Topic : Fun

11 12 13 14 15 Displaying 85-91 of 496 Articles

Evasive Maneuvers

Euphemisms old and new

Naturally Flavored Dreams About Graduation
Mon May 09 00:00:00 EDT 2016
By Mark Peters

The Americans is my favorite TV show. Set in the 1980s, it features a web of duplicity like I've never seen, as married KGB agents Elizabeth and Phillip Jennings lie to their neighbors, manipulate their children, steal deadly chemical weapons, murder a bunch of people, wear lots of wigs, and try to maintain a healthy marriage while destroying America. Unsurprisingly, the show's many dastardly deceivers often use euphemisms.  Continue reading...
Article Topics:
Fun
Click here to read more articles from Evasive Maneuvers.

Evasive Maneuvers

Euphemisms old and new

Othersourcing All the Right Things
Wed Apr 06 00:00:00 EDT 2016
By Mark Peters

After last month's keen analysis of remix—perhaps the most obnoxious euphemism for a layoff ever—fellow contributor Nancy Friedman tweeted me another example from this bottomless genre: "A friend was told that her layoff was 'a continuation of growth that was started in the department a couple of years ago.'"  Continue reading...
Article Topics:
Click here to read more articles from Evasive Maneuvers.

Word Routes

Exploring the pathways of our lexicon

A Big Upset in the Competitive Crossword World
Mon Apr 04 00:00:00 EDT 2016
By Ben Zimmer

While college basketball fans may be marveling at the exciting upsets of March Madness, the world of competitive crossword solving has experienced a major upset as well, as six-time reigning champion Dan Feyer was dethroned in the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, losing out to first-time champ Howard Barkin.  Continue reading...
Article Topics:
Click here to read more articles from Word Routes.

Evasive Maneuvers

Euphemisms old and new

Remixing Lexical Rubbish
Wed Mar 02 00:00:00 EST 2016
By Mark Peters

Have we already seen the Euphemism of the Year? It's possible, euphemism enthusiasts: brace yourselves for a major-league, double-tongued, weapons-grade whopper of a doozy.  Continue reading...
Article Topics:
Click here to read more articles from Evasive Maneuvers.

Evasive Maneuvers

Euphemisms old and new

Clean Eating, Horse Cookies, and Other New York Values
Wed Feb 03 00:00:00 EST 2016
By Mark Peters

As most word-watchers predicted, the American Dialect Society picked Netflix and chill as 2015's Most Euphemistic term. It was an obvious and strong choice, even though it makes me want to Netflix and take my own life at this point.  Continue reading...
Article Topics:
Click here to read more articles from Evasive Maneuvers.

Blog Excerpts

Happy Thesaurus Day!
Mon Jan 18 00:00:00 EST 2016

January 18th is celebrated as Thesaurus Day to honor the birthday of the author of the first thesaurus, Peter Mark Roget. Get into the spirit by reading our two-part interview with Roget biographer Joshua Kendall here and here. Also check out an ode to the thesaurus penned by Franklin P. Adams here and Johnny Carson's hilarious "Funeral for a Thesaurus Editor" sketch here.
Article Topics:
Click here to read more articles from Blog Excerpts.

Word Routes

Exploring the pathways of our lexicon

"They" Won! Gender-Neutral Pronoun is 2015 Word of the Year
Sat Jan 09 00:00:00 EST 2016
By Ben Zimmer

Gathering in Washington D.C. for its annual meeting, the American Dialect Society has made its 26th annual selection for Word of the Year. And as predicted in this space last month, the winner is a lowly pronoun: they used as a gender-neutral alternative to he and she, with special attention paid to its use as an expression of "non-binary" gender identity.  Continue reading...
Article Topics:
Click here to read more articles from Word Routes.
11 12 13 14 15 Displaying 85-91 of 496 Articles

Other Topics: