Do you like rhubarb? Its taste is a bit sharp, but it can be quite nice alongside something gentler, like custarb. It’s one of those funny words with an Rh at the beginning, when really it seems like a simple R would do fine.
word origins
By the Way
I think I use this expression a lot. I notice, as I’m writing, which phrases I tend to use more often than others. It’s not necessarily such a bad thing: we can’t use every word in the language, and our use of certain words and expressions is what gives us our own style.
Hump Day
Look, I know this is being published on a Thursday, but in my defence I’m writing this on a Wednesday and the idea came to me this afternoon.
Astronomy and Astrology
You may already know the difference between these two words, but I think that they can be easily confused, so it’s useful to make a distinction. To put it most simply: astronomy is real, and astrology isn’t.
To Coin a Phrase
Without checking, I can safely say that I refer to words and phrases being coined a lot in these posts. I’ve long wondered why we use to coin as a verb in this way, so different, apparently, from how we use coin as a noun. So I decided to look into it.
What do you Call a French Muggle?
Un non-magique, apparently.
Before I go any farther, I should explain that I’m talking about Harry Potter.
Breaking News
This is one of those terms that’s become so common that its original (and, after some thought, fairly obvious) meaning has become a little lost to time.
English-Language Thoughts 