LANGUAGE

15 Perfect Metaphors Hidden in Word Etymologies

It's human nature to conceive of abstract ideas through more immediate, concrete experiences—which is to say, through metaphors. Most of the words we have for abstract concepts began this way.

What Different Languages Call Sunny Side Up Eggs

There is more than one image suggested by a half fried egg, and different languages have settled on different ideas of what this egg looks like.

10 Pieces of U.S. Virgin Islands Slang You Should Be Using

Presented by U.S. Virgin Islands.

Bullet_Chained (monsters), AJWAD CREATIVE (SPEECH BUBBLE) // ISTOCK VIA GETTY IMAGES PLUS

13 Fiendish Etymologies for Halloween Monsters

On Halloween, witches and werewolves, ghosts and ghouls, and demons and devils stalk the streets for tricks or treats. But the real tricks and treats—at least for the horror-loving word nerds among us—might just be the strange and far-flung origins of the

The Etymologies of 13 Words From the 2016 Election

Here’s a look back at some of the buzzwords the campaign and candidates have given us—and a look into their surprising histories.

Why Do We Call General Knowledge “Trivia”?

Pull apart the word "trivia," and you’ll be left with two fairly familiar Latin roots.

Semi-, Hemi-, Demi-: What’s the Difference?

English has a number of prefixes that come from the concept of “half.” Why do we have so many? And what’s the difference between them?

5 Surprising Facts About Swearing

A new book by cognitive psychologist Benjamin K. Bergen delves into the profane side of language to reveal a host of interesting and entertaining things you might not realize about our relationship with naughty words.

Lookups of Lepo Spiked During Debate Discussion of Aleppo

During last night's debate, the candidates were asked what they would do about the humanitarian crisis in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

How Poe's French Translator Made "The Raven" Even Spookier

When October’s chill grips the air, we reach for those familiar spooky stories we crave this time of year.

Watch These Sisters Create Awesome Spontaneous Pop Songs in ASL

This video of Shaylee just sitting on the bed making up songs with her little sister Ivy shows the joyful, spontaneous side of language play that anyone with little girls will recognize.

Improvements to Google Translate Boost Accuracy by 60 Percent

The tool now tackles whole sentences rather than individual words.

The Origin of the Word Slang Has Been Found

Let me put this right up front. The headline to this post is slightly misleading, but not dishonest.

16 Expletives We Should Definitely Bring Back

10 Words with Hidden 'Shoe' Etymologies

By some accounts, the average person owns 19 pairs of shoes. But it’s not just our closets that are overflowing with sneakers, loafers, pumps, and wedges. It’s also our vocabulary.

Most Languages Use the Same Sounds for Certain Words, Study Finds

Concepts like "nose" and "tongue" share some of the same sounds no matter what language you're listening to.

Uncovering Thieves’ Cant, the Elizabethan Slang of the Underworld

This secretive jargon was deliberately designed to confuse the authorities.

From Bae to Zee: 38 False Friends

Chances are if you’ve ever learned a language you’ll have stumbled across a few false friends—words that look (but don't necessarily sound) similar in two different languages, but differ entirely in their meanings.

26 Unusual Plurals That Work Like "Attorneys General"

Some plurals work in unexpected ways.

Why Are Inferior Things Referred to as “Chopped Liver”?

The Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang pinpoints comedian Jimmy Durante as the first person to use this meaty metaphor.

Brits and Americans Have Totally Different Ideas of What ‘Frown’ Means

What is a frown? A look of displeasure, made with the eyebrows? Or a sad face, made with downturned mouth?

If you don't know, then you know these grammar rules.

5 Unofficial Rules Native English Speakers Don't Realize They Know

It can be shocking to realize that we are able to follow rules that no one ever taught us explicitly.

How One Podcasting Network is Trying to Save America's Regional Slang

One podcasting network is trying to help bring back America’s disappearing regional slang.

5 Annoying Latin Errors from an Ancient List That Predicted Latin's Descendants

Sometime around the 7th century, a grammarian got fed up and started collecting all the annoying mistakes that people kept making in Latin. He wrote them up in the 'Appendix Probi,' a straightforward list of the “say this, not that” variety.

PREV NEXT