Legendary figures and the words that define them
Celebrated writers share their quest to find the right words
We're gonna stop you right there
What about Day Tomorrow?
And how did it get that name?
Word Icons
New!
And is one more correct than the others?
207,956 views
No one calls it the Merriam-Webster comma. Why?
454,528 views
There, there. We'll sort it out.
104,129 views
The awkward case of 'his or her'
265,852 views
No other common verb follows the pattern of _sneak_…_snuck_. And no one's quite sure why.
71,741 views
They started as the same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.
54,390 views
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
363,628 views
'Poets laureate'? 'Court-martials'? The curious history of postpositive adjectives in English.
290,136 views
Why does it sound strange to say 'funner' or 'funnest?'
264,945 views
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.
547,617 views
Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings
156,933 views
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
41,212 views
The story of those iconic illustrations.
24,377 views
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
162,415 views
We'll help you figure it out at once
886,671 views
795,493 views
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts
453,056 views
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
324,746 views
And who put it there, anyway?
323,256 views
We're intent on clearing it up
315,230 views
Fashionable Words
Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!
Pick the best words!
