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?
215,743 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
455,426 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
104,526 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
266,560 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
72,170 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
55,491 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
364,863 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
290,626 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
265,770 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.
548,292 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
157,450 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
41,581 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,661 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
162,866 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
887,015 views
799,923 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
453,638 views
And who put it there, anyway?
327,916 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
325,419 views
We're intent on clearing it up
315,689 views
Challenging Words You Should Know
Hear a word and type it out. How many can you get right?
Pick the best words!
