play video title words of the year 1066
Word History

Words of the Year: 1066

Why is pig meat called 'pork' and cow meat called 'beef?' Because English took on a big serving of French words following the Norman Conquest.


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

 

English was never the same after the Norman Conquest

play mrs malaprop
What is a malaprop?

 

We'll tell you all the perpendiculars

play calendar that says day today
Is It 'day today' or 'day-to-day'?

 

What about Day Tomorrow?

play hanger-hangar-illustrations
Is It 'Hanger' or 'Hangar'?

 

How to remember which is which

play onomatopoeia video
A Look at Uncommon Onomatopoeia

 

Some imitative words are more surprising than others

play video ending a sentence with a preposition
Ending a Sentence with a Preposition

 

An old-fashioned rule we can no longer put up with.

play video title attorney generals
Is It 'Attorney Generals' Or 'Attorneys General'?

 

'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.