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
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And is one more correct than the others?
215,578 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
455,399 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
104,518 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
266,543 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
72,153 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
55,466 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
364,824 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
290,607 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
265,746 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.
548,264 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
157,426 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
41,564 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,652 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
162,847 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
887,002 views
799,807 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
453,618 views
And who put it there, anyway?
327,765 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
325,393 views
We're intent on clearing it up
315,677 views
Commonly Confused Words Quiz
Hear a word and type it out. How many can you get right?
Pick the best words!
