Wordplay: For the Love of Language | Merriam-Webster

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Why do we say 'make a beeline'?

Yes, it does involve bees

Why do we call it a 'flea market'?

Do they really sell fleas?

17 Words for Dog Breeds

If you love dogs and words, you’re barking up the right tree

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words (or Phrases) Birds Seem to Be Saying

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

We just can’t bananaquit them

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

We’ve seen fire, we’ve seen rain, and we have many words for them

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

And why isn't it 'bury the lead'?

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

10 words expert players use

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

11 Words Used to Great Effect by Edgar Allan Poe

The Vocabulary in the Rue Morgue

A List of The U.S. Military Ranks in Order

From Private to General of the Army

Has ‘supper’ always meant ‘dinner?'

Your grandmother might answer differently.

9 Other Words for Beautiful

Here are some additional words for calling something lovely

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

Here's how all this nonsense started

Foreign

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

Top 10 Latin Phrases

10 of Our Favourite British Words

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

10 English Words from Dutch

Learn how to tell your caboodle from your caboose

Schadenfreude and Other German Words Without Translation

Accept no substitutes

Alcohol & Algebra: Common Words from Arabic

Number 4 might scare you

Games & Hobbies

Why Is the Sport Called ‘Pickleball’?

The origin story is clearer than most sports

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

Remember this and win.

Why 'Love' Means "Nothing"

In tennis. This is about tennis.

8 Prohibition-Era Words

From bathtub gin to the blind pig

The Scoop on 'The Proof Is in the Pudding'

A delicious question

Science & Nature

7 Luscious, Fruit-Based Idioms

For a touch of sweetness or acidity

Fruit vs. Vegetable

Are you sure you know which is what?

7 Especially Fitting Common Names for Plants

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

12 Words for Signs of Spring

Spring is springing

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Words for uncommon fears

Word History

7 Run-Down Words That Have Seen Better Days

They've taken a hit but are still standing.

10 Words from Place Names

Bikini, bourbon, and badminton were places first

The Secret Histories of 'Catastrophe,' 'Debacle,' and More

'Tragedy' didn't always mean "disaster"

Compound Words That Used to Make a Lot More Sense

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

What Does 'Wi-Fi' Really Mean?

It’s probably not what you think