Mute point
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Nov 28, 2011
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In the past few weeks, I've heard two different intelligent people say the phrase "mute point" instead of "moot point". At first, it annoyed me that anyone would fail to meet the unattainably high grammar goals I secretly set for myself and others. But then a link pointed out that these people might think the phrase refers to mute as in "if something doesn't matter, it's not saying anything. It's 'mute.'" I have to say I hadn't considered that, and it kind of makes sense. #language
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Middle language
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Sep 29, 2011
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An interesting thing I noticed while in Italy was that English was used as the middle language between non-native English speakers. For example, a group of Germans ordered their food in English from an Italian waiter. The same thing is happening as I write this by a Chinese co-worker who's explaining things to a Korean co-worker. #language
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Chipotle pronunciation
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Jun 10, 2011
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There's a faux Mexican restaurant called Chipotle, which is also the name of a pepper. It's pronounced chih-POTE-lay. Get it right, white people. #language
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Logical punctuation
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Jun 1, 2011
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I like the fact that logical punctuation (commas and periods outside of quotation marks) is becoming more and more acceptable as more and more people read and write primarily online without needing to deal with the judgmental eyes of English teachers and copy editors (via Daring Fireball).
Related: Grammar my way #language
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Irregardless
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May 25, 2011
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Can we all please agree to stop using the word "irregardless", if not simply because it's such an ugly word, then at least because we already have a perfectly good word with the exact same definition: "regardless". #language
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Unrhymable
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May 10, 2011
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Dictionary.com says there are 19 English words that have no perfect rhyme, including film, orange, and silver. Wikipedia goes into more detail, saying a lot of those unrhymable words actually have an obscure rhyming match, including pilm, Blorenge, and chilver. #language
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Tricky plurals
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May 9, 2011
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Why is the word "pants" plural? Some people say it's because pants contain two pant legs, hence a "pair of pants." But my shirt contains two arms; does that make it a pair of shirts? No.
This is an example of a tricky plural. Other examples include a pair of scissors, a set of eyeglasses, and underwear.
Also related: A "TV set" is so called because apparently the components used to come in a set, and the user had to put everything together. #language
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Schlümpfe
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Feb 22, 2011
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Die Schlümpfe is German for The Smurfs, thus continuing the stereotype that everything is funnier in German. #language
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But-heads (1)
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Nov 24, 2010
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A "but-head" is a phrase at the beginning of a sentence meant to "preemptively deny a charge that has yet to be made" and is usually followed by the word "but." For example: - I hate to be the one to tell you this, but...
- With all due respect
- I hear what you're saying, but...
- I'm not trying to hurt your feelings, but...
- It's not about the money, but...
It's similar to a non-apology apology like "I'm sorry if you feel insulted" and a non-denial denial like "I'm not here to talk about the past." We talking primates have many different methods of lying. (via Kottke) #language
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One wrong word (4)
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Jul 30, 2010
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I've noticed that most people have a tendency to regularly pronounce at least one word completely wrong. And not because they have an accent or a speech impediment or a lack of education, but simply because something went wrong in their speech development to cause them to fumble over just that one simple word. For example, I have a friend who pronounces the word "awkward" as "ock-ward," except with a huge emphasis on the "ock" part. One might say he pronounces it "awkwardly." The pastor of my church, besides using the annoying yet dictionary-approved pronunciation of "mature" as "ma-tyoor" (I say "ma-choor," and what I say is always right), pronounces the word "ordinary" as "awww-dinary," which comes out in sentences like, "The love of man is awww-dinary, while the love of God is extra-awww-dinary." One might say his unusual pronunciation is a little out of the "ordinary." I knew a girl in high school who pronounced "frustrated" without the first R, making it "fustrated." One might say it was a little "frustrating" to hear. Finally, my aunt says "goff" instead of "golf," which is something I absolutely can't figure out how to include in a pun. #language
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