Q&A for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts

The word crazy is a later addition. Scanning Google Books I find a handful of references starting from the mid-60s where batshit is …

Aug 23, 2014 · Our numbers have a specific two-letter combination that tells us how the number sounds. For example 9th 3rd 301st …

A key aspect of this one is that elements of an experiment are supposed to be independent. Granularity is inherent in experimental …

When data has been submitted through a form online, which sentence below make the most sense to use? Is one grammatically …

Q&A for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts

In English, one would normally say "dozens of" rather than "tens of", so there is some overlap. I might use "dozens of" for an amount …

I was once told by an English professor that a comma should never be used before but in a sentence. For years, I have followed her …

"Not bad" means "not bad". It can be made to mean "good", but then again so can anything — including plain "bad" itself. Read up …

According to Etymonline: (It is also used in excitement.) blimey by 1889, probably a corruption of (God) blind me! First attested in a …