LANGUAGE

The Interesting Etymologies of 71 Everyday Words

Here’s (at least) one interesting way station each of these common words made on its journey to the present day, whether it’s an analysis of the Latin roots, a hypothesis about a proto-Indo-European origin, or a pivotal change in meaning.

Never forget the last names of Henry VIII's wives or the order of the planets with these mnemonic sentences.

13 Mnemonic Sentences To Boost Your General Knowledge

“A Big Secret Conceals Her Past” will help you remember the names (and order) of Henry VIII's wives.

Exhibit vs. Exhibition: What’s the Difference?

You just went to an art exhibit. Or was it an exhibition?

DJ Khaled, Amal Clooney, and Rami Malek.

25 Arabic Names You’re Probably Mispronouncing

Loosen up your jaws, lift up those eyebrows, and throw a little phlegm behind it: These 25 common Arabic names are constantly mispronounced.

This list is your Annie Oakley to fitting in at the carnival.

16 Excellent Bits of Carnival Slang to Add to Your Vocabulary

Start slipping these terms into conversation and watch as your friends bally about how great talking to you is.

The origins of the 1940s phrase 'cooking with gas' aren't clear-cut.

18 Gobbledygook-Free 1940s Slang Terms

If you want to know what it was like to strike up a casual conversation in this mid-20th-century decade, we’re going to tell it like it is—with a list of the words and phrases any eager beaver would know well. Ready to find out what’s buzzin’, cousin?

Try out some of these words in your next Scrabble game.

11 Words That Will Win You Any Game of Scrabble

Mind your Zs and Qs on National Scrabble Day. And it wouldn't hurt to know your anti-inflammatories.

How Are ‘Scrabble’ Letter Points Decided?

How did ‘Scrabble’'s makers decide how many points each letter was worth? It started with an unemployed architect during the Great Depression, and it has stayed the same ever since.

The inventor of Scrabble was inspired by 'The Raven' author.

How Edgar Allan Poe Inspired ‘Scrabble’

The game wouldn't exist if not for a minor plot point in a nearly two-century-old story.

25 Double-Letter Scrabble Words to Have in Your Back Pocket

Add these double-letter words to your player vocabulary to take advantage of the multiples on your tile rack.

25 Words That Don’t Mean What You Think They Do

You can flout these rules, but you can't flaunt them.

Flip through the dictionary and you'll find all sorts of words hiding their bodily origins.

10 Body Parts Hiding in the Dictionary

Some of our favorite words come from body parts. Scratch your 'caput' over the origins of these anatomically derived terms.

Add "like an boar in a frank" to the list of Shakespearisms you should be using more.

10 Little-Used Shakespearisms

Not all of Shakespeare’s snappiest phrases and expressions caught on.

What would our thoughts be without language?

Is It Possible To Think Without Language?

Language is so deeply embedded in almost every aspect of the way we interact with the world. What would our thoughts be like without it?

'Psst. You hear about Ed in accounting?'

Why Do We Say We 'Heard It Through the Grapevine'?

No, it's not because of Marvin Gaye.

Behold: Denver Airport's 'Mustang' statue—or as Denverites call it, 'Blucifer.'

14 Denver Slang Terms You Should Know

There are some very specific terms surrounding cow smells, elevation, and a sculpture that killed its own artist.

‘Vur-Sah-Chay’: 20 of the Most Commonly Mispronounced Brand Names

Nutella isn’t ‘Nut-tella,’ and other lies you’ve been told.

Which Portland? This Interactive Map Shows All the Duplicate Place Names in the U.S.

Maryland and New Jersey each have an Ocean City. They’re not the only ones.

The phrase '86' may have originated in restaurants.

Where Did the Term '86' Come From?

There are a few schools of thought. Some have more legs than others—such as those of the restaurant industry—but to this day, there is still no official etymology. Here are a few possibilities.

Tiffany, Michael, Heather, Josh, and Jessica (or something like that).

The 100 Most Popular Baby Names from the ’80s

Are you a woman born in the 1980s? If so, there’s a pretty good chance your name is Jessica.

Orange you glad we're going to tell you what word rhymes with orange?

24 Notoriously Unrhymable Words (That Actually Have Rhymes)

Stop the presses—there is a rhyme for orange, and for purple. You just have to get creative (and maybe a little scientific).

(Left to right) Iwan Rheon, Morfydd Clark, and Rhys Ifans.

25 Welsh Names You’re Probably Mispronouncing

If you think the pronunciation of the Welsh name ‘Rhys’ matches that of the word ‘rise,’ this article is for you.

A word for sudden pain was made by reversing the word 'hooray.'

10 Backwards Words That Ended Up In The Dictionary

From allerednic to yob, these ananyms and semi-ananyms have backed their way into the dictionary.

Don't worry—you're not the only one who finds the definitions of these words hard to remember.

10 Words With Difficult-to-Remember Meanings

Sometimes there are words that you've seen, read, and maybe even used in conversation whose meaning you can never keep straight.

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