Oxford English dictionary definition, the etymology of the word artificial

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Oxford English dictionary definition, the etymology of the word ‘artificial’

Words are used to construct meaningful sentences known as phrases. The use of a word is essential in any language due to the feelings, emotions and descriptions it relays. Over the years, different words have been prone to change due to the change in different aspects of life. The English language is one of the dialects that are affected by this change. The change of words to different meanings, forms pronunciations is known as peroration. A majority of the words in the English language are subject to this process making them have different meanings as a result. The word “Artificial” is an adjective that is one of the words that showcase the level at which words acquire different meanings. The analysis of the word is thus ideal in that it explains the various forms the word takes when speaking the English language.

The focus of this paper is to provide an analysis of the word artificial. The paper looks at the origin of the word and the changes it has gone through over the years. The paper provides various aspects of the word such as the pronunciation, earlier forms of spellings and the metamorphosis of the word in all aspects. The paper does this through the use of examples to provide a better understanding of the explanations. The paper finally provides a concluding sentence that summarizes the content of the entire paper.

When one thinks of the word artificial, they immediately think of fake, knockoff, cheap and surreal. These definitions are far from the original definition of the word whose meaning has been interfered with over the years. The original meaning of the word artificial is belonging to art. This means that anything artificial has a resemblance to a work of art and is thus classified as an element art. An example of the user of the word in its original forms is “Michaels work is dedicated to that of an artificial subject”. This sentence gives a different meaning to the sentence in that the Michaels work is influenced by artistic elements. Art is creative in nature and determines a high level of creativity. The use of the word was referenced to involving creative forms so as to identify with an artistic feature. This is an example of the word in its obsolete or archaic state. During these stages, the meaning of the word formed a completely different meaning that the one it has in present day. The obsolete meaning does not make sense to a person in this generation making it irrelevant. The adjective is formed from the word artifice and is pronounced as ar-ti-fi-ci-a-lle in the dictionary.

Another obsolete meaning of the word is its role in the determination of time. The word artificial can be used to describe a part of the day. This meaning is different from the first definition and as a result displays the rate of change of the word has undergone. The use of artificial in time is used to describe the change from sunrise to sunset. An example of this word in a sentence is “This is the artificial part of the day that I am most fond of”. The two examples are both pronounced as artificially . This meaning is formed from the word “ artificialis” in the oxford dictionary.

The word began to develop into alternative forms making its meaning change. One of the definitions associated with the word is the lack of originality. During the classical era, people realized the significance of art making it an essential part of life. The society as a result placed emphasis on making imitations of art pieces that were not original. This gave the word a new meaning making it loose the dignity that it once upheld. The word original embodies features such as creativity, innovativeness and unique. All these elements were not distanced from the word artificial in that it acted as an anonym for these words. The word artificial thus acquired a new status meaning lack of originality. An example of the word in a sentence is “Most of the products sold in Dubai are said to be artificial in that they are knockoffs of original products such as Prada and Gucci.

Artificial can be used to describe a by-product of an item. As stated earlier, the word has changed over the year to suite the terms of society. Items that are said to be a mixture or a departure from an original product are artificial in nature in that they defect from the initial aspect. These produces are said to be of lesser value due to the fact that they are not innovative. The adjective therefore seeks to define products that are cheap. An example of this meaning in a sentence is “Polyester can be used to supplement silk as a material due to its artificial quality that makes it cheap” . The word in this case is pronounced as ar-ti-fi-ci-a-le.

Artificial is also used to define items, substances that are not natural. Natural is a word that comes from nature. Natural products are got from a natural source and do not have any additions. Substances that lack a natural aspect are said to be artificial in that they are not real. The adjective is mostly associated with this meaning making it different from the different examples provided in the initial definitions. Pronounced A-rt-ti-fi-cial, the word has thus developed into a meaning that bears a negative perception. People, items or services that are not real are disregarded as items of a lesser value. An example of the word in a sentence is “David’s lacks confidence due to his use of artificial hair to cover his hair loss”. The word is thus associated with man- made or synthesized products making it detach from anything natural.

Like many languages, the English language is developed from the mixture, addition or subtraction of different type of words. Most of these words have been traced to other languages such as Greek, German and Spanish. Despite the fact that English language is derived from other language, it is not often that people associate it with being artificial. The word is thus linked to different meanings which have become part of the English culture,

In conclusion, words are use to express a particular feeling, experience or situation. Different words can be used to describe different meanings. The same words on the other hand can be used to describe different meanings. The English language is has thus developed into a complicated language due to the change in society. The analysis of the word “artificial” acts as an example of some of the words of the English language.

Works cited

Complete definition and history from the Oxford English Dictionary