prescriptivism

Appalachian English: It’s Not “Bad” Grammar, It’s History

Far from being a sign of poor education, Appalachian English is a complex, rule-governed dialect rooted in Elizabethan history and…

5 days ago

Hypercorrection: The Tragedy of “Whom Shall Go”

Hypercorrection is the linguistic tragedy of trying so hard to be right that you end up wrong. From the awkwardness…

5 days ago

The Appendix Probi: When ‘Bad’ Latin Won

Discover the *Appendix Probi*, a 3rd-century list of "mistakes" that unintendedly documented the birth of the Romance languages. This article…

6 days ago

Terms of Venery: A Murder of Crows

Discover the fascinating history behind terms like a "murder of crows" or a "parliament of owls." We explore how the…

6 days ago

CamelCase vs. snake_case: The Grammar of Code

In the dialect of computer programming, spaces are illegal, forcing coders to adopt unique orthographic rules like CamelCase and snake_case…

6 days ago

The Social Meaning of H-Dropping

H-dropping, the act of saying "'ouse" instead of "house", is far more than a simple pronunciation quirk. This feature of…

3 months ago

Why ‘Ain’t’ Is a Real Word (And Other Contractions)

Your English teacher probably told you 'ain't' isn't a word, but they were teaching you a rule, not a reality.…

3 months ago

Leísmo, Laísmo, Loísmo: Spain’s Pronoun War

In the world of Spanish grammar, a quiet war rages on. The combatants are three tiny pronouns—le, la, and lo—and…

6 months ago

The Politics of Dictionaries

Ever wonder who decides when a word like 'rizz' is official? This post delves into the surprisingly political world of…

6 months ago

The Greek Language War: A Nation’s Identity Crisis

For over a century, Greece was torn apart by a linguistic civil war, a battle fought not with weapons but…

6 months ago

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