dials on them or not. To try to apply some standard that “terms need to be changed” because they are no longer literal would be pointless–we’d be changing half the language. Language is by nature fundamentally figurative and representative. We not only would have to find a new word for the _desktop_ of your computer screen, but also for the _desks_ we sit at, because they are no longer lecterns or disks. To expect all language to be somehow absolutely literal is to misunderstand it. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/32 "2016-06-05T06:57:15Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > It doesn’t matter if devices still have dials on them or not. To try to apply some standard that “terms need to be changed” because they are no longer literal would be pointless–we’d be changing half the language. Language is by nature fundamentally figurative and representative. We not only would have to find a new word for the _desktop_ of your computer screen, but also for the _desks_ we sit at, because they are no longer lecterns or disks. > > To expect all language to be somehow absolutely literal is to misunderstand it. I don’t expect language to be literal, I just don’t understand why “these terms should be changed” is a thing when their reason for existing hasn’t changed? IE, analogue clocks are still prevalent and people still turn dials to change volume on things. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/33 "2016-06-05T07:02:06Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > I don’t expect language to be literal, I just don’t understand why “these terms should be changed” is a thing when their reason for existing hasn’t changed? IE, analogue clocks are still prevalent and people still turn dials to change volume on things. Right, that’s true–I was referring to the post that you were referring to, indirectly. IOW, even if there were no dials left, to abandon those words just for that reason would be contrary to how language has always worked. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/34 "2016-06-05T07:06:47Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > Right, that’s true–I was referring to the post that you were referring to, indirectly. IOW, even if there were no dials left, to abandon those words just for that reason would be contrary to how language has always worked. Ah, yes; thanks for clarifying - I agree completely with you there. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/35 "2016-06-05T07:21:31Z")
Personnel Department -\> Human Resources -\> Staff Services -\> ?? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/36 "2016-06-05T08:22:36Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Clocks, and yes, you can still get so-called “analog” clocks, move the way they do because they move like sundials […]we can say “sundial-wise,” which is a […] unchanging reference Only in the _Northern_ Hemisphere on _horizontal_ sundials. Here, horizontal sundials move widdershins and even in the NH, there were many vertical sundials, which moved counterclockwise - some still survive (and some of the early [continental clocks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%BCnster_Cathedral#Astronomical_clock) did, too). ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2016, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/37 "2016-06-05T08:46:19Z")
> [@Morbo](#): > > How about when an old thing gets renamed and new names get added: mail –\> e-mail, snail mail, voice mail, hate mail “Snail mail” is the retronym. The others are new terms for new things. You bring up an interesting point: what does the bare, original word come to connote? With “mail,” I’m not sure – a poll on this would be interesting. With “guitar,” I have the feeling a small majority of folks first think “electric guitar,” but I could be wrong. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2016, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/38 "2016-06-06T03:27:40Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > Also “Turning up” the volume is fine - heaps of audio devices still have dials on them which can be turned to increase or decrease the volume. I always get confused when asked to “turn up” the air conditioner in the house. In my mind, if I turn up the air conditioning, I am increasing its power making the temperature cooler. It turns out that most people mean that they want the temperature “turned up.” ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2016, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/39 "2016-06-06T10:15:45Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > I always get confused when asked to “turn up” the air conditioner in the house. In my mind, if I turn up the air conditioning, I am increasing its power making the temperature cooler. It turns out that most people mean that they want the temperature “turned up.” Your first definition is the one I would think of in the circumstances too, but I live in a state where winter isn’t really a thing so pretty much no-one ever wants their airconditioning to make things warmer. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2016, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430/40 "2016-06-06T11:11:44Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > This was renamed to emphasize that people who have it can be in any mood along a spectrum-- from pole to pole: they are not necessarily either manic or depressive, which was a common misconception due to the previous name. Sometimes even unmedicated people with bipolar disorder are neither manic nor depressed, but somewhere in between. If this was the intended meaning of the “bipolar” coinage, then I call it a misguided failure. _Polarity,_ in all other contexts, indicates a definite orientation. Some kinds of polarities may reverse, but they are never “somewhere in between.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-of-some-things-have-changed/756430.md?page=3)