I mean, "often, but not always bad" was what "code smell" was originally supposed to mean: Patterns which may have a valid reason, but which in the common case

I mean, "often, but not always bad" was what "code smell" was originally supposed to mean: Patterns which may have a valid reason, but which in the common case show some bad design or lack of understanding. But that's difficult to distinguish and act upon, so the meaning seems to have morphed into generic "bad thing you should never use".