Decisions by dictionary editors, wacky wordplay, and Walt Whitman’s soaring verse. How do lexicographers decide which historical figures deserve a mention or perhaps even an illustration in the dictionary? The answer changes with the times. •...
A woman in Eureka, California, is curious about the term bailiwick. It comes from a Middle English word for bailiff, and wik, a Middle English word that means dwelling and is related to several English place names, such as Gatwick and Norwich. This...
Frank in Coronado, California, wondered about bailiwick after hearing an attorney say that something wasn’t his bailiwick. The word combines bailiff with wick, an old term for a farm or village. In Middle English, a bailiff was a public...