Definition:
The upgrading or elevation of a word's meaning, as when a word with a negative sense develops a positive one. Contrast with pejoration. See also: Etymology.
Etymology:
From the Latin, "better"Examples and Observations:
- "Amelioration, whereby a word takes on favorable connotations and deterioration whereby it takes on pejorative associations, are often telling indications of social change. There is a particularly pregnant category ably defined by C.S. Lewis as 'the moralization of status words' (1960) . . .. By this process terms originally denoting status and class slowly acquired moral connotations, favorable and otherwise, evaluative of the moral conduct commonly attributed to that class. Hence, villein, a medieval serf, and Anglo-Saxon ceorl, still lower in the hierarchy, deteriorated to villain and churlish, while noble and gentle, predictably, rose in moral connotations. In more recent times, the steady amelioration of ambitious and aggressive reveals a change in attitude towards those who seek advancement or 'success' in a highly competitive fashion."
(Geoffroy Hughes, Words in Time: A Social History of the English Vocabulary. Basil Blackwell, 1988) - "The word nice is a classic example of amelioration . . .. This is a rare occurrence, compared with the opposite process of pejoration, or downgrading.
"The meaning of nice when it first appeared in Middle English (about 1300) was '(of persons or their actions) foolish, silly, simple; ignorant, senseless, absurd.'
" . . . A shift away from disparagement began in the 1500s, with such meanings as 'requiring or involving great precision or accuracy.' . . .
"The movement toward amelioration reached its apex in the 1800s with such meanings as 'kind and considerate, friendly.'"
(Sol Steinmetz, Semantic Antics: How and Why Words Change Meanings. Random House, 2008)
Pronunciation: a-MEEL-ya-RAY-shun
Also Known As: upgrading
