Sense file
How the sense moved
The archive follows the dated record first, then reads the social or rhetorical pressure that hardened, softened, narrowed, or reversed the word.
Older meaning
The top surface of a desk.
Modern meaning
A computer workspace or a computer designed for use on a desk.
Research lens
Office furniture becomes interface ontology here: the desk does not just hold the work anymore, it becomes the work environment.
Meaning trail
Older use
desk surface
The literal work plane came first.
Bridge
something suitable for desk use
The adjective widened before computing fixed it.
Now
digital workspace
Office furniture became interface space.