Merriam-Webster, the preferred dictionary of professional editors, is revising its entry for 'racism' to include "race-based prejudice with social and institutional oppression," reflecting the increased use of this meaning in our language. Thank you to #MerriamWebster for this important update.
You can read the full New York Times article here. $99 Website Proofreading SpecialMarch 4, 2020 is National Grammar Day. What better way to celebrate than with our $99 website proofreading special? Offer expires March 31, 2020. Click here for details.
Read more about National Grammar Day here. Merriam-Webster's online dictionary has a new, fun, and interactive Time Traveler tool (no TARDIS required) that let's you search by year for the first time a word appeared in print. For example, editor first appeared in 1649. 1776 brought us killjoy and practical joke. In 1964, gun control, zip-code, and skinny-dip were added to the lexicon. 1982 gave us barista, domain name, and couch potato. And in 2014, we added manspreading. Time Traveler is a fascinating look at the history of English words. Check it out here:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler Pro tip: It's especially fun to look up words that were introduced in the year you were born! Yes, it’s really a thing. March 4th is National Grammar Day in the U.S. It was established in 2008 by Martha Brockenbrough, founder of the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar (SPOGG) and a bit of a hottie. Why not celebrate by making sure your sentences are grammatically correct? Use the preferred or prescribed features of our language when speaking or writing, i.e., “the rules.” So it’s “I don’t know anything about grammar” and not “I don’t know nothing about grammar.” And by the way, while writing “Its not my problem,” “Your my favorite,” or “Their having fun,” certainly shows a lack of good spelling, they are all grammatically correct sentences. It’s always a good idea to double-check your spelling, and watch out for those homophones. So although spelling and punctuation errors are not grammatical errors, why not go crazy and try to perfect those, too? And don’t forget your social media posts and text messages! |
AuthorThe Grammar Gnome’s love of the English language began in childhood when her family purchased a new dictionary. Its preface contained a section on etymology that included several maps illustrating the evolution of the English language. These she gleefully spent time studying while pondering our language’s rich history. Archives
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