Topic : LanguageBehind the DictionaryLexicographers Talk About Language"Fake News" Is the Real Word of the Year January 7, 2018 By Nancy Friedman
In the past year, fake news has gained currency as well as a new sense: Not only can it signify "disinformation or falsehoods spread as real news" – but it has also come to mean "actual news that is claimed to be untrue" if it's perceived as unflattering.
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Article Topics:Word RoutesExploring the pathways of our lexiconBombology: Beyond the "Bomb Cyclone" January 3, 2018 By Mark Peters
Bomb, like its close relative boom, is an irresistible word that helps us describe an unpredictable world that can leave any of us feeling shellshocked and, lately, snowed-over.
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Word RoutesExploring the pathways of our lexiconThe Last Word on "Jedi" December 10, 2017 By Mark Peters
Star Wars has made many contributions to English, but none more significant that Jedi.
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Article Topics:Word RoutesExploring the pathways of our lexiconOctlantis: A Word and World With Many Tentacles December 4, 2017 By Mark Peters
The recent discovery of Octlantis, an undersea community of octopuses just off the eastern coast of Australia, is a reminder of how a novel blend can perfectly name a new phenomenon, no matter how wild or multi-tentacled.
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Article Topics:Language LoungeA Monthly Column for Word LoversJust the Right Ingredients December 1, 2017 By Orin Hargraves
Apparently, one of the things that is making our Facebook feeds appetizing is a sauce—a combination of metrics mixed in exactly the right proportions to make this particular meal ever appealing.
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Article Topics:Language LoungeA Monthly Column for Word LoversBlending In With the Natives November 1, 2017 By Orin Hargraves
With the Halloween season now safely behind us for another year, I can bring to light a feature of it that has haunted me in recent weeks.
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Article Topics:Evasive ManeuversEuphemisms old and newUrban Rain Forests and Other Benevolent Bunkum October 4, 2017 By Mark Peters
Don't want to be known as a climate change denier? Call yourself a climate change agnostic. I can't deny that there's a metric tuchus-load of euphemisms out there, because the evidence is enough to overwhelm a drivel agnostic.
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