[blackshoe]

Well, I can't say when "the old days" became "these days", but I learned what I learned more than thirty years ago.

[pescetom]

And I learned a little more than ten years ago. But on the other side of the Atlantic.

I think the important changes are those in 1NT opening shapes, rather than the related terminology. In 1985 Goren already considered 5M332 in 1NT as normal, whereas it's still a minority treatment over here ( although the beginners are taught that way).

[AL78]

pescetom, on 2024-April-14, 12:08, said:

That's the way they teach them these days. But I was taught that only 4333 and 4432 are Balanced and that 5332 is Semi-balanced (as it can be treated as either single suited or balanced, just like 6322 or 7222).
From a technical and logical point of view I think that made more sense.
But the modern version is coherent with opening all 5332 in range as NT, which is rapidly becoming normal.

I struggle to view 7222 as balanced when the longest suit is longer that the cumulative length of the other three suits.

[pescetom]

 AL78, on 2024-April-22, 04:16, said:

I struggle to view 7222 as balanced when the longest suit is longer that the cumulative length of the other three suits.

I don't think anyone could view 7222 as Balanced, but there are some 7222 hands one might choose to *treat* as Balanced, just like some 6322, so I think it is reasonable to consider them both Semi-balanced as Blackshoe proposed here.

Although the historical Italian texts I was taught from agree with you and do not consider 7222 Semi-balanced, which for them includes only 5332, 5442 and 6322.