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“The Chaos” of the English Tongue Posted by Gary Locke on Mar 5, 2020
If you’ve ever scratched your head at the bizarre pronunciation practices of English speakers, then this poem is for you! It’s called “The Chaos”, and was originally written by Dutch traveler, linguist, and teacher Dr. Gerard Nolst Trenité (also known by the pseudonym Charivarius), and published in a 1920 textbook Drop Your Foreign Accent: engelsche…
The Many Ways of Anyway Posted by Gary Locke on Feb 27, 2020
As you probably know, Americans are very good at abusing the English language. We fall into habits of misapplying words when speaking and, if we do it often enough, the wrong word becomes part of common speech. This is called a colloquialism. The problem with some English colloquialisms, though, is that they can confuse anyone…
English Idioms Inspired by Blacksmiths Posted by Gary Locke on Feb 20, 2020
With only an estimated 500 – 1000 professional blacksmiths in the US today, chances are excellent that you don’t think about the craft all that often. It is likely, however, that you have heard some of the most common phrases associated with blacksmiths sometime in the last month. In fact, these idioms are so widely…
Love Songs in English Posted by Gary Locke on Feb 13, 2020
Many of the greatest songs of all time are love songs. If you’ve ever been in love, or wanted to be, you’ve probably been touched by a love song. Oh, yes, you might say, that’s exactly how I feel! This is why couples often say, “They’re playing our song!” They found a song that perfectly…
English Words in the News: Primary Posted by Gary Locke on Feb 6, 2020
I live in New Hampshire, which means that every four years, media from all over the world stumble over each other in an effort to learn what my neighbors are thinking about. This is not an exaggeration. I was once interviewed on Danish television! The reason for this quadrennial (meaning every four years) fascination with…
That or Which? Posted by Gary Locke on Jan 30, 2020
Years ago, this blog addressed the problem of when to use that or which in a sentence. Are they interchangeable? Is there a rule to follow? What’s the difference? Unfortunately, this continues to be one of the most common mistakes in English grammar. In fact, it’s so common that people tend to ignore it. But…
English Words in the News: Caucus Posted by Gary Locke on Jan 23, 2020
Every four years the United States begins its national presidential election with the Iowa caucuses. This is followed by the New Hampshire primary. Soon, in rapid succession, many more states conduct their voting. By May we usually know who the presidential candidates in the two major parties will be. What’s important is that there are…