Like the term political correctness, cancel culture has become an incantation to conjure with. conjure: To invoke by supernatural power, to effect by magic or jugglery. From Latin conjurare: to swear together, to band, combine, or make a compact by oath, to conspire. Before cancel culture, there was cancelling, in the sense of rejecting or … Read more
Several fictional characters are so memorable that their names have been attached to physical and psychological maladies. Some of the so-called syndromes can be found in medical sources. Others, like “Bambi Syndrome” and “Peter Pan Syndrome,” are found only in pop culture—at least for the present. Some psychologists suggest that Peter Pan Syndrome may deserve … Read more
On March 4 this year, National Grammar Day, the AP Stylebook editors tweeted a question for their readers: What grammar rule do you find yourself getting wrong no matter how many times you look it up? Tell us your grammar kryptonite. The feed I saw had 72 Quote Tweets. If “Quote Tweets” means “responses,” then … Read more
According to T. S. Eliot, April was :the cruellest month.” For me, April is Shakespeare’s month, a time to reread some of the plays and perhaps watch some of the film versions. Like his character Cassius in Julius Caesar, Shakespeare died on his birthday: William Shakespeare 23 April 1564—23 April 1616. His contemporary and fellow … Read more
In English, the digraph ae functions chiefly as a suffix to denote the plural of Latin borrowings that retain a hint of their original “Latin-ness,” chiefly in the realm of scientific vocabulary. The rule for forming the plural of scientific terms ending in –a is to change the –a to –ae. Ordinarily, the pronunciation of … Read more
This post was prompted by a headline in the Washington Post: US deports former Nazi guard whose wartime role was noted on card found amid sunken ship The phrase “amid sunken ship” struck me as peculiar usage—not because an article was missing— it is a headline, after all—but because I couldn’t understand why the headline-writer … Read more
Rhetoric is one of those academic words that has migrated into the popular vocabulary and is frequently used as if it can be defined as “empty words.” For example, in the aftermath of the storming of the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, statements threatening violence and death were defended and excused as “mere rhetoric,” … Read more
Not since I read Laurence Sterne’s Tristram Shandy have I accumulated so many words in my reading that are new to me. These words are not coming from antique works of fiction. They pop up almost daily in the news sources I read. Sometimes the words are vaguely familiar, like something I may have learned … Read more
Penpointing for pinpointing In my part of the world, many speakers have a hard time hearing the difference between the vowel sounds in pen (rhymes with Ben) and pin (rhymes with sin). The usual reversal is to pronounce pen as pin—not the other way round. For that reason, I was puzzled when I started finding … Read more
Every writer has had the experience of submitting a piece of writing in the certainty that it is free of error, only to find at least one embarrassing typo or other fault in it as soon as it has been published. Sometimes I could swear that the errors that survive numerous proofreadings must be the … Read more
English vocabulary includes thousands of words that originated in languages other than Old English. Some of these linguistic immigrants never quite acculturate. They continue to sound foreign, but some English-speakers find them useful in particular contexts. Schadenfreude (German) taking delight in the misfortune of others. bon vivant (French) a person fond of good living; a … Read more
Reader ApK has asked for a discussion of the words sarcastic, sardonic, and facetious— all examples of verbal irony. verbal irony: the expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect. Sarcastic derives from the noun sarcasm. sarcasm: a sharp, bitter, or cutting expression or remark; … Read more