this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2026
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Fair enough. I guess the meaning has drifted. There's no arguing with the descriptive nature of language. Lexicons are pretty much just language censuses. That's important because it's how language works. At least the older meaning of "verbal" seems to be preserved in legal and clinical environments. I feel like it has a value.
For example, if someone is making sounds with their mouth that are not words, it's oral but not verbal (under the older usage).
Sign language or text could be considered verbal but not oral.
There's value in having a word that encompasses both written and spoken words.
https://brians.wsu.edu/2016/05/19/oral-verbal/
http://cooley.edu/blog/end-verbal-abuse?hs_amp=true
https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/256370/what-is-the-difference-between-verbal-and-oral
Interesting, this is the second time today I learned a word that had an older usage that I first thought was wrongly used by someone. I just learnt that jury-rigged is the original term for jerry-rigged, and thought it was only used in the context of courts of law, but it turns out it originally referred to jury masts on sailing ships.