Terminology
When I come home from somewhere, I will sometimes say to my wife something about doing something as soon as i change, meaning taking what I am wearing and being nude. My wife says changing implies putting something on, not just taking things off and I should just say as soon as I take my clothes off.
Any thoughts on this?
She is wrong!
Synonyms for change
Synonyms: Verb
alter, make over, modify, recast, redo, refashion, remake, remodel, revamp, revise, rework, vary
Synonyms: Noun
alteration, difference, modification, redoing, refashioning, remaking, remodeling, revamping, review, revise, revision, reworking, variation
In common usage, when someone says they are going to "change" in reference to clothing, it normally means they are going to take some (or all) of their clothing off and put on different clothing. Thus, the joke when someone says they are going to change into something more comfortable and they emerge nude. It's only a joke because that's not what "change" normally means.
Nonetheless, if you continue to use "change" to mean remove all of your clothing and be nude, she will understand what you mean even if she doesn't accept that usage.
Nonetheless, if you continue to use "change" to mean remove all of your clothing and be nude, she will understand what you mean even if she doesn't accept that usage.
I agree. In a truly textile world, where people wore clothing even to bed, it is assumed that you were going to replace one article of clothing with another. But in our world, it can simply mean changing from a clothed state to a nude state, and vice versa. In either case, it means "not staying the same."