Comments on: What’s a Retronym?

By: Amy W.

Amy W. — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:35:20 +0000

day game, hard copy, land line, wheat bread, sugared soda

future retronym: gas car

By: PreciseEdit

PreciseEdit — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 20:49:32 +0000

I confess that this is a new term for me. I have been telling clients “Well, it used to be called just a . . . .” and asking “Do you mean a . . . or a . . . ?”

Here are my examples.

“Disposable safety razor” and “nondisposable safety razor” as retronyms for “safety razor” (As in “He left his razor in the hotel bathroom.” If the razor is disposable, this might not be important.)

“Safety razor” and “straight razor” as retronyms for “razor” (As in “He waved his razor in front of her face.” If he’s swinging a safety razor, she might not be too worried.”

“Hybrid car engine” and “gasoline car engine” as retronyms for “car engine.”

“Fountain pen” and “quill pen” as retronyms for “pen”

Hey, this is fun!

(Seriously, though, these terms may be important for clarity.)

By: sudharm baxi

sudharm baxi — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 06:26:18 +0000

Fantastic post…
People change, cultures change, attitudes change, ideologies change then why not WORDS…

By: --Deb

--Deb — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 04:35:44 +0000

LOVE this post. Looking back is fun, but looking back at word changes is even MORE fun.