SINCE 1828

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

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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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The Exceptions Quiz III

Which of these things doesn't belong?

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Learned Fools: On Names for Students

Where did we get 'freshman' and 'sophomore'?

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17 English Words that Come From Japanese

Some borrowed words don't get returned

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NY Times: Trump's Call Ignites 'Imbroglio'

"a public scandal"

Latest Posts

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Learned Fools: On Names for Students

Where did we get 'freshman' and 'sophomore'?

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The Synonyms 'Discover' and 'Invent'

In the past, you could invent fruit.

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I'll Have the Us(ual)

Shortening 'usual': easy to say, hard to spell

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The Origins of 'Lobbyist'

From the front hallways to the back rooms

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The History of the Word 'Terrorism'

Noah Webster first entered the term in 1840

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'Regimen' vs. 'Regiment'

The rule of thumb for words about rules

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'Spox' May Go On The Record

From newsroom lingo to the mainstream

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C'mon, Of Course 'Myriad' Is a Noun

For a myriad of reasons

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'Gamut' and 'Gambit' (and 'Gauntlet' Too)

Know when to use (or run) each.

tycoon

17 English Words that Come From Japanese

Some borrowed words don't get returned

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The History of 'Third Rail'

From the subway to politics

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Under 'Duress' or Under 'Stress'?

We don't want to stress you out

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A Note on Our 4,000th Podcast

Celebrating ten years of Word of the Day

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'Golden Ticket': A Word of Pure Imagination

An everlasting gobstopper of a word

A Miscellany of Words for Whatever

Words for a little bit of everything.

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Can 'Momentarily' Mean "In a Moment"?

We'll tell you soon.

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Some Jawn About 'Jawn'

'Jawn' is some kind of amazing jawn.

11 Colorful Words for Autumn Foliage

Peep these leaves.

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'Unicorn': Nothing Is What It Seems

They didn’t always look like that.

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'Between' or 'Among': Which Is Correct?

Just between us: it's complicated.

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'Muster' or 'Mustard': Which Gets a Pass?

One gets cut. The other gets passed.

Words for When You're Not Holding Back

Sometimes you have to go all in.

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'Wholistic': A Natural Evolution Of 'Holistic'

The 'w' brings the meaning full circle.

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Is It 'Down the Pike' or 'Down the Pipe'?

You might not need a plumber.

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We're Just 'Spitballing' Here...

It's not just about pranks anymore.

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WORD OF THE DAY

nuncupative

play

spoken rather than written

Test Your Vocabulary

The Exceptions Quiz III

Which of these words does not mean "nonsense"?

Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ

SCRABBLE® Sprint

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066

Words of the Year: 1066

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

How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless

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

one-green-toy-robot-amidst-many-red-toy-robots

The Exceptions Quiz III

Which of these things doesn't belong?

Take the quiz

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Forms of Government Quiz

Name that government! Or something like that.

Take the quiz

Name That Thing

Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

Take the quiz

SCRABBLE® Sprint

SCRABBLE® Sprint

SCRABBLE® fans, sharpen your skills!

Play the game