The discussion of the broadening of the meaning of 'unique' is interesting,  
but I see a different problem that I might call widespread  malapropism.
 
My students often create terms or use them as malapropisms--and these may  be 
derived from rap music or these may have their roots in Microsoft Word's  
spell-checker. Does anyone else know anything more about this?
 
One frequently occurring example is the word 'blase' to mean "bla-bla-bla"  
or 'yadayadayada".  My students will actually say: "blase blase blase"  
thinking that it is equivalent to these other terms.  So when this phrase  enters 
widespread use, can we say that the meaning of 'blase' has altered?   (even 
though most students who use it in this context do not know that they have  altered 
a meaning; they think they have learned a new word.)
 
The other phenomenon has to do with what we might call homonyms, such as: 
 
'chock it up to experience'
"she was a pre-madonna"
 
While these examples are clearly homonyms--and you think that the person  had 
heard the phrase and has just spelled it incorrectly, perhaps with the aid  
of a spell-checker--they really do express concepts that are fundamentally  
different from the ones they mimic.
 
Chalking it up to experience is different than chocking it up (or chucking  
it up) to experience.
 
A prima donna is a different concept than a pre-Madonna, even though they  
both involve females.
 
Any thoughts?
 
Linda DiDesidero
 
 
 

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