974. How does aging affect our ability to understand language? From the challenges of processing complex sentences to the resilience you get from a rich vocabulary, we look at how our language...
973. "Oppenheimer" leads us to wonder about the "nucular" pronunciation of "nuclear." And why do people have that second capital letter in the middle of MySpace, OutKast, and PowerPoint (and is it...
972. How did humans evolve from grunting ape-like ancestors to masters of language and poetry? This week, we explore fascinating theories on the origins of human language, including the...
971. Linguists have traced modern languages like English and Sanskrit back thousands of years to a single Proto-Indo-European source. This week, we explore their detective work and the debates...
970. We answer a listener question about the difference between "addictive" and "addicting," and then we look at how to write compound nouns: did you visit a coffeehouse or a coffee house?|...
969. From "wolkenkratzer" in German to "flea market" in English, direct translations called calques show how languages borrow from each other. This week, we look at how these translations are...
968. This week, I expand on my comments for the New York Times about Taylor Swift's grammatically sound but apostrophe-free new album title: "The Tortured Poets Department." Plus, we dive deep into...
967. Should you say "a honor" or "an honor"? It's trickier than you think! We explore why articles depend on sounds and regional variations, the difference between "thee" and "thuh," and your...
966. We explore the rise and fall of the letter H: Debates over its name ("haitch" or "aitch"?) and why a once-prestigious pronunciation like "hwhat" now seems old-fashioned. The "haitch" segment...
964. It's a listener question extravaganza! I answer your questions about "canceled," "another think/thing coming," zero plurals such as "fish," the way I reference verbs, episode numbers, "at...
964. From Nietzsche's writing ball to word processors and beyond, we look at how technology can change the way people write. Plus, we unpack the origin of the phrase "Goody Two Shoes" — it didn't...
963. Strunk and White said to omit needless words, but sometimes "redundant" words can serve a meaningful purpose. Plus, we have the story behind larruping food.| Transcript:...
962. We explore why phrases like "time flies" and "fast approaching" reveal deeper perspectives on time — is it us moving or the event? Plus, you may think you know how to use commas, but just like...
960. Some English letters are seen but not heard. In fact, more than half the letters in our alphabet are sometimes silent. We look at the many reasons we have these silent letters that make...
BONUS. Prompting, hallucinating, and more! Jess Zafarris, author of "Words from Hell," joins me for a word-of-the-year chat. Hang out with us as we look at how dictionaries are handling new words...
959. Learn why human language goes beyond basic communication to allow spontaneous creativity, expression of identity, and leadership in linguistic change — things animals and chatbots can't quite...
958. We trace the history, usage, and meaning behind identifiers such as "Hispanic," "Chicano," "Latino," "Latina," "Latinx," and "Latine." Plus, we look at whether metaphors like "grow the...
957. We trace the linguistic history behind "house" and "mansion" to uncover how these two humble words for dwellings grew apart, with "mansion" gaining airs — all because of the Norman invasion....
956. How did terms like "stereotype," "boilerplate," and "typecast" make the leap from specialist printing vocabulary to widespread figurative language? We trace the etymology of these and other...
955. This week, we're looking at the curious origins and histories behind common idioms and expressions that use "black," like "Black Friday," "black sheep," "in-the-black," and more. Then we...