MetaFilter posts tagged with Language and etymology

"It's a Secret to Everybody"

empath — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 19:26:00 -0800

"It's a secret to everybody" -- an unbelievably comprehensive blog post about the etymologies of the names of famous (and not-so-famous) video game characters.

Death of the dirty word

weapons-grade pandemonium — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:43:14 -0800

Why would an evolutionary biologist study words? It turns out there is an astonishing parallel between the evolution of words in a lexicon and the evolution of genes in an organism. The word two, for example, has been around much longer than most, and will likely be with us for millennia, whereas the comparatively rare and recent word dirty has undergone many mutations, and will probably be extinct in a few hundred years. Professor Mark Pagel, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Reading, UK, tells us why on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's program As It Happens. Pull slider to 16:00 to start the seven minute interview.

The bowler's Holding, the batsman's Willey

nthdegx — Mon, 04 Jul 2005 11:41:15 -0800

The Origins and Common Usage of British Swear-words.

To the French, it is the flower that thinks; what do the English call it?

painquale — Sat, 04 Dec 2004 12:09:14 -0800

Etymology-wise, which hormone is an island? What word both denotes a prime and euphemizes Satan? What word denotes "the future" and abbreviates the unknown? Is urine pith? These are some of the questions from "Moot: The World's Toughest Language Game," a homemade and little-known board game for lovers of words. Some puzzles are available online; there are a few more available on a page detailing the interesting story behind the game's creation. You can sign up to have a new language puzzle e-mailed to you every week.

Onomatopoeia, gee it's good to see ya!

wendell — Sat, 12 Jun 2004 15:53:49 -0800

If you don't like dictionary posts, look away, NOW!
But if you like to play with words, the dictionarians at Merriam-Webster have announced the winners in their poll for the Ten Favorite Words for 2004:
defenestration, serendipity, onomatopoeia, discombobulate, plethora, callipygian, juxtapose, persnickety, kerfuffle and flibbertigibbet
Also, a list of runners-up with more of my personal faves: oxymoron, copacetic, curmudgeon, conundrum, euphemism, superfluous, and of course, Smock! Smock! Smock!
[more inside] Via vidiot.

OED new words

mfoight — Mon, 22 Mar 2004 05:27:04 -0800

F-word now a word, as well as : twelve-incher, sheepshagger, and old man of the woods! The newest real English words now in the OED.

sklero — Fri, 27 Sep 2002 00:19:46 -0800

Wilton's Word and Phrase Origins is a well researched etymology site that puts out a fine newsletter in .pdf form, has a pretty consistently interesting discussion group, and is sometimes referenced by MeFites.

sadie01221975 — Tue, 01 Jan 2002 02:31:26 -0800

extremely cool site if you like things like this... palindromes, anagrams, spoonerisms, pangrams, oxymora, mnemonics, etymology,

lagado — Mon, 18 Jun 2001 20:54:55 -0800

From its origins as Stalinist rhetoric in the 30's, to ironic Left-wing jibe in the 70's, to Iconoclastic taunt in the 80's, to the Conservative pejorative of today, has the term Political Correctness had its day? It's probably just me but it seems to be used far more frequently by people who are in positions of power or by those more in tune with society's mainstream orthodoxy than by those who aren't. Of course, no one ever calls themselves politically correct. What do you think, what does the p.c. term mean to you?