Author, Author!
Dear Language Nerd, I am fascinated by the news that J.K. Rowling wrote a murder mystery, The Cuckoo’s Calling, under the pen name of Robert Galbraith… and got found out! But the news articles I’ve read skip what seem to me to be the most interesting part of the story — what showed that the […]
Pairing Off
Dear Language Nerd, So I’m in the kitchen, planning to cut up some beef, holding my kitchen scissors at the ready, and I haven’t done it yet because I’m standing and thinking, why do I call these “a pair of scissors” when there’s only one of them? Please respond before my meat goes bad! Tamar […]
Naming Up a Storm
Dear Language Nerd, Merry hurricane season! As I keep a wary eye on Chantal, I’m wondering who names the hurricanes? Dwayne Boston *** Dear Dwayne, You’ve come to the right place, as your humble Language Nerd is a Gulf Coast native. Short answer: the World Meteorological Organization. Long answer: still the World Meteorological Organization, but […]
I Literally Could Care Less
Egregious apostrophe sighting: “This was over 40 years ago and it still go’s on.” *** Saw this one on the street: “DVD’s AND VIDEO’s.” Arrrrgh!!!! *** “The issue is only confused by it’s advocates.” If its advocates use “it’s” correctly, I’m joining their side! *** You guys. YOU GUYS. This is the exact opposite of […]
An Asal Shift
Dear Language Nerd, Why do we say “orange” instead of “norange”? Amber Copsley *** Dear Amber, Finally, someone bites! Hurrah! Oranges were originally found in India, and the Sanskrit word for them was “naranga.” They entered European languages by way of Arabic, as “naranj.” So where did that first “n” go? Nasal shifting, baby. We […]
Two Parter, Parts One and Two
Dear Language Nerd, Why do we say “stand up”? Doesn’t “stand” cover everything? -Andy *** Dear Andy, Okay, here’s the plan: first, I’ll explain what a phrasal verb is, and then, right when you’re feeling secure, I will totally blindside you by saying that “stand up” isn’t really a phrasal verb after all. Ready? Let’s […]
My Kingdom for a Horse Language!
Dear Language Nerd, I am a huge fan of the Game of Thrones shows, and I was wondering, when the characters speak in the horse rider language, are they just saying nonsense? Or do the words mean something? – Amerila James *** Zhey Amerila, Nonsense? Does a language with two kinds of noun-noun compounds and […]
Cteeny Ctiny Ctenophores
Dear Biology Nerd, I loved learning about stomatopods – can I get some more mysterious creatures, please? Maybe less freaky-looking? -Anna S. *** Dear Anna, Since my discussion of stomatopods seems to have touched off a surprising boost in their popularity across the internet (including a piece by my beloved Oatmeal… coincidence? Probably), I’m going […]
You Might Like This, It’s About Run-Ons
Dear Language Nerd, Occasionally when I am writing technical papers, I concentrate so much on the outstanding point that I am making that I write errant run-on sentences. When I (read MS Word editor) spot a suspect run-on, I think to myself “most people won’t recognize it anyway so just leave it.” I like the […]
An Aftonifhing Mifsive
Dear Language Nerd, Why did people used to use “f” instead of “s”? Like at the top of the Bill of Rights, where it says “Congrefs of the United States”? -Lawrence Duncan *** Dear Lawrence, It’s not really an “f,” though it certainly looks like one. Let’s zoom in on that header: It’s a stretched-out […]