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From Deer to Designated Species: Tracing the Semantic Shift of 'Deer'
Episode 263
Published 1 day ago
Description
Old English dēor once meant any wild animal, but over centuries it narrowed into the specific game we know today. This episode traces that journey—from Anglo‑Saxon manuscripts through Norman French competition and printing press standardization to Samuel Johnson’s dictionary entry—highlighting how hunting culture and language contact drive semantic change.
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