play video title words of the year 1066
Up Next
Title
CANCEL
video title words of the year 1066
Word History

Words of the Year: 1066

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.

Up next

Autoplay
play video title words of the year 1066
Words of the Year: 1066

 

English was never the same after the Norman Conquest

play video title attorney generals
Is It 'Attorney Generals' Or 'Attorneys General'?

 

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

play ismo merriam webster one
Some Odd Words with ISMO: "The One-derful Won"

 

Comedian ISMO tries to figure out 'one' and 'two'

play video affect vs effect
Affect vs. Effect

 

Here's the lowdown on what may be the most confusing pair of words in the English language.

play serial comma
The Serial Comma Explained

 

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

play peter-sokolowski-indict-graphic
Video: Why Is There a 'C' in 'Indict'?

 

And who put it there, anyway?

play further vs farther video
Further vs. Farther

 

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

Word Games

dog-hard-hat-hammer
Odd Jobs Quiz Work smarter, not harder, to figure out these occ...
misspelled quiz cover
Commonly Misspelled Words Quiz Autocorrect can’t save you now.
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary? Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!
winning words from the national spelling bee logo
Spelling Bee Quiz Can you outdo past winners of the National Spelli...