Words

Everybody gets to be Irish after they smooch this stone.

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.

‘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.”

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

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

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

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

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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Road signs shout less than they used to.

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

Some words have been around longer than you think.

We dig down to the root of the issue.

This stickler doesn’t like how people are using the word ‘phenomenal.’

Not even the strictest sticklers seem to care about how we use words like ‘abhorrent’ and ‘sodden’ anymore.

Don't exact or extract revenge if you get all these wrong.

Time to find out how well you know your correct expressions from your eggcorns.

Until a few decades ago, Ukraine was almost always referred to as 'the Ukraine'. Then people started dropping the definite article, and now you almost never see it. Here's why.