Words, words, words! -- Eliza Dolittle

1

1

"Passions run hot when the discussion turns to language," writes Rutgers English professor Jack Lynch in his sprightly new history of the notion of "proper" English, "The Lexicographer's Dilemma."

5

4

Until 1991 the word 'subprime' meant something eminently desirable and worthy of aspiration. But it has suffered a surprising and unusually rapid evolution.

5

5

It used to be that the expert source on what was or wasn't a word was that school-day staple: the dictionary. American Heritage, Webster's Third, the Oxford English: there were a few trusted players in the game. But what if those players are losing their edge?

3

1

On-Line Etymology: What, Exactly, is an Ass-Hat?

One of my many responsibilities in my so-called day job is to facilitate large groups of people toward achieving consensus views on knotty strategic issues.

61

92

"W00t," a hybrid of letters and numbers used by gamers as an exclamation of happiness, topped all other terms in the Springfield dictionary publisher's online poll for the word that best sums up 2007.

2

0

What is the proper term to refer to those of you who live in the United States of America? The word "American" is so deeply embedded in your nation's identity that it may seem curious to you that there could be any discussion about it, but some people — in Latin America, for ex …

9

13

It would be convenient to say that it's as ineffable as what makes art Art, but that's not quite true. Words are weird because they have odd sounds, or an abundance of syllables, or a completely gratuitous k, j, q, z, or x. Words are weird because they mean something weird.

3

3