Today I came across the phrase zombie film maker (to describe someone who makes zombie films) somewhere online. I don’t really remember where now, but that’s not important. What struck me about this fabulous phrase was that it was crying out for some punctuation! Before I go any further, I want you to think about how it should be punctuated. Should it be:
zombie-film maker?
or…
zombie film-maker? Continue reading
6th.
Sixth.
How do you pronounce that word?
To me, it’s always obviously been pronounced phonetically: as it looks, basically. You just say six, and, well, add -th to the end!
Yet in the last couple of years, I’ve noticed a trend, particularly among English newsreaders and reporters, of pronouncing the x like a k. Sikth. Continue reading
Quick, answer these questions:
GREEN
2. What do you put in a toaster?
You might have answered green and toast, instead of, of course, red and bread. Though perhaps not, as these tricks usually work better verbally. Continue reading
David Bowie’s been in the news a bit recently, with his final album Blackstar having been nominated for the Mercury Music Prize, and a new play featuring his music set to debut soon. I loved his music, even though I only really started to listen to it in my twenties. I was quite sad when he died, and the world still feels like a more boring place without him. Continue reading
Ah, the moon! Just look at it up there, glowing in the sky, casting its beautiful silvery light all around. It’s always inspired us. I think that’s because it’s a little bit more mysterious than the sun. During the day people probably looked up and thought: Well, I don’t really know what that thing up there is, but it clearly provides light and heat, so it’s ok.
But the moon? Continue reading
Ask a large enough group of English speakers what their least-favourite English word is, and the most common answer you’ll probably receive is moist. Continue reading
Have you ever given someone your word? Is your word your bond? Why specifically do we use these expressions when we talk about promises? What is it about a word that’s so important that we can trust it so much? I suppose it makes an idea more concrete. We can think that we want to do something for someone, but what good is it until we transform that thought into a word either by speaking it or writing it down. Once the thought’s out in the world we’re committed to it. Continue reading
English-Language Thoughts 