Wordplay

Arts & Culture (page 7)

Where 'Cliff-hangers' Come From

You're on the edge of your seat

What the @% Is a ‘Grawlix'?

We can thank Beetle Bailey.

What is a 'thirst trap'?

A tall drink of water

Showing Off Your [Sic] Moves

The politics of editorial comment.

10 Snappy Words for Style

What's the 'funk' in 'funky'?

How to ‘Zhuzh’ Up Your Vocabulary

Roll up your sleeves.

You Wear Them On Your Head

Or you could, anyway.

A Lesson in Fine Art

11 words to know for the museum

Words We're Watching: 'Technoference'

When you can't look away

Fancy Pants: 8 Words for Clothes

Some like it haute

The Dictionary Just Got a Whole Lot Bigger

We added 850 new words and definitions

Words We're Watching: 'Nothingburger'

Where's the beef?

Words We're Watching: 'Explainer'

Some things require explanation

'Swole': An Old Word With New Meaning

When you're swole, you're ripped.

What's the 'Sitch'?

We've got ourselves a situation here.

What Is a 'Cord-Cutter'?

When you know it's time to let go.

Words We're Watching: 'Unbanked' and 'Underbanked'

Follow the money.

Words We're Watching: 'Metal,' the Adjective

It's a pretty metal development.

Standing Up for 'Stan'

When you're more than a little obsessed.

Words We're Watching: 'Bombogenesis'

Or "bomb cyclone," if you prefer.

Why is it called an 'Adam's apple'?

It's not the reason you think.

Words We're Watching: 'Doggo'

They're good dogs, Webster.

On 'Kawaii' and the Power of Cute

Why Hello Kitty is everywhere.

Words We're Watching: 'Cape'

You know us, always caping for new words

'Padawan': The new "intern"?

This might be the word you're looking for

Words We're Watching: 'Ratioed'

When your take is both hot and bad.

Merriam-Webster's 2017 Words of the Year

Our Word of the Year feminism, plus 9 more

Words We're Watching: Adjectival 'Dad'

'Dad' is tinkering with a new use.

It's a Living: Last Names That Started as Jobs

What's in a name? Sometimes, a paycheck.

Words We're Watching: 'Streisand Effect'

Don't try to keep this under wraps.

Who Has the 'Bandwidth' These Days?

Making room for a new sense of the word

Are you in a 'food coma'?

Eat big, crash hard

Words We're Watching: 'Gig Economy'

When there's work to be done

Words We're Watching: 'Pizzly' vs. 'Grolar'

Polar bear + grizzly

Out of the 'Ether'

From a diss track to discourse

8 Words and Phrases from the Road

Just you, these words, and the horizon

Words We're Watching: 'Xennial'

You know who you are.

What's a 'Silver Fox'?

Attractive? Clever? Both?

'Spox' May Go On The Record

From newsroom lingo to the mainstream

'Golden Ticket': A Word of Pure Imagination

An everlasting gobstopper of a word

Some Jawn About 'Jawn'

'Jawn' is some kind of amazing jawn.

'Meat Sweats': The Cookout's Worst Nightmare

They're real, but is meat the cause?

Let's Talk 'Tea'

Spill it, sip it: just make it hot.

Welcome to the New Words Added in September 2017

From 'hive mind' to 'sriracha'

8 Foods Named After Real People

A delicious collection of eponymous foods

What is a 'third-culture kid'?

A new form of cultural identity

Words We're Watching: 'Tiny House'

Just how tiny is a 'tiny house'?

What about 'whataboutism'?

Why mention X if someone else did Y?

Words We're Watching: 'Antifa'

What it means and how to say it

'Contactless': A New Way To Shop

Will you be paying by phone?

What's a 'Clapback'?

Mic. Drop.

Famous by Design: 'Starchitect'

'Star' + 'Architect' = 'Starchitect'

Devilish Words

Don't blame a word use error on the devil.

Don't Let Reading This Be Another 'Coulda' 'Shoulda' 'Woulda'

PSA: They're three separate words.

Words We're Watching: 'Record Scratch'

Used as an interjection

Don't Be a Victim of 'Smishing'

A brand new portmanteau.

'Tetris' is Being Used as a Verb

But does it fit into the dictionary?

Infomania in the Information Age

In the information age, can we ever be satisfied with what we know?

Are You 'For Reals?'

Just when you get comfortable with a slang phrase, they add an s.

What To Call Your Local Beer Expert

When you're looking for something to pair with your nachos.

When Fictional Words Become Real

A single author created them, but the public adopted them.

'Latinx' And Gender Inclusivity

How do you pronounce this more inclusive word?

Back To School Means Time For Scaffolding

Learn this term to help students learn.

Reaching Peak 'Peak': A Meta Study

On our way towards the wordy peak.

Words We're Watching: 'Aquafaba'

Don't dump out the bean water just yet...

The 'Best' Way to Sign Off On An E-mail

Give them your best

Words That Come From the Dinner Table

Have you ever been given the cold shoulder? Of mutton?

Words We're Watching: 'Scoby'

Kombucha lovers unite.

Words We're Watching: 'Fidget Spinner'

Don't fight the fad

Get Ready To 'Vanna White'

You don't even need an evening gown!

Don't Blame Millennials for the Introductory 'Which'

Which, history.

Don't @ Us

A social media convention goes beyond Twitter

'Negging' Moves Beyond The Bar Scene

Not just for pick-up artists anymore

'Pride': The Word That Went From Vice to Strength

Do you take pride in Pride?

Pretty in 'Pink'

From Fuchsia to Baker-Miller Pink

'All the Feels,' All the Time

Once more, with 'feels'

'Human Capital': More Than the Sum of Its Parts

Not just a fancy term for 'human resources'

That's So Meta

If you're thinking about thinking about meta, you're already there

Ah, 'Romance': A Word Borne to English on the Breastplates of Chivalry

The true and lovesome history of 'romance'

The History of 'Epic Fail'

Fail better

The rise of the 'promposal'

The most important decision you will ever make. Or not.

A Brief History of 'Squee'

The word has its fans

Is 'kryptonite' a real word?

The answer to this question is usually yes

Why does Eeyore have the name he does?

Donkeys don't say 'eeyore'—or do they?

From 'Ale' to 'Zymurgy': 8 Words About Beer

'Lager', 'stout', 'pilsner', and more

Tbh: To Be Honest, the Meaning is Perfectly Clear

Afaik

What does 'otaku' really mean?

Is 'otaku' an insult? It depends.

A Poet by any Other Name

Poets are makers. Literally.

9 Financial Words With Surprising Origins

In the beginning, 'income' simply meant "coming in"

The Nuclear Option

Figurative use of the term 'nuclear option' is relatively new

The Origins of 'Side-Hustle'

The word dates back at least as far as the 1950s

The Real Story of 'Fake News'

You can trust us

9 Words from P.G. Wodehouse

'Jeeves', 'snooter', and more

The History of 'Thon', the Forgotten Gender-Neutral Pronoun

Whatever happened to 'thon'?

Nice to E-Meet You

When e-meet meets the dictionary

What does it mean to be an egg on Twitter?

Are you a good egg or a bad egg?

8 Ways to Face the Music

'Shimmy', 'waltz', & 6 more words from dance

8 Words and Phrases from U.S. Presidents

How to sound presidential

7 Words for When You're Feeling Sentimental

Words for all those big, mushy feelings

What's 'balayage'?

The highlight(s) of your week

'Positive', 'Cheat', and 7 Other Words from Law

Don't be an ignoramus

We Added 1,000+ New Words to the Dictionary in February 2017

From 'binge-watch' to 'Seussian'

What's a 'Tweetstorm'?

Batten down the hatches

No, 'Snowflake' as a Slang Term Did Not Begin with 'Fight Club'

The lost history of 'snowflake'

7 Words That Will Expand Your Understanding of Cheese

From 'hard cheese' to 'headcheese'

Yes, 'Welp' Is a Real Word

'Welp' is over 70 years old

Will 'kompromat' make it into the dictionary?

'Apparatchik,' 'disinformation,'...'kompromat'?

Word-orama!

Why do we say -orama, anyway?
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