Yesterday I talked about why we say take a break. But it’s pretty obvious, isn’t it? When you take a break, at work for example, you’re breaking your day into different parts. EASY.
What might be more interesting is comparing the word break with the word brake (as featured on your car or bike). Obviously these words are homophones (they sound identical) and are often confused for each other when people write, but they actually have more in common than most realise… Continue reading
I was reading this evening about different names for various types of words (a man’s got to relax somehow). Some I’ve mentioned here before, like ideophones. But I came across one term I’d never heard of before: a nonce word. Continue reading
Well, obviously you are.
I overheard that sentence yesterday while writing my last post and enjoying a coffee (and I don’t normally eavesdrop, but it was difficult not to overhear the lady who said the above). It seemed strange for a few reasons. Continue reading
As we’re getting closed to Hallowe’en, I’ve been seeking out horror books, films, and TV programmes. This is why I’ve been watching The Haunting of Hill House recently on Netflix. It’s OK so far, but not particularly scary, and not in the same league as the novel it’s based on or its 1963 film adaptation.
Before the last episode I watched, there was an interesting phrase in the content warning during the credits: drug misuse. Odd, I thought, that sounds much less natural than drug abuse, which is a much more common phrase. Why would they say that? Continue reading
The other day I was walking past a sign which contained the word tragically. I had to stop and look at it, really look at it, because I was convinced that it was misspelled.
I couldn’t quite put my finger on why though. It certain looked too long (and that might have been due to the kerning), but every letter seemed to be in the right place. Continue reading
A neat little phrase, in that the two verbs go well together in terms of meaning, but also how they look and sound. But is that just a coincidence? Continue reading
I read something interesting in Italian the other day:
Questo libro mi sta piacendo un casino. (I really like this book a lot).
I understood everything except un casino, though the meaning was still clear. Looking up un casino, I saw that the first meaning for it was a mess. Continue reading
English-Language Thoughts 