“The naughty boy had no possessions and was thus virtuous.”
Semantic shift Entry 257 / 1011 60-second read
Naughty (Semantic Shift)
Originally meant 'having nothing' — now means 'misbehaving' or 'disobedient'.
The comparisoni
“The naughty boy was disobedient and misbehaved in class.”
More examplesii
01
The naughty orphan had no money and was destitute.
The naughty child was sent to bed without supper.
02
His naughty state of having nothing made him admirable.
His naughty behavior of staying up late was funny.
03
The naughty peasants lacked property and were virtuous.
The naughty employees were breaking company rules.
The ruleiii
¶
SEMANTIC SHIFT VIA METAPHOR: Naughty went from 'destitute' to 'deficient in morality' by metaph…
Naughty started as 'having naught (nothing)' — being poor or without. This evolved into 'lacking virtue' and finally 'misbehaving'.
Memory aidiv
Remember it like this
Naughty = naught + y. From 'having nothing' → 'morally nothing' → 'misbehaving'.