Facing AIDS In South Africa
An excerpt from Shattered Dreams?: An Oral History of the South African AIDS Epidemic.
When Spellcheckers Attack: Perils of the Cupertino Effect
Ben Zimmer looks at modern spellcheckers.
A Few Questions for Laura Pappano
Pappano talks about Playing With The Boys.
Dictionary Day is Coming…
We’re just five days away from Dictionary Day, the annual celebration of all things lexicographical held every 16th of October. Commemorating the anniversary of Noah Webster’s birth in 1758, it’s largely an opportunity for US school teachers to organize classroom activities encouraging students to build their dictionary skills and to exult in the joy of […]
Quizzes and Gigs
Anatoly delves into word history for our entertainment.
The Girl Whom You Think Lives Here Has Left
Language changes through variation. Some people ‘sneaked’, others ‘snuck’. The two forms may coexist for a long time, or one of them may be considered snobbish. Once the snobs die out, the form will go to rest with them. Or the snobs may feel embarrassed of being in the minority and ‘go popular’.
Hippopotomonstrosesquipedalianism!
One question I often field in my capacity as OUP’s editor for American dictionaries is, ‘What’s the longest word in the dictionary?’ I don’t hear it as often as ‘How do I get a new word in the dictionary?’ but it still comes up from time to time. My stock answer isn’t very interesting: ‘It depends…’
Phrasal Patterns 2: Electric Boogaloo
Ben Zimmer’s follows up on last week’s post, Pouring New Wine Into Old Phrasal Bottles.
Monthly Gleanings: (July 2007)
Anatoly answers this month’s questions.
The Curmudgeon and the Catawampus
Anatoly weighs in on curmudgeon and catawampus.
On Faggots & Pimps
Anatoly weighs in on pimps and faggots.
The Mother’s Day Gift I Want: Author Joyce Antler Helps Us Celebrate
Joyce Antler helps us celebrate Mother’s Day.
Book Expo America: Party With OUP
Party with OUP at BEA!
Monthly Gleanings: March 2007
Anatoly’s monthly gleanings.
Etymological Cocktail
Anatoly looks at the origin of the word “cocktail.”
Raining cats and dogs
This is an old chestnut. How did ‘Raining Cats and Dogs’ come into being, and stay, in the language? The possibilities are few. A foreign phrase is occasionally repeated verbatim or nearly so, and turns into gibberish. It is possible that the first ‘cats and dogs’ were not even animal names.