Words at Play : Words that Used to Mean Something Different
Original Definition:
sweetheart, darling used of either sex
Example:
"I kiss his dirty shoe, and from heart-string I love the lovely bully. What is thy name?" William Shakespeare, Henry V, 1600
About the Word:
The meaning of bully has been changing for almost five hundred years now, with the earliest evidence of the word dating back to the 1530s.
Along the path from heartthrob to harasser bully has also meant 'a man of outstanding physical powers,' 'a hired ruffian,' 'the boss of a logging camp,' 'any of several blennioid fishes,' and numerous other things.
Ammon Shea