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The title is from The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club (wash-up is the way one of the characters pronounces worship), but I owe the idea of this post to two questions. I decided not to wait for the next set of “gleanings,” because my summer schedule will prevent me from answering questions and responding to comments with the regularity one could wish for. Both questions concern Engl. r.
I notice that my posts on usage, including spelling, invite livelier comments than those on word origins, and most questions I receive also concern usage. This is natural, and, as always, I am grateful for questions, suggestions, and criticism. Today I will take care of about half of my backlog but will try to get rid of the other half in May.
The number of people in the English speaking world who distinguish in pronunciation between witch and which, wine and whine, wen and when is relatively small, and those who make this distinction do not say w-hitch, w-hine, and w-hen, but rather hwitch, hwine, and hwen. What follows is a breathtaking story of the hw-sound and the wh-spelling.
Anatoly Liberman’s weekly column.
Anatoly Liberman looks at the words “dodge” and “kitsch”.
Anatoly Liberman answers questions.
Anatoly Liberman looks at the word “humbug”.
For the third part of his Unpleasant People series, Anatoly Liberman discusses the recent origins of the word swindler.
In this post, the second part in his Unpleasant People series, Anatoly Liberman considers the word “Scoundrel.”
Anatoly Liberman discusses the word “culprit” as the first part of his Unpleasant People series.
Anatoly Liberman ponders what he learned this month, “especially” the “buzzword” “neologist.”
Anatoly Liberman discusses the origins of the word “squeamish.”
Anatoly Liberman examines the origins and meanings of the word “pun.”
Anatoly Liberman looks at the word “trash”.
Anatoly answers questions.
Anatoly Liberman looks at the word “dregs”.