Words

Can you deduce what letters are missing and figure out the word?

Here are some highlights from Merriam-Webster’s latest slate of additions.

We give you an obscure word with four definitions—one correct, three made up. Can you identify the correct one?

Looks like she's reading a novel, not a novella.

As Stephen King once said, novellas are “too long to be short and too short to be really long.”

No apples were harmed in the popularizing of this phrase.

The phrase made famous by ‘Good Will Hunting’ is much older than the 1997 film—and doesn’t have anything to do with actual apples.

Can you deduce what letters are missing and figure out the word?

We give you an obscure word with four definitions—one correct, three made up. Can you identify the correct one?

The first jack-o'-lanterns were made with turnips, not pumpkins.

Shoppers have been referring to Target as ‘tar-jay’ for over 60 years.

Put your spelling skills to the test.

The crescent wrench has helped DIYers for decades.

A Swedish immigrant changed the face of wrenches forever.

In honor of Banned Books Week, the ALA published its list of 2023’s most contentious titles.

From ‘skeletons in the closet’ to ‘graveyard shift,’ here’s how five eerie idioms came to be.

We give you an obscure word with four definitions—one correct, three made up. Can you identify the correct one?

Know your latte from your cappuccino before you embarrass yourself.

From ‘six-foot bungalow’ to ‘pine overcoat,’ there have been some creative euphemisms for coffins over the ages—and some terms that were surprisingly (and uncomfortably) direct.

What's in a name? A lot of pronunciation mistakes.

From Sean to Anne, these names confound speakers around the world.

We give you an obscure word with four definitions—one correct, three made up. Can you identify the correct one?

Need another word for ‘moist’ (or some other gross word)? We’ve got you.

It’s kind of weird that ‘ghost’ is spelled with a ‘gh.’

Only a handful of English words start with ‘gh’—what gives?

You better knock, knock, knock ... on wood.

Discover the origins of the classic phrase 'knock on wood,' which could be tied to a Victorian-era children's game or have more direct ties to old pagan traditions.