Definition Essay: The Origin Of The Word Gay

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How often do you hear the word “gay” being used in casual conversation? Nine times out of ten, the person using the word is using it in a negative way to say something is wrong or stupid. However, that is not the case; “gay” does not mean wrong or stupid—it never has meant those things. This etymology paper will focus on the origin of the word “gay,” its introduction into the English language, the semantic and phonological changes made to the word, the main use of the word and its idiolect, and why I chose to use “gay” as my word of choice for this assignment.
Like a number of words, the origin of “gay” is rather tricky to pin down. We do know that it is a borrowing from French. The English word comes from the French “gai,” but where this French …show more content…

At one point, “gay” even meant “noble; beautiful; excellent, fine.” However, this meaning was extremely short-lived (from c.1325 to 1802).
One of the most popular definitions of the word “gay” emerged in c.1400: “Of persons, their attributes, actions, etc.: light-hearted, carefree; manifesting, characterized by, or disposed to joy and mirth; exuberantly cheerful, merry; sportive.” To be gay is to be happy. This is personally my favorite definition of the word “gay.” It makes the most sense to me, and it is the least harmful. In 1597, a slightly strange meaning emerged. “Gay” started meaning “dedicated to social pleasures; dissolute, promiscuous; wild, crazy; flamboyant.” Basically, people who were called “gay” were immoral prostitutes until …show more content…

The new definition of “gay” is: “(a) Of a person: homosexual; (b) (of a place, milieu, way of life, etc.) of or relating to homosexuals.” As if “gay” could not just remain to mean happy and carefree forever, the good old USA had to go and sexualize it in such a way that is rather hurtful. At first, “gay” was just a slang word for homosexuality. It mostly held a negative connotation. Eventually the term stuck, and even today we use the word “gay” to refer to a homosexual individual. It is no longer seen as a “bad word.” However, many people today still use the word “gay” in a very hurtful way. You will hear people say “that is so gay” when referring to something they think is bad, wrong, or stupid. When used like this, “gay” is made out to be a terrible thing. Because of this, “gay” in terms of homosexuality is also viewed in a negative light (even more so than it already is by

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