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From: debray@sbcs.UUCP (Saumya Debray)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re: Semantic Reversals
Message-ID: <153@sbcs.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 16-Feb-85 10:36:27 EST
Article-I.D.: sbcs.153
Posted: Sat Feb 16 10:36:27 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 20-Feb-85 08:54:15 EST
References: <101@mot.UUCP>
Organization: Computer Science Dept, SUNY@Stony Brook
Lines: 24

> There are some words  whose meanings have become perverted into
> a near reversal of what their origins would suggest.
...
> 
> unravel-- Means exactly the same as "ravel".
> 

invaluable : really means very valuable

inflammable : one would think this might mean _not_ flammable!

prove : originally, meant "to test; to throw doubt upon", e.g. "the exception
	proves the rule".

indefatigable: (I'm extemporizing here ...) you'd think the two negatives
		("in-" and "de-") would cancel out, to have the word mean
		"easily fatigued".  Along the same lines, shouldn't a person
		who's "intense" be very relaxed?
-- 
Saumya Debray
SUNY at Stony Brook

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