play videos pictures in the dictionary
Words Matter

Pictures in the Dictionary

The story of those iconic illustrations.


The story of those iconic illustrations.

Up next

play videos pictures in the dictionary
Pictures in the Dictionary

 

The story of those iconic illustrations.

play video its vs its
Its vs. It's

 

Some practical guidance, and interesting history, about a common mistake.

play video ghost words
How a Ghost Word Appeared in the Dictionary

 

An imaginary word that snuck into the dictionary

play video how a word gets into the dicionary
How a Word Gets into the Dictionary

 

What our editors are looking for when they enter words in Merriam-Webster.

play video ending a sentence with a preposition
Ending a Sentence with a Preposition

 

An old-fashioned rule we can no longer put up with.

play video soup vs soop
An Abbreviated History of American English Spelling

 

Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut

play sneaked vs snuck video
Sneaked vs. Snuck

 

How the irregular 'snuck' sneaked into the dictionary