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Devilish Words

Don't blame a word use error on the devil.

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'Svengali' Bannon leaving White House

'A person who manipulates'

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We're Down With You Being—or Your Being?—a Square

It's about (you? your?) having your say.

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Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

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Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Words At Play

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Recent Posts

Words We're Watching

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Words We're Watching: 'Record Scratch'

Used as an interjection

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Don't Be a Victim of 'Smishing'
Read
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'Tetris' is Being Used as a Verb
Read
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Infomania in the Information Age
Read

Usage & Grammar

Commonly Confused

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Can 'bemuse' mean 'amuse'?

The word actually comes from the Muses

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'Timber' vs 'Timbre'
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Is It 'Invoke' or 'Evoke'?
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chord
'Chord' vs. 'Cord'
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SEE ALL WORDS AT PLAY

WORD OF THE DAY

alleviate

play

to relieve or lessen

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Test Your Vocabulary

Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

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  • Which came first?
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TRENDING NOW

  1. Svengali 'A person who manipulates'

  2. syzygy An obscure astronomy term goes mainstream

  3. hegemon "Something having dominant influence over others"

  4. repugnant Trump clarifies his position on racism

  5. white nationalist, white supremacist Trending in 2017

SEE ALL

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Ask the Editors

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Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

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Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

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Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

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Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Take the quiz
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Name More Food!

Test your knowledge of food vocabulary!

Take the quiz
Name That Thing
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

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SCRABBLE® Sprint
SCRABBLE® Sprint

SCRABBLE® fans, sharpen your skills!

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