Retronym

Aspiring To Be The World's Largest Collection Of English Language Retronyms (119 And Counting!)

Definition:

• (Greek: retro = backwards, + nym/onuma = name)
• A word or figure of speech that gets modified to disambiguate it from newer definitions, often brought on through technological advances.  The modification is usually an added leading adjective.
• "a revisionist renaming of a previously commonly-accepted label"
• "A word or phrase created because an existing term that was once used alone needs to be distinguished from a term referring to a new development, as acoustic guitar in contrast to electric guitar or analog watch in contrast to digital watch." - The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition

Original Coining:

Frank Mankiewicz, an aide to Robert Kennedy

Add To The List:

Got a retronym not listed here?  Let me know:  bjstiefel (at) InformationEngine (dot) com

The Collection:

1. absolute monarchy
2. acoustic guitar
3. AM radio
4. analog computer
5. analog watch
6. bar soap
7. bias-ply tire
8. biological parent
9. birth mother
10. black-and-white television
11. blue-collar worker
12. broadcast TV
13. bricks-and-mortar store (thanks to John Relf)
14. Bush 41 (thanks to Doug Orleans)
15. cast iron skillet (thanks to Lija Greenseid)
16. charcoal grill
17. Classic Coke
18. classical music
19. clay pot
20. cloth diaper
21. continental U.S. (thanks to Doug Orleans)
22. conventional oven
23. conventional warfare (thanks to Hiep Nguyen)
24. conventional weapons
25. corded mouse (thanks to Ernie Scheuer)
26. crystal radio (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
27. day game
28. day shift
29. day job
30. dial-up Internet connection
31. dirt road
32. disposable batteries
33. forward-engineer(ing) (thanks to Larry Hamel)
34. forward-field hockey (thanks to Robert Megginson)
35. film camera
36. flat-bladed screwdriver
37. fountain pen (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
38. full-service gas station
39. fulltime employee
40. free gift
41. free parking
42. free-range chickens
43. handmade clothes
44. hard copy
45. hardcover book
46. health food
47. heterosexual marriage (thanks to Paula Lopuch)
48. home cooking (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
49. horse cavalry (thanks to Philip M. Cohen)
50. horse-drawn carriage
51. horse polo
52. impact printer
53. incandescent light bulb (thanks to John Relf)
54. land line
55. live drama
56. live TV
57. log cabin (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
58. magnetic compass
59. mainframe computer
60. manual toothbrush (Procter & Gamble sells one under the Crest brand; thanks to Ernie Scheuer)
61. manual transmission
62. manual typewriter
63. mechanical calculator
64. metal golf spikes (thanks to Richard McMillan)
65. metrical poetry
66. monaural recording
67. natural blonde
68. natural childbirth
69. natural flavor
70. natural language
71. natural light (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
72. natural sweetener
73. natural turf
74. offline publication
75. oil lamp
76. Old English
77. Old Testament
78. one-speed bicycle
79. open cockpit
80. optical microscope
81. optical telescope
82. organic food
83. paper notebook (thanks to James Collins)
84. plain old telephone service (POTS)
85. plaintext
86. pocket watch
87. print journalists
88. propeller airplane
89. push mower
90. real cream
91. reel-to-reel tape recorder
92. regular coffee
93. representational art
94. rotary phone
95. sea salt
96. silent movie
97. silk stockings (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
98. single-wide trailer
99. small arms
100. snail mail
101. snow skiing
102. standard time
103. steam locomotive
104. still camera
105. stone ground (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
106. stone wall  (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
107. straight razor
108. Summer Olympics
109. tap water
110. terrestrial radio (thanks to "batman")
111. two-parent family
112. whole milk
113. whole wheat
114. wild animal (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
115. wildflower (thanks to Andrew Greenseid)
116. wood-burning fireplace (or stove)
117. wooden ship
118. wooden tennis racket (thanks to Richard McMillan)
119. World War I

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