Jeff from Columbus, Indiana, asks about his father’s use of the expression “not one iota” to mean “not one bit.” An iota is the smallest letter in the Greek alphabet, and ancient Greek speakers used the word for something exceedingly tiny. The...
“Evolving English: One Language, Many Voices” is a new exhibit at the British Library in London featuring the earliest printed versions of Beowulf, the Wycliffe and King James Bible, and the oldest known example of written English. This is part of a...
What did Shakespeare’s plays sound like in his day? An acting teacher with an interest in dialects wants to know how researchers reconstruct Elizabethan speech. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “How Shakespeare Sounded” Hello, you...
Hi, all -- What's your choice for Word of the Year? "Vuvuzela"? "Starwhacker"? This week, we discuss WOTY candidates, plus the name "Hawaii 5-0," the political tagline "I approve this message," internet...
Text-messaging is destroying our kids’ ability to write, right? Wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Texting and Writing Ability” You’re listening to A Way with Words. I’m Martha Barnette. And I’m Grant...
OMG, text messaging! It’s destroying the English language, corrupting young minds, turning us into illiterates. It’s probably shrinking the ozone layer, too. Or is it? In his new book, Txting: The Gr8 Db8, David Crystal offers a different...