I never challenged myself to know the origin of this word but I have perhaps unjustifiably assumed this word was a type of doublespeak like the one used in 1984, a way to deliberately draw attention to a system monitoring for disapproval. With the recent automatic censoring of words like 'dead' on various social platforms being shifted to 'unalived' the same spirit of mockery persists.
What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
11–20 of 337 posts
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#12I think I've always assumed it meant "unimpressed." That is not the "new" meaning under discussion, but they seem to hint at it when they say, "This new sense appears to stem from a mistaken belief that the first three letters of nonplus are there to indicate that someone is something other than “plussed” (although what being plussed would entail here remains a mystery)." I bet my meaning is the next change to this s…
I have never known it to mean anything except for "perplexed", as a hiberno-English speaker. But now that I do know the newer meaning I'm both mildly nonplussed and totally nonplussed about it.
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#13I think I've always assumed it meant "unimpressed." That is not the "new" meaning under discussion, but they seem to hint at it when they say, "This new sense appears to stem from a mistaken belief that the first three letters of nonplus are there to indicate that someone is something other than “plussed” (although what being plussed would entail here remains a mystery)." I bet my meaning is the next change to this s…
That meaning is actually already in webster, together with "not surprised, not bothered" which is probably what the articled describes as unruffled [1].
Not sure why the article pretends like they haven't already added the "new" meaning to their dictionary. Maybe it happened after the article came out
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#14This was one of my favorite "word of the day" entries, a word every speaker tries to work into their speech, at Toastmasters. The person who introduced it gave the two definitions and then basically said "it's the only word I know that means its opposite" or something to that effect. It got liberal use in every speech, including mine, and I still don't feel comfortable using it correctly.
Merriam-Webster has its own entry about just that topic: words that are their own antonyms! https://www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/words-own-opposites
> ‘Inflammable’ means flammable? What a country!
-Dr Nick
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#15As a Brit, I don't think I've ever encountered the latter meaning. I've only ever heard it to mean 'perplexed'.
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#16I've pretty much given up on trying to fight the evolution in the meaning of words. Singular "they" was one I resisted for a long time, but it's a lost cause. It still trips me up to hear it or especially to read it: what? did another person suddenly enter this context? I still avoid it myself, and think its use reduces clarity, but it is what it is.
Word usage changes, evolves. A word or a different meaning of a word often starts as slang, then expands to become common usage. It's usually (but not always) apparent from context what the writer means. And, following the guidance of Strunk and White, don't use a fancy, uncommon, or potentially confusing word when plain words will do the job. Writing "he was at a loss" or "she didn't know what to do" is a few more words but much clearer to more readers than "he was nonplussed."
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#17I hate this word. When I'm reading a novel it's often hard to tell which meaning the author intends, and whether a character is confused by something or unbothered by something can be important.
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#18This was one of my favorite "word of the day" entries, a word every speaker tries to work into their speech, at Toastmasters. The person who introduced it gave the two definitions and then basically said "it's the only word I know that means its opposite" or something to that effect. It got liberal use in every speech, including mine, and I still don't feel comfortable using it correctly.
[deleted]
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#19I've pretty much given up on trying to fight the evolution in the meaning of words. Singular "they" was one I resisted for a long time, but it's a lost cause. It still trips me up to hear it or especially to read it: what? did another person suddenly enter this context? I still avoid it myself, and think its use reduces clarity, but it is what it is. Word usage changes, evolves. A word or a different meaning of a wor…
[deleted]
Re: What's Going on with ‘Nonplussed’? (2017)
#20The word is skunked at this point. Using it guarantees that readers are going to have to pause and refer to the context, and depending on the context it may not even be possible to confidently disambiguate. Luckily both meanings have ample synonyms.