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?
214,869 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
455,290 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
104,449 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
266,449 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
72,111 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
55,334 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
364,646 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
290,525 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
265,646 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.
548,130 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
157,339 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
41,499 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,611 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
162,771 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
886,947 views
799,256 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
453,545 views
And who put it there, anyway?
326,915 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
325,261 views
We're intent on clearing it up
315,619 views
Challenging Standardized Test Words
Hear a word and type it out. How many can you get right?
Pick the best words!
