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?
The best way to find information in the dictionary
New!
Word Icons
37,340 views
5,462 views
And is one more correct than the others?
202,568 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
453,486 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
103,507 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
264,378 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
71,073 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
53,382 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
361,223 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
289,435 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
263,802 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.
547,044 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
156,582 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
40,839 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,211 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
161,970 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
886,241 views
791,278 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
451,591 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
324,087 views
And who put it there, anyway?
319,853 views
We're intent on clearing it up
314,495 views
Fashionable Words
Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.
You can make only 12 words. Pick the best ones!