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  1. Blog Excerpts

     The Master of Sound Effects
    Thu Dec 04 00:00:00 EST 2008

    How would you write the sound of a tadpole tap-dancing, or stiff spaghetti banging into a cook's face? MAD Magazine cartoonist Don Martin knew the answer. Read a compendium of Martin's onomatopoetic genius here.

  2. Evasive Maneuvers

     "Life Problem Issues" on the Softer Side of Language
    Wed Dec 03 00:00:00 EST 2008
    In Napalm and Silly Putty, George Carlin wrote, "I don't like euphemistic language, words that shade the truth. American English is packed with euphemism, because Americans have trouble dealing with reality, and in order to shield themselves from it they use soft language."

  3. Dog Eared

     Idioms for Kids
    Wed Dec 03 00:00:00 EST 2008

    Marvin Terban gets kids laughing (and learning) about language with these illustrated books of funny idioms.

    Mad as a Wet Hen!

    Punching the Clock

    In a Pickle

  4. Word Routes

     2008: The Year of "Oversharing"
    Tue Dec 02 00:00:00 EST 2008
    Another week, another Word of the Year selection! The latest comes from the editors at Webster's New World Dictionary, who have selected the useful verb overshare. They define it as: "to divulge excessive personal information, as in a blog or broadcast interview, prompting reactions ranging from alarmed discomfort to approval." It's certainly a word that captures the zeitgeist of the Age of Too Much Information.

  5. Language Lounge

     Whither Ancient Adverbs?
    Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 EST 2008
    For Shakespeare it was "And let us two devise to bring him thither," but for us it's likely to be "And let's figure out how to get him there." This month in the Lounge we tip our hat to some English adverbs now in their dotage but still available for duty when called upon.

  6. Contest

     The Visual Thesaurus Crossword Puzzle: November Edition
    Thu Nov 27 00:00:00 EST 2008
    The Visual Thesaurus wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving. To celebrate, we've got a Thanksgiving theme for this month's puzzle. Solve it and you could win a Visual Thesaurus T-shirt!

  7. Word Count

     Can English Spelling Ever be "Fixed"?
    Wed Nov 26 00:00:00 EST 2008
    Last week in the first part of our interview with journalist David Wolman about his book Righting the Mother Tongue, he told us how he was inspired to set out on a journey to discover the origins of the maddening English spelling system. Now in part two, Wolman explains why ambitious spelling reforms are doomed to failure, and how 21st-century technology may be accomplishing what the reformers were never able to do. He also muses on the enduring popularity of the National Spelling Bee.

  8. Blog Excerpts

     Merriam-Webster's Word of the Year
    Wed Nov 26 00:00:00 EST 2008

    Two months ago we tackled the history of the word bailout. Now it's been named Merriam-Webster's Word of the Year. Read all about it here.

  9. Word Routes

     Moving with Deliberate Haste
    Tue Nov 25 00:00:00 EST 2008
    President-Elect Obama has begun to assemble his nominees for Cabinet posts — something he had promised to do, in his first post-election press conference, "with all deliberate haste." If deliberate means "marked by careful consideration or reflection," and haste means "overly eager speed (and possible carelessness)," doesn't that make "deliberate haste" an oxymoron?

  10. Blog Du Jour

     Your Virtual Bookshelf
    Tue Nov 25 00:00:00 EST 2008

    Here are social networking sites for book lovers, allowing you to create a virtual bookshelf and share recommendations with fellow bibliophiles.

    LibraryThing

    Goodreads

    Shelfari

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