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, My English Second Language teacher last year always said to us, “Do you know the secret way to learn the irregular verbs? … Memorize them all!” Ha ha ha, right? But is there a better way? From Andrew *** Dear Andrew, I won’t lie, you’re going to have to do some memorizing. […]
Dear Language Nerd, This Philosoraptor has perfectly phrased my question: Well? Yours, Laura *** Dear Laura, Whoa, that question has some “Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo” mind-games going on, but the answer is definitely the second option: first you have the fruit, and the color gets its name from there. This is true of many […]
Dear Nerds, I just learned the word “overmorrow” for the day after tomorrow. Is there a similar word for the day before yesterday? –Lynda Touart *** A NOTE: This post would have been much, much more difficult if I hadn’t just found out that the Mobile Public Library gives patrons free (!!!) online access to […]
Dear Language Nerd, These questions people are asking you have been easy. Chump change. Child’s play. I’m not impressed. Here’s a REAL question for you, and answer it if you can! Why do we say “uh-huh” for yes and “uh-uh” for no? Edgar F. *** “I can answer that question in eight sentences!” “I can […]
Dear Language Nerd, Help! My TA for my physics course next semester is from India, and I’ve heard his English is terrible. Any tips for survival, preferably with my GPA intact? -Thomas K. *** Dear Thomas, Here’s the first step: don’t panic! In fact, do the opposite. Prepare yourself mentally to have a difficult time […]