Casual chat

I just watched an Instagram video about old gravestones in the New England area of the United States. For some reason, these gravestones listed the cause of the person’s death. That’s not something I’ve ever seen, and it’s not a custom I was ever aware of.

One headstone includes, as the cause of death, “casually killed by a wagon”. That’s an entertaining phrase in current English(!), but at the time “casual” must’ve meant “accidental” or “by chance”.

So I looked it up to confirm and found that that is actually the original meaning of “casual”! I did not know that.

But here’s the part that blew my mind:

The fairly-common phrase “casual acquaintance” doesn’t (or didn’t originally) describe a current relationship. Rather, it describes how the relationship started: accidentally. 🤯

And a “casual laborer” works when fortune provides a chance at some income. 🤯

Words are so cool. Some gravestones are cool, too, it turns out.

終