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Let's Do Some 'Comparipun' Shopping! Oct. 05, 2022
Congress has passed more phony bills than a counterfeiter. An inhibited person has more hang-ups tha... Read More
Doing a Number on Numbers Sep. 28, 2022
A number of readers have raised a number of questions about numbers. Gregory Fischer of Allentown, N... Read More
Verbal Villains Vex Blooper Patrol Sep. 21, 2022
In these 12 sentences snared by the Word Guy Blooper Patrol, the word choice "dozen" make sense. Can... Read More
Misuse of 'As' Can Cause Fumbles Sep. 14, 2022
The tiny word "as," like a routine handoff in football, smoothly links one part of the action to ano... Read More
Handy Tips for Writing That Zips Sep. 07, 2022
Here are three easy ways to ameliorate your writing: No. 1: Avoid fancy words like "ameliorate." (In... Read More
Let's Take a Timeout on 'Times Less' Aug. 31, 2022
I owe the IRS four times less money than I did last year. Brand X is three times less powerful than ... Read More
Word Court Renders Split Decisions Aug. 24, 2022
Larry Brautigam of Berlin, Connecticut, was watching the banter of some TV pundits when he suddenly ... Read More
How Well Will You (Fair, Fare) on This Quiz? Aug. 03, 2022
Can you make the correct choice between these often-confused pairs of words? No. 1: When we're writi... Read More
Future of Dictionaries Is Looking Up Jul. 20, 2022
Dictionaries are facing what might be called a "defining moment." After all, of what use are these c... Read More
Can You Spot the Dirty Dozen? Jul. 13, 2022
Members of the ever-vigilant Word Guy Blooper Patrol have nabbed a dozen verbal culprits in newspape... Read More
Shifting Letters Create Whole 'Nother' Words Jul. 06, 2022
In English, what you say is often what you get. During the 1300s, for instance, a protective cloth w... Read More
How a Driveway Became a Parkway Jun. 15, 2022
Q: Why do cars drive on a parkway and park on a driveway? — Johanna Van Valkenburgh, West Gran... Read More
It's Time To 'Book' Your Summer Vacation May. 18, 2022
If you're shipping out for summer, consider toting one of these new books about language aboard. The... Read More
This Comma Quiz Will Give You Pause May. 11, 2022
"The fewer commas you use," Nicholas Baker once wrote, "the more of a tyrant you would be if placed ... Read More
I Know Where You're Coming From May. 04, 2022
A Chicagoan who had just moved to Tennessee was washing his car with a garden hose when his neighbor... Read More
A Cheat Sheet on Linguistic 'Adult'ery Apr. 27, 2022
When Groucho Marx once asked a female contestant on his TV show, "You Bet Your Life," to describe he... Read More
This Quiz Might Make You 'Grimm' Apr. 20, 2022
Once upon a time, a sadistic language columnist challenged his readers to find one grammar or usage ... Read More
Where Never Is 'Herd' a Discouraging Word Apr. 13, 2022
We all know that a gathering of geese is a "gaggle," a passel of fish is a "school," and a herd of s... Read More
When Choosing Classical Plurals, Caveat Errata! Mar. 23, 2022
Howard Goldberg of West Hartford, Connecticut, poses this plural puzzler: What's the Latin singular ... Read More
Let's Jettison Excess 'Ton'nage Feb. 23, 2022
Today, some random dispatches from the Word Front... — 2,000 Pound Gorilla — A recent in... Read More
