A list of words are given below have undergone semantic shift in English and oth

Question

A list of words are given below have undergone semantic shift in English and other languages. The words to the left of the arrow (>) give the original meaning of the form; to the right of the arrow the word itself is listed.

Identify what kind of semantic shift each word has undergone: transfer, pejoration, narrowing, amelioration.

'any crawling creature' > worm

'warlike' > chivalrous

'pleasure' > lust

Latin tripaliare 'torture with a 3-spiked instrument' > French travailler 'work'

'any crawling creature' > worm

'warlike' > chivalrous

'pleasure' > lust

Latin tripaliare 'torture with a 3-spiked instrument' > French travailler 'work'

Explanation / Answer

1. Narrowing: 'any crawling creature' > worm.

2. Transfer: 'warlike' > chivalrous.

3. Pejoration: 'pleasure' > lust.

4. Amelioration: Latin tripaliare 'torture with a 3-spiked instrument' > French travailler 'work'.

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