> "Citizen" has crept into the lexicon and has contributed to some controversy here and elsewhere. Perhaps "amateur" is a better term.
"Amateur" is the correct term, but despite its original meaning, it now means something else. That is probably the real reason we are using "citizen" instead. "Hobbyist" is seldom used by thoughtful people, deferring to "sideliner." It is a sad day when a word is misused to the point that it has to be replaced, but it happens. Now in well into my 60s, surrounded by students in their 20s, I often employ words or usages they have never heard. And vice versa, of course.
ΒΆ
Some examples:
Agenda
Formerly the plural form of agendum-- a single thing "to do" on a list-- the word agenda has become a singular noun encompassing the entire list itself. Confused? Think about the poor 17th century time traveler who goes into the future. The modern plural of agenda is agendas, so to them it would seem like an incorrect pluralization of a plural, or multiple groups of multiple things that are part of a group.
More recently, the word has taken on a more insidious meaning associated with scheming and proselytizing: religious agenda, political agenda ... See also: criteria, which seems to be headed in the same direction; and data, which has long since become accepted as an abstract mass noun.
Unique
The word unique isn't so unique anymore. It used to be an absolute which meant one of a kind. But in the 1800's its meaning became diluted as people started to use it to mean unusual or uncommon. And to make matters worse, they started adding modifiers such as pretty, somewhat, and kind of. How can something be kind of unique? You can't kind of be one of a kind. Either you is or you ain't.
Sadly, dictionaries are bowing to the pressure of the unwashed masses. The American Heritage Dictionary accepts the more informal usage of the word, but still draws the line at pairing it with modifiers. Merriam-Webster, on the other hand, has gone so far as to accept the inclusion of modifiers as correct usage. Damn liberals.
source:
https://litreactor.com/columns/etymological-evolution-12-words-altered-by-historical-misuse
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