2194: mood Dec 17, 2020

With long winter nights, many people are bound to get moody, but that said 'mood' used to have a much stronger connotation. Indeed, while many of the uses it had are similar to those of today, essentially meaning 'frame of mind', or even more strongly than today 'pride' or 'power' and 'violence', its uses don't end there. The Old English 'mod' meant 'mind; intellect', and would be used as a translation for the Latin 'animus' (spirit) and 'mens' (mind). The senses back then were not only broader but also used in compounds like 'modcræftig' (intelligent). From that now, while 'mood' on its own is fairly neutral, other connotations as in 'moody' or 'to be in a mood' are more negative. Keep in mind also that this was influenced by the use of 'mood' as it is found in grammar or music indicating a class of functions but that that meaning actually comes from an entirely separate etymology.