Wordplay: For the Love of Language | Merriam-Webster

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Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 3

Lovely, pointless, or both?

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

'Hella' is in hella good company

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words (or Phrases) Birds Seem to Be Saying

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

10 words expert players use

12 Words Whose History Will Surprise You

They all use this one weird trick (etymology)

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Words With Remarkable Origins, Vol. 2

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

Raise a glass to some full-bodied vocabulary.

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Our maraca shake brings all the hautbois to the yard

Word Choices

Gabrielle Zevin

Emily Flake

New Yorker Cartoonist

Celeste Ng

Eli Cymet

Video Game Writer/Producer, Cuphead

Emma Straub

Novelist and Children’s Book Author

Arts & Culture

The Words of the Week - Sept. 12

Lookups from a scandal, Utah, and Brazil

12 Words and Phrases for Romantic Relationships

This list warms the cockles of our hearts

Where Does the Expression 'Throw Someone Under the Bus' Come From?

Let's blame the British

'Gaslighting,' 'Woke,' 'Democracy,' and Other Top Lookups

We know you're going to look these up

Top Banana, Kingpin, and Other Nicknames for Important People

Big wigs, big enchiladas, and big shots

Foreign

17 Words With No English Equivalent

Unique words from around the globe

10 English Words from Dutch

Learn how to tell your caboodle from your caboose

10 of Our Favourite British Words

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

Games & Hobbies

12 Words From Basketball

Plus a few terms that never quite made it

A Player's Guide to 'Q' without 'U' Words

Remember this and win.

These Are Fighting Words

Common terms that come from boxing and wrestling

Winning Scrabble Words for Everyday People

You don't have to be a pro to play these words.

Know Your Baseball Idioms

'Southpaw,' 'can of corn,' and other phrases

Science & Nature

7 Luscious, Fruit-Based Idioms

For a touch of sweetness or acidity

12 Pairs of Commonly Confused Animal Words

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

7 Common Idioms That Come from Chickens

Don't ask us which came first

12 Bird Names that Sound Like Compliments

From the godwits at your favorite dictionary

Possum vs. Opossum: Is There a Difference?

On a marsupial with various names

Word History

Quick: Read This!

'Quick' once had a very different meaning

What does it mean to 'endorse' a presidential candidate?

It's kind of like "endorsing" a check

Etymologies for Every Day of the Week

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

14 Words Inspired by Dogs

A lexicographer's best friend

7 Good Stories That Just Aren't True

No, that's not where that word comes from