Dear Language Nerd, Duplication I get, sure, but what’s up with reduplication? -Carl S., Jr. *** Dear Carl, Reduplication is when sounds or words are said twice in a row. In English, we have a few set words that use reduplication — frou-frou, razzle-dazzle, bye-bye — that sort of thing. We also have the more […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
The League Seeks Nerds! The League’s inbox is filling up with questions that the current three members are completely unqualified to answer. We’re in particular need of an Engineering Nerd, a Music Nerd, a Math Nerd, and a History Nerd, and we will gladly take Nerds that are far more specific than that — you […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]