play video title words of the year 1066
Word History

Words of the Year: 1066

Why is pig meat called 'pork' and cow meat called 'beef?' Because English took on a big serving of French words following the Norman Conquest.


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play video title words of the year 1066
Words of the Year: 1066

 

English was never the same after the Norman Conquest

play video schwa
The Schwa

 

The most common vowel sound in English causes many spelling problems.

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The Serial Comma Explained

 

Why don't they call it the Merriam-Webster comma?

play alright allright video
Alright vs. All Right

 

Is 'alright' all right?

play video how a word gets into the dicionary
How a Word Gets into the Dictionary

 

What our editors are looking for when they enter words in Merriam-Webster.

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On Contractions of Multiple Words

 

You all would not have guessed some of these

play is none singular or plural video
Is 'none' singular or plural?

 

Or both? Or neither?