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Is there a difference?

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Easily create your own lists to study with!

The terminology you're likely to hear

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Pope Francis delivers blessing

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One month at a time.

Videos

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A Look at Uncommon Onomatopoeia

Some imitative words are more surprising than others

How Do You Pronounce 'Vase'?

And is one way more correct than the others?

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Ghost Word

The story of an imaginary word that managed to sneak past our editors and enter the dictionary.

The Serial Comma

Why don't they call it the Merriam-Webster comma?

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Alright vs. All Right

Is 'alright' all right?

Latest Videos

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2019 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

How we chose 'they'

41,271 views

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'Cordial' — Video Word of the Day 3/27/2020

adj. - politely pleasant and friendly

New!

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Is It 'Hanger' or 'Hangar'?

How to remember which is which

29,362 views

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'Ninja' — Video Word of the Day 3/26/2020

noun - a person trained in Japanese martial arts

New!

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How Do You Pronounce 'Groceries'?

Is there one standard way?

49,877 views

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'Gibe' — Video Word of the Day 3/25/2020

verb - to tease with or utter taunting words

New!

Grammar and Usage

How Do You Pronounce 'Vase'?

And is one more correct than the others?

146,452 views

there theyre their video

There, They're, Their

There, there. We'll sort it out.

96,338 views

video his or her

Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

The awkward case of 'his or her'

233,115 views

sneaked vs snuck video

Sneaked vs. Snuck

No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.

50,767 views

further vs farther video

Further vs. Farther

They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.

40,272 views

video lay vs lie

Lay vs. Lie

Tripping up English Speakers for 700 years

308,424 views

video title attorney generals

Is It 'Attorney Generals' Or 'Attorneys General'?

'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.

276,018 views

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Fun, Funner, Funnest

Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'

247,099 views

video its vs its

Its vs. It's

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

71,345 views

Word History

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Words of the Year: 1066

Why is pig meat is called 'pork' and cow meat is called 'beef?' Because English took on a big serving of French words following the Norman Conquest.

532,997 views

Hot Mess

"Verily, I say unto you, the public is a hot mess"

144,296 views

Cynic

How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.

32,424 views

videos pictures in the dictionary

Pictures in the Dictionary

The story of those iconic illustrations.

20,329 views

video soup vs soop

Soop vs. Soup

Noah Webster: the man who changed the way we spell... up to a point.

64,649 views

Most Viewed

video title words of the year 1066

Words of the Year: 1066

Why is pig meat is called 'pork' and cow meat is called 'beef?' Because English took on a big serving of French words following the Norman Conquest.

532,997 views

The Serial Comma

No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?

428,173 views

video literally

Literally

How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts.

380,077 views

video lay vs lie

Lay vs. Lie

Tripping up English Speakers for 700 years

308,424 views

video ghost words

Ghost Word

The story of an imaginary word that managed to sneak past our editors and enter the dictionary.

285,266 views

video title attorney generals

Is It 'Attorney Generals' Or 'Attorneys General'?

'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.

276,018 views

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Editor Peter Sokolowski talks about 'feminism' and the rest of our Word of the Year 2017 selections

248,918 views

fun funner funnest

Fun, Funner, Funnest

Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'

247,099 views

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Old-School Grammar

Many of today's grammar rules can be traced to the opinions of one 18th century writer.

234,425 views

Word of the Day

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'Cordial' — Video Word of the Day 3/27/2020

Learn the meaning and history of 'cordial' in our video series with TIME

New!

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'Ninja' — Video Word of the Day 3/26/2020

Learn the meaning and history of 'ninja' in our video series with TIME

New!

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'Gibe' — Video Word of the Day 3/25/2020

Learn the meaning and history of 'gibe' in our video series with TIME

New!

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'Timorous' — Video Word of the Day 3/24/2020

Learn the meaning and history of 'timorous' in our video series with TIME

New!

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'Welkin' — Video Word of the Day 3/23/2020

Learn the meaning and history of 'welkin' in our video series with TIME

New!

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'Fusty' — Video Word of the Day 3/20/2020

Learn the meaning and history of 'fusty' in our video series with TIME

5,217 views

See all Videos

Test Your Vocabulary

March 2020 Words of the Day Quiz

Which is a synonym of rectitudinous?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ