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?
36,910 views
Word Icons
5,300 views
New!
And is one more correct than the others?
201,583 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
453,306 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
103,421 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
263,997 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
70,996 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
53,202 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
360,733 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
289,252 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
263,483 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.
546,835 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
156,518 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
40,743 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,178 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
161,893 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
886,123 views
790,360 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
451,250 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
323,852 views
And who put it there, anyway?
319,090 views
We're intent on clearing it up
314,283 views
Commonly Confused Words Quiz
Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.
You can make only 12 words. Pick the best ones!