Cheap, neglect, fashionable, lonely, glow, hint, bedroom. All normal words used in day to day life. Would you believe all these words and many more were all in fact created by the illustrious William Shakespeare? An extremely distinguished poet and playwright, Shakespeare had a momentous influence on the English language. So many words we still use today most don’t even realise were coined by Shakespeare. His contribution to the English language should be noted and recognised, however, how many words he actually created is highly debated. This is often disputed as many of the words he is accredited to having coined, had only been recognised to be written first by him which doesn’t mean he created those words necessarily. And then of the words he did create were they actually created from nothing? A countless number of the words he coined were actually already existing just he had changed them slightly or used them in a different way. So, how much did Shakespeare really contribute to the English Language?
William Shakespeare is often regarded as the most intelligent and influential historical figure when it comes to the English language and rightfully so. Many would say you’d have to have lived under a rock your whole life to not know who he is as his influence seems to be everywhere. Apart from all of the plays he created, Shakespeare coined an endless amount of words and expressions to properly convey his ideas. Many of these words and phrases live on 4 centuries later, most of which, many people are completely oblivious to. It’s estimated that around the Elizabethan era, the English language consisted of somewhere around 50,000-60,000 words, which surprisingly is quite small in comparison to what it is now. So, for someone as innovative as Shakespeare, that simply wasn’t going to cut it. Hence, he had to find ways to properly express himself and refused to be restricted by the language he spoke. This attitude resulted in the creation of such a wide variety of words and phrases that soon became normal and common in day to day life, and even now still live on. It was this innovation that was so very appealing, that then resulted in these terms being as common as they are. Innovation is a very powerful thing, take for example Elon Musk, famous for his great innovations. As a result of Shakespeare’s innovation, he became an immensely influential person, especially in the English language.
As a result of Shakespeare being such an influential person on our language, he is often given credit for things he didn’t do. How many words he actually invented is often debated as different sources suggest different things. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests that he created 1700 words, though many of these words it accredits him with creating were simply words that can be first found written in Shakespeare’s works. This means he was the first to write them in recognised works but that doesn’t mean he created them. It’s almost certain that many of them were commonly used at the time in daily discussion and he simply borrowed them and then got credit for creating them. Although this is true, he did absolutely coin an abundance of words that are continually relevant. So, although he’s given credit for perhaps more than he deserves he has had a profound and long-lasting impact on the English language.
Another argument used to debate how many words Shakespeare created is that he didn’t really create new words. His method for creating new words often consisted of making use of existing words and modifying them. This consisted of using nouns as verbs and conjoining words to make one. For example, the word elbow obviously existed already as a noun, however he decided to use it as a verb. You can understand how this could commonly be viewed as not actually creating new words. Nonetheless, that doesn’t change the fact that Shakespeare was doing things with words that had not been done before to further express himself. Perhaps it helped in making many of the words that have become so influential recognisable and somewhat understood without need of further explanation, so they were easy to adopt into life. Without these coined words, it’s highly likely that Shakespeare’s works would be barely recognised as they wouldn’t nearly be as expressive as they are. So, it stands that Shakespeare did in fact create words that have stood the test of time as relevant and commonly used words.
Shakespeare was an influential figure when it comes to the English language. His contribution of words to the English language is without doubt substantial, just how substantial is often debated. He is often given credit for creating words that he almost certainly didn’t. Also, of the words he did create, people often argue that what he did was hardly creating words as he simply repurposed existing ones. Although not wrong, he was still extending past the confines of the English language to further express himself. Hence Shakespeare has surely been an immensely influential figure that has added words to our language that have become prevalent and relevant even to this day. So, how much did Shakespeare really contribute to the English Language?
I like the "Although not wrong"!