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!
The best way to find information in the dictionary
37,359 views
And is one more correct than the others?
202,749 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
453,512 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
103,521 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
264,395 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
71,117 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
53,409 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
361,350 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
289,468 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
263,851 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.
547,061 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
156,596 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
40,856 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,218 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
161,980 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
886,262 views
791,400 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
451,655 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
324,113 views
And who put it there, anyway?
319,978 views
We're intent on clearing it up
314,533 views
Fashionable Words
Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!
You can make only 12 words. Pick the best ones!