Of course I do realize that modern society uses words like "wicked" and "bad" to denote something cool, but that's not really a viable explanation, is it, now?
2007-01-13 15:52:23 · 5 answers · asked by Rockstar 6 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
Wicked is originally somewhat more akin to evil and an antonym to good, but if you apply that word to a competitive situation such as in "he has one wicked fast ball." What is very good for the pitcher is very bad for the batter; so in that case wicked is both a synonym and antonym for good.
This type of usage grew to encompass more than just competitive situations, so while wicked continues to have its original meaning, it may also now be used to mean good; but it is often left up to the context to provide clarification.
I hope this helps.
Good luck.
2007-01-13 16:04:57 · answer #1 · answered by Poetic 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think its funny that some people use the word "wicked" to mean "cool". I live in So Cal and nobody says that. Is it an East Coast thing?
2007-01-13 23:58:51 · answer #2 · answered by Becca 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is because the word wicked as an adverb means "very" which originated in Puritanical New England with the idea that anything that was fun, exciting or good was "wicked".
2007-01-14 00:00:37 · answer #3 · answered by ? 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
"Wicked" and "Bad" connote "diabolically clever", and thus, not a shabby thing at all.
The stumper in Bostonian is "pissa" which in British slang is horrible but in Boston slang is exceptionally cool. My London cousins were totally confused by "wicked pissa", which is the height of awesome.
Slang is a peculiar and wonderful thing.
2007-01-14 00:01:23 · answer #4 · answered by CYP450 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cause people talk stupid and society allows certain groups of people to get away with it, and actually praises them for their ignorance. Kind of like using "hot" and "cool" as both antonyms and synonyms.
2007-01-14 00:53:55 · answer #5 · answered by shorty_7123 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋