TGIF: That Gerund Is Funky. In this month’s language usage news, we have a high-profile hold-out on the use of the singular “their”; the word okay and its origins; a list of horrid words; a vulgar word finds its way into the OED; a spelling mistake that thwarted a bank heist; bad spelling used for effect in an ad campaign; Donald Trump’s 6th-grade linguistic skills; and a spelling quiz from a fine New York institution. (Warning: explicit vocabulary ahead.) Continue reading
That Gerund Is Funky. This month’s grammar and language usage in the news has a strong political theme — well, people in politics who need editing. Plus what Siri is doing to regional accents, and a big onesie oopsy daisy. Continue reading
Sarah Palin gets in a ‘squirmish’ with coherence/HuffPostUK Politics
That Gerund Is Funky — Feb issue. Recently in grammar and language news: a Palin portmanteau that NPR’s Ari Shapiro can’t let go of; Oxford Dictionaries faces an accusation of sexism; a grammar quiz from The Independent; how to pronounce the name of a Dutch musician with a Swedish-sounding surname; the new legitimacy of the singular ‘they’; and the end of the road for a punctuation mark? Continue reading
In the news … is back by popular demand. And to kick off the New Year, we have some exciting news items on the following subjects: how to speak development jargon; is it a punctuation error or a spoiler in the new Star Wars opening crawl?; a teacher giving a Twitter troll a lesson in tolerance and grammar; some evidence that grammar might be a basic instinct; and finally, the insincerity of punctuation. Really. Continue reading
TGIF: That Gerund Is Funky. Stories about language usage in the news this past month include unexpected Latin translations; an inappropriate exclamation mark; a famous fictional advertising exec showing off his grammatical prowess; a grammatically correct bank robber; football fans ranked by spelling and grammar ability; a punctuation-free doctoral dissertation; and a very expensive web site name.
TGIF. In usage and grammar news this month: Taylor Swift defending her grammar; the pet peeves of American copy editors; the language of cancer; the very distinctive sound of the NPR podcast voice; annoying musical abbreviations; and a war on farcical western names adopted by the Chinese. Continue reading
TGIF. Language and usage in the news this month: confessions of a comma queen; the possible death of “uh”; a town torn apart by an apostrophe; the mid-Atlantic language mash-up; some non-translatable idioms; what your pronunciation says about you; and a critique of Wikipedia’s grammar vigilante. Continue reading
Thanks to Ben Finane for the photo of this Park Slope, Brooklyn deli that isn’t going anywhere …
TGIF. Language use and abuse in the news this past month: a discussion about accents prejudice; a typo takes a business down; how to pronounce February; and more …
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Just how are you supposed to pronounce the month we’re in? (That’s February, for those who haven’t caught up yet…) mental_floss has the scoop … Continue reading
That Gerund Is Funky: words, grammar, usage and language in the news this month.
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As cartoonists and demonstrators around the world raise and wield their pens in protest against the recent atrocities in France, the BBC asks the question: who first wrote or uttered the phrase “the pen is mightier than the sword”? Continue reading
TGIF: That Gerund Is Funky. In grammar and usage news this month: a nationwide pun ban; how to pluralize your last name; grammar in Christmas carols; a new book from Steven Pinker; and how to talk like a New Yorker. Continue reading