MetaFilter posts tagged with words and etymology

Lousy? Crummy? Fed Up?

pointystick — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 08:13:47 -0800

Trench Talk now entrenched in the English Language - Military historian Peter Doyle and Julian Walker, an etymologist at the British Library, have written Trench Talk about how words from the first World War have become part of everyday English. Walker also has a blog which may be of interest to those who enjoy the history of words and language.

Claws sharp

netbros — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 17:42:19 -0800

The alphaDictionary Historical Dictionary of American Slang presents a unique way for studying slang. It contains over 2200 slang words with the centuries in which they were first printed. The dates were taken from the Oxford English Dictionary, the Online Etymological Dictionary, or the earliest occurrences the editors can remember. Slang Generation Checkup To be sure the way you speak does not betray your age, you should take Dr. Goodword's Slang Generation Checkup and find out in which era the slang you use comes from. Dr. Goodword's Glossary of Quaint Southernisms If you enjoy our American slang dictionary, you should get a kick out of this glossary of words pronounced with a Southern accent. 26 Beatnik Slang Words and Phrases We Should All Start Using Plenty of phrases from the first self-described hipster generation have lasted into modern conversation: people still get bent out of shape, annoying people bug us and muscular guys are still built, just to scan the b-words. Here are 26 words and phrases that don’t get much use any more but are worth sneaking into conversation. Discuss accents, slang and dialects with others. Now you can talk with others who have an interest in words, how they are pronounced, used, and created in the Alpha Agora forums.

M is for Myriapod

Horace Rumpole — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 09:55:33 -0800

Mysteries of Vernacular is a series of delightful papercraft animations about etymology, by filmmaker Jessica Oreck. Four of a projected 26 videos, one for each letter of the alphabet, have been completed so far: Assassin, Hearse, Pants, and Clue. (via)

Words of the last 100 years

kmz — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:23:49 -0800

Dave Wilton of wordorigins.org (prev) has been compiling etymological snapshots for each year of the past 100 years, based on words that first appeared in English that year. As of now, he is up to 1941. The 1911 entry gives a good overview of his goals and parameters. (via) Of note, "The words are taken from the Oxford English Dictionary, based on that dictionary’s earliest citation for that word. Of course, that does not necessarily mean the word was coined in the given year; it only means that is the earliest date the big dictionary has for the word. In many cases, these words can and have been antedated. " Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a very good tagging system on the site. For convenience, all the entries thus far:

word: /wɜrd/ -noun 1. a unit of language, consisting of one or more spoken sounds or their written representation, that functions as a principal carrier of meaning.

Cat Pie Hurts — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 15:01:45 -0800

Words of the World is a site dedicated to the exploration and life of words and language. Creator, Brady Haran, is also known for his sites exploring the Bible with Bibledex, Chemistry with the Periodic Table of Videos, Physics with Sixty Symbols and the people that make the science happen at the University of Nottingham with Test Tube.

A post for all the epeoloatrists

Kattullus — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 11:45:54 -0800

Do you know what you would see a hypothecary about? Have stared down into a joola? Ever come across a jigget of sheep? Has someone called you a slubberdegullion to your face? Learn these and many more words from blogger Robin Bloor's fun 10 Words You Don't Know series of posts. Perhaps the most entertaining is the one where Bloor provides explanatory limericks with his definitions.

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.

Constellations of Words:Explore the Etymology and Symbolism of the Constellations

sidr — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 16:27:54 -0800

Constellations of Words : Explore the Etymology and Symbolism of the Constellations

Lord Love a Duck!

freshwater_pr0n — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:14:29 -0800

Ever wonder what a quocker-wodger was? Just what did they mean when they said that you were all kippers and curtains? Worldwidewords.org has the answer. "More than 1600 pages on the origins, history, evolution and idiosyncrasies of the English language worldwide." Word geeks, say goodbye to the rest of your afternoon.

Intelligence is Sexy

Navelgazer — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 19:42:37 -0800

H o t F o r W o r d s - a youtube classroom series on etymology taught by Marina, a... hot Russian philologist. Mildly NSFW. Warning: Marina is as shameless in her self-promotion as she is in her choice of tops. Still, fun and interesting for etymology-freaks.

Test Your Word Power!

johnny novak — Fri, 06 Jan 2006 00:46:02 -0800

Test Your Word Power!

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.

101 words, and yet I cannot think of a clever title...

Orange Goblin — Tue, 19 Oct 2004 09:33:05 -0800

101 years in 101 words

eh?

casarkos — Thu, 15 Jul 2004 08:43:07 -0800

Words: Woe & Wonder The CBC explains and debates usage from a Canadian-journalism standpoint - for example, why the Iraqi ex-leader is referred to by his first name and whether to capitalize this place.

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.

filter (n.) - c.1400, from M.L. filtrum

Ufez Jones — Fri, 18 Jul 2003 08:03:27 -0800

The Online Etymology Dictionary. I'll be spending most of my day here.

Taticular Nucyoular Weapons

NedKoppel — Mon, 07 Oct 2002 19:00:55 -0800

Taticular Nucyoular Weapons Dubya mispronounced the word "nuclear" "\nu"cle*ar\" in his speech 17 times this evening (take your own tally here). Wait. That's not a simple mispronunciation. It's a "folk etymology." Thanks, Ike. (Thanks, Homer.) Thanks also to Merriam-Webster. Apparently, this scourge of English is in the dictionary.