WORDS

Who doesn’t love a rousing round of Crambo?

5 Old-Timey Word Games You Can Play Today

Tired of Wordle? Give these word games a try.

How Do Cars Get Their Names?

Naming a car is like naming a baby, only with a few hundred million dollars at stake.

The far-fetched plots were designed to keep viewers wanting more.

Why Is It Called a “Soap Opera”?

How did daytime dramas like “Guiding Light” and “General Hospital” become known as “soap operas”? It's all thanks to commercials.

16 Words that Describe Themselves

Word is a word. Noun is a noun. Autological words are a self-centered, self-referential bunch.

More people use American Sign Language than you may think.

This Smart Ring Translates Sign Language in Real Time

Cornell’s SpellRing could change the ASL translation game.

Inside ‘Inside Baseball’: How America’s Pastime Invented a Handy Metaphor

In the 19th century, 'inside baseball' only had one meaning—here's how it came to be.

Definition Detective Quiz #30

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

You might be familiar with a few of these.

From Y’all To Youse: 8 English Ways to Make ‘You’ Plural

Lots of languages have distinct plural forms for ‘you.’ Wouldn’t it be useful if English had one too? Spoiler alert: It does. Several, in fact.

St. Patty’s Day vs. St. Paddy’s Day: Which Is Correct?

You can always avoid the issue by spelling out “St. Patrick’s Day,” but here’s how to properly abbreviate it.

6 Common Words You Might Not Know Are Irish

There is a whole slew of everyday words in English that have origins in Irish and Gaelic.

Everybody gets to be Irish after they smooch this stone.

Where Does the Phrase ‘Gift of Gab’ Come From?

This St. Patrick’s Day, discover the origins of this old Irish idiom and how it all ties back to the Blarney Stone in Ireland.

It’s not just women who will find these terms useful.

24 Words From Laádan, a Language Invented to Express a Woman’s Point of View

‘Radíidin’ means “a time allegedly a holiday but actually so much a burden because of work and preparations that it is a dreaded occasion.” ‘Thehena’ is a word for “Joy despite negative circumstances.”

Why Female Dogs Are Called “B*tches”—And How the Word Became an Insult to Women

How did the word for a female dog become a derogatory word for women? We explain.

Definition Detective Quiz #29

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

Why Does ‘Boilerplate’ Mean “Standard”?

Here's a crash course on the meaning and origins of boilerplate content.

Alexander the Great (left) with his tutor, Aristotle.

5 Common Terms That Double as Logical Fallacies

The names of logical fallacies often double as common expressions—but they don't always mean the same thing.

Let's put the kibosh on pronouncing 'kibosh' incorrectly.

Can You Correctly Pronounce These Tricky Words?

Test your pronunciation of toughies like 'victuals' and 'skein.'

Definition Detective Quiz #28

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

Where Did the Expression ‘Gung Ho’ Come From?

We get this byword for enthusiasm from an officer in the Marines named Evans Fordyce Carlson.

Why Is Coffee Called a “Cup of Joe”?

There are many slang terms for coffee, but where does a “cup of joe“ come from? There are a few theories.

Why Do We Call Someone a “One-Trick Pony”?

Maligning ponies has become a go-to way to dismiss someone. How did that happen?

Definition Detective Quiz #27

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

How Did Latin America Get Its Name?

Latin isn’t widely spoken in Latin America, so why is it called that?

Road signs shout less than they used to.

Why Many Road Signs Are No Longer Written in All Caps

Road signs have changed case in the last 15 years or so—here's why.

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