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Est. 1828

Wordplay

For the love of language
angry child yellingangry child yelling

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

So beautiful. So useless.
cat sleeping upside down on sofa

Words for Lazy People and Laziness

Indolence, Malingerer, Draffsack: the right word for when you just don't have the energy
man undecided about which donut to eat

Another Ten Ways to Improve Your Vocabulary

Simple But Intelligent Word Choices, Vol. 3
  • Arts & Culture
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Popular

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Dice, Dice, Baby: 8 Dungeons & Dragons Words

Chaotic and good, like English itself
gridlock in a crowded highway and intersection

The Words of the Week - Sept. 22

Lookups from the United Nations, politics, and high school football
alt-64f1e60bd443a

Ahoy! Ten Words for Talking Like a Pirate

Whether on International Talk Like a Pirate Day or any day!
woman standing in a wheat field with sun setting in background

Etymologies for Every Day of the Week

The sun, the moon, four gods, and a goddess.
chicken in flight

7 Common Idioms That Come from Chickens

Don't ask us which came first
tree frog on a twig

12 Pairs of Commonly Confused Animal Words

The animal words went in two by two, hurrah, hurrah!
young woman looking delighted as she reads a book

17 Words With No English Meaning

Unique words from around the globe
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Galaxy Brain: 10 Words for Deep Thoughts

What's (another word for) the big idea?

Arts & Culture

See All
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Merriam-Webster's Short List of Gender and Identity Terms

In case you (or someone you know) has questions about what they mean
parkway

Why Do We Park in the Driveway and Drive on the Parkway?

The answer to one of life's big questions
top 10 surprising food words sweetbreads

10 Surprisingly Odd Food Names

The Sometimes-Sweet, Sometimes-Unsavory Story Behind Some Bizarre Foods
microphone on stage

Pop Rhetoric: Our Favorites

Rhetorical devices in pop songs
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'When Pigs Fly' and Other Barnyard Idioms

24 down-home turns of phrase
See All

Games & Hobbies

See All
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Know Your Baseball Idioms

Our national pastime. No, the other one.
tennis-score-of-zero

Why 'Love' Means "Nothing"

In tennis. This is about tennis.
wilt chamberlain 1967

12 Words From Basketball

Plus a few terms that never quite made it
the world-famous spirit island and maligne lake at dusk jasper national park alberta canada

19 Palindromes You Might Not Know

Learn some fun vocabulary with these palindromes!
young video game players exchanging fist bumps at a tournament

Popular Gaming Terms Explained

Nerfs, MMORPGs, and who the final boss really is
See All

Insults

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top 10 sophisticated insults

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

A list we hope you don't find 'insipid'
theater mask

The Origin of 'Hypocrite'

This one's surprisingly dramatic
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7 Shakespearean Insults to Make Life More Interesting

One for each day of the week
words for talkative pleonasm

You Talk Too Much: 8 Words for the Wordy

You can't shut them up, but you can label them
confused young man staring at blackboard

Rare and Amusing Insults, Volume 3

Useful words for everyday interactions
See All

Obscure & Fun

Obscure & Fun

  • 30 Ways to Tell the Future

    Let us know if any of these work for you
  • A Wicked Awesome List of New England Words

    Things you may overhear when you park your car at Harvard Yard
  • 9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

    Get your mind into the gutter
  • Desiderium, and More Obscure Feeling Words

    Think 'there are no words'? Think again.
  • See All
image297597234

12 Words from the Wrong Side of the Law

Crime doesn't pay, but vocabulary might

Foreign

See All
two mugs cheersing one has british flag on it

10 of Our Favourite British Words and Slang

Please don't whinge about being knackered, you prat.
red wine being poured into glass

'In Vino Veritas' and Other Latin Phrases to Live By

Top 10 Latin Phrases
aztec

10 Words from Nahuatl, the Language of the Aztecs

Avocado, chocolate, and more
bechamel in small dish

A Guide to the Names of French Sauces

17 saucy terms (and how to say them)
steps-from-exorcist-film

Giving Meaning to the Latin (and French) in 'The Exorcist'

Say "Howdy" to these Latin phrases
See All

Science & Nature

See All
top 10 unusual phobias vol 2 kinesophobia

What Is a 'Coulrophobe' So Afraid Of?

Unusual Phobias, Vol. 2
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Fruit vs. Vegetable

Are you sure you know which is what?
body parts video

When Body Parts Are Also Verbs

Head, shoulders, metaphors, and toes
12 words that secretly come from body parts sarcasm

12 Words That Secretly Come from Body Parts

Anatomy As Etymology
harvest words cornucopia

Ten Words from the Harvest

A bumper crop for the feast.
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Word History

See All
sos

7 Good Stories That Just Aren't True

No, that's not where that word comes from
raunchy

10 Common Words with Military Origins

'Skedaddle', 'ginormous', and more
cartoon-of-british-nobility

Why Did Yankee Doodle Call a Feather 'Macaroni'?

What's with his feathered cap?
image1101764000

Compound Words That Used to Make a Lot More Sense

How 'jack' met 'pot.' How 'wed' met 'lock.'
caved in shed

7 Run-Down Words That Have Seen Better Days

They've taken a hit but are still standing.
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