play video cynic
Word History

The History of 'Cynic'

How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.


How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.

Up next

play video cynic
The History of 'Cynic'

 

How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.

play video title words of the year 1066
Words of the Year: 1066

 

English was never the same after the Norman Conquest

play there theyre their video
There, They're, Their

 

There, there. We'll sort it out.

play video between you and i or me
I vs. Me

 

'Between you and __'? Simple guidance for a tricky pronoun.

play video soup vs soop
An Abbreviated History of American English Spelling

 

Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut

play video how a word gets into the dicionary
How a Word Gets into the Dictionary

 

What our editors are looking for when they enter words in Merriam-Webster.

play emily-brewster-with-the-words-effect-affect-on-screen
How to Remember 'Affect' and 'Effect'

 

A simple way to keep them apart. (Most of the time.)