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
A trick, sometimes played in malice and sometimes in sport; also a showy display.
Modern meaning
A playful trick or joke, sometimes disruptive but often framed as comic.
Research lens
A useful modern caution word because the label can still make harmful behavior sound juvenile and unserious.
Meaning trail
Early use
trick or sportive act
The word could lean toward show or deception from the start.
Bridge
trick with mixed malice and play
Sport begins to outshine injury in the social tone.
Now
comic or juvenile trick
Modern use often presumes entertainment before consequence.