In 2018, author Ellen Jovin started setting up her folding “Grammar Table” on the streets of New York City, and dispensing helpful advice about grammar and usage to anyone who asked. She enjoyed those interactions so much that...
The splendid new Dictionary of Southern Appalachian English (Bookshop|Amazon), edited by Michael Montgomery and Jennifer Heinmiller, is a greatly expanded version of the Dictionary of Smoky Mountain English (Amazon), edited by Montgomery and Joseph...
Have you ever googled your own name and found someone else who goes by the very same moniker? There’s a word for that: googleganger. Plus, the language of hobbyists and enthusiasts: If you’re a beekeeper, perhaps you call yourself a...
In his book about language, A Mouthful of Air, Anthony Burgess offers a lyrical description of the satisfying way that grammar supports and enhances the thoughts we wish to express. This is part of a complete episode.
Many so-called “rules” of grammar are actually just zombie rules. They’re ill-advised attempts by 17th-century grammarians to make English syntax fit the orderly rules of Latin. This is part of a complete episode.
Author Stephen King’s book On Writing is an excellent guide to the craft. In it, he warns that “the road to hell is paved with adverbs.” Much other writing advice also says to cut adverbs, and even adjectives. But is that truly...