Hi there! Would you like a pepperoni pizza? Of course you would! Well, here you go…
word history
The (Really) True Meaning of “To Decimate”
Has anyone ever told you that you, or most people, use this word incorrectly? It’s possible, because it’s a favourite of misguided pedants.
It’s main use now is to mean to inflict heavy losses, or to almost completely destroy/defeat. It’s usually used in a military sense, as so:
Why is “Dick” Short for “Richard?”
It’s a pretty straightforward answer actually: one of those cases where when you see the steps between A and F, it makes sense.
September, and the Names of the Months
It’s September, and that always makes me think of the names of the months. September of course, is the ninth month of the year, but the name might make you think it’s the seventh, if you know your Latin.
…and Why is it Called “Facebook?”
Word of The Day: Hashtag
Happy Birthday Hashtag.
The symbol’s now been in use for ten years on Twitter. It’s changed the way we communicate online a lot, allowing us to condense complex messages into simple phrases, and has now spread beyond Twitter. It only took me about nine of those ten years to figure out how to use them. And even now I’m not entirely convinced I’m doing it right.
The Etymology of Instagram
While writing about social media yesterday, a thought occurred: what’s the etymology of the name Instagram? The Insta- part seemed pretty obvious, but I was curious about the –gram part. Luckily, when you want to find out about the etymology of the names of social media, you don’t have to do too much digging…
English-Language Thoughts 