Wordplay

 For the love of language

Word of the Year 2023 | Authentic

Merriam-Webster's 2023 Word of the Year is 'Authentic'

11 Words For Festive Gatherings

From beanfeasts to wingdings

10 Words for Other People's Children

Brats, ankle biters, and other holy terrors

word choices

(a Merriam-Webster Video Series)
Celebrated writers share their quest to find the right words.

Gabrielle Zevin

Novelist

Emily Flake

New Yorker Cartoonist

Celeste Ng

Novelist

Eli Cymet

Video Game Writer/Producer, Cuphead

Emma Straub

Novelist and Children’s Book Author

Ophira Eisenberg

Stand-Up Comic

Popular

17 of the Finest Words for Drinking

Try these out at your next happy hour

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 1

Some may be more useful than others.

The Words of the Week - Nov. 24

Lookups from the holidays, the Middle East, and presidential history

Etymologies for Every Day of the Week

The sun, the moon, four gods, and a goddess.

Another Ten Ways to Improve Your Vocabulary

Simple But Intelligent Word Choices, Vol. 3

7 Common Idioms That Come from Chickens

Don't ask us which came first

Words for Lazy People and Laziness

Indolence, Malingerer, Draffsack: the right word for when you just don't have the energy

12 Pairs of Commonly Confused Animal Words

The animal words went in two by two, hurrah, hurrah!

Arts & Culture

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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

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

The answer to one of life's big questions

10 Surprisingly Odd Food Names

The Sometimes-Sweet, Sometimes-Unsavory Story Behind Some Bizarre Foods

Pop Rhetoric: Our Favorites

Rhetorical devices in pop songs

'When Pigs Fly' and Other Barnyard Idioms

24 down-home turns of phrase
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Obscure & Fun

Obscure & Fun

12 Words from the Wrong Side of the Law

Crime doesn't pay, but vocabulary might

Foreign

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10 of Our Favourite British Words and Slang

Please don't whinge about being knackered, you prat.

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

Top 10 Latin Phrases

10 Words from Nahuatl, the Language of the Aztecs

Avocado, chocolate, and more

A Guide to the Names of French Sauces

17 saucy terms (and how to say them)

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

Say "Howdy" to these Latin phrases
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Games & Hobbies

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Know Your Baseball Idioms

Our national pastime. No, the other one.

Why 'Love' Means "Nothing"

In tennis. This is about tennis.

12 Words From Basketball

Plus a few terms that never quite made it

19 Palindromes You Might Not Know

Learn some fun vocabulary with these palindromes!

Popular Gaming Terms Explained

Nerfs, MMORPGs, and who the final boss really is
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Insults

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The Clinical History of 'Moron,' 'Idiot,' and 'Imbecile'

The words have a less-than-savory past

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

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

The Origin of 'Hypocrite'

This one's surprisingly dramatic

7 Shakespearean Insults to Make Life More Interesting

One for each day of the week

You Talk Too Much: 8 Words for the Wordy

You can't shut them up, but you can label them
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Science & Nature

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'Opossum,' O Lovely 'Possum'

On a marsupial with various names

What Is a 'Coulrophobe' So Afraid Of?

Unusual Phobias, Vol. 2

7 Especially Fitting Common Names for Plants

So you don't mix up your Swiss Cheese plants with your Dutchman's Breeches

Fruit vs. Vegetable

Are you sure you know which is what?

When Body Parts Are Also Verbs

Head, shoulders, metaphors, and toes
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Word History

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7 Good Stories That Just Aren't True

No, that's not where that word comes from

10 Common Words with Military Origins

'Skedaddle', 'ginormous', and more

Why Did Yankee Doodle Call a Feather 'Macaroni'?

What's with his feathered cap?

Compound Words That Used to Make a Lot More Sense

How 'jack' met 'pot.' How 'wed' met 'lock.'

7 Run-Down Words That Have Seen Better Days

They've taken a hit but are still standing.
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