Oxford University Press's
Academic Insights for the Thinking World
A teenager I know was recently at a weekend party up at a lake. Two of the girls there had an altercation and one pushed the other off the wharf and into the water. This was reported to me in the following terms: “Suzie and Nancy really had beef.” This was a new one on me. Did they share a steak?
Anatoly answers questions.
Ammon Shea wonders what makes a dictionary “hardcore”.
The podictionary word of the week is “croissant.”
At Book Expo America 2008 in LA, OUP held a raffle to win a free OED. Many enthusiastic attendees assured us they had sturdy a shelf that could hold the voluminous set. Let’s hope Angel Castellanos of Distant Lands, Traveler’s Bookstore & Outfitters in Pasadena, CA actually has a good sturdy bookshelf because he is […]
Ammon Shea looks at the word “make.”
Our podictionary podcast of the week.
Hermaphrodites are born rarely, and it is far from clear why their mythology achieved such prominence in Antiquity. Reference to cross-dressing during certain marriage rites does not go far, but the cult of Hermaphroditus is a fact, and Ovid’s tale of the union in one body of the son of Hermes and Aphrodite is well-known.
A look at the word “kettle”.
Anatoly gives a candid take on etymology.
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Questions for the month are answered.
Ammon Shea explains an alternative use for dictionaries.
Charles Hodgson explores the word “Assess”.
Anatoly explores why some words naturally go together.
Ammon, an expert dictionary reader, ponders Mayor Bloomberg’s dislike of the word “maintain”.