Even if you’re not a full-blown grammar nerd, you’ll find the origins of these words that changed meaning over time completely fascinating The English language is alive—and like any living thing, it ...

The word “labyrinthine” is an adjective that means something that is intricate and confusing. It can also mean something that is irregular and twisting. The word “labyrinthine” is pronounced /la-br-IN ...

The word “phlegmatic” is an adjective that describes someone who has an unemotional and stolidly calm disposition. The word “phlegmatic” is pronounced /fleg-MA-tuhk/. The word “phlegmatic” comes from ...

Thanks to the evolution of language, technology, and lots of hyperbole, these words used to convey a lot more merit, emotion, or simply seriousness than they do nowadays. Ah, “genius.” Once reserved ...

Occasionally you will encounter someone with an etymological axe to grind. They insist that a certain word has to mean just what it meant hundreds of years ago when it was first spoken: For example, ...

Many people believe that peruse means to read something quickly. In fact, the opposite is true: Peruse means to “read with thoroughness or care.” Used correctly, you would say, “I spent at least an ...

Which words do we find beautiful? And do beautifully sounding words stick better in memory? A new study led by linguist ...

According to Oxford, the term "rage bait" was first used online in 2002 in reference to the reaction of a driver who is ...

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Decades after I began writing about language, there are still words I avoid out of fear I’ll use them wrong. And worse: Some of these are terms I’ve learned, written about, then promptly forgotten.

Children learn language effortlessly and completely voluntarily. They learn new words miraculously fast. A teenager masters about 60,000 words of their mother tongue by the time they finish high ...

Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution states that “Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath...” Here, and in more than a dozen other places in Article ...