Legendary figures and the words that define them
Celebrated writers share their quest to find the right words
We're gonna stop you right there
What about Day Tomorrow?
And how did it get that name?
Word Icons
New!
And is one more correct than the others?
214,629 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
455,263 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
104,434 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
266,416 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
72,096 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
55,286 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
364,607 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
290,500 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
265,616 views
Why is pig meat called 'pork' and cow meat called 'beef?' Because English took on a big serving of French words following the Norman Conquest.
548,099 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
157,317 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
41,491 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,594 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
162,746 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
886,932 views
799,091 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
453,526 views
And who put it there, anyway?
326,622 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
325,233 views
We're intent on clearing it up
315,605 views
Challenging Words You Should Know
Hear a word and type it out. How many can you get right?
Pick the best words!
