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How to Insult Someone in English Posted by Gary Locke on Jan 11, 2018
We have a saying in English, “Don’t get mad, get even.” It means that if someone has upset you, or wronged you in any way, you shouldn’t get angry with them. Instead, you should do something that will make them even more upset at you. We have a word for that, too: one-upmanship. It is…
Consider the Semicolon Posted by Gary Locke on Jan 4, 2018
It sits on our keyboards next to the L, below the colon, and beside the apostrophe and quotation marks. Neither a comma nor a period, the semicolon is a tool for connecting thoughts, erasing confusion, and adding style to any piece of writing. I’ve never understood the confusion over how to use a semicolon, yet…
Top 10 English Blogs of 2017 Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 28, 2017
2017 was a busy year for us at the English Language Blog. We covered a wide range of topics from studies of literary figures like Agatha Christie and Henry David Thoreau to the vocabulary of spies and how to properly write about time. Still, what we always like to know is what you wanted…
Songs of the Season – The Christmas Song Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 21, 2017
Of all the songs of the holiday season which belong in The Great American Songbook, one is unique for not being known by its actual title. When jazz singer/songwriter Mel Tormé composed The Christmas Song, he could not have imagined that its opening line would be mistaken for the song title. And yet, far more…
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 14, 2017
I have a very personal connection to one particular song of the holiday season. 25 years ago, I directed a stage production of Meet Me in St. Louis, a classic film about a family in Missouri at the turn of the 20th century. It was a huge undertaking, spanning several months of planning…
Songs of the Season: White Christmas Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 8, 2017
I don’t know about you, but for me, the best thing about the holiday season is probably the music. There’s something for everybody, from choral to jazz to carols from all around the world. You might hear Kwanzaa chants or Chanukah songs for all ages. But, of course, in English-speaking countries, the most common songs…
Further vs. Farther in English Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 1, 2017
You can go further in life if you know the difference between further and farther. We cover many confusing elements of English vocabulary in this blog, and for good reason – there are a lot of them! One of the most commonly mixed-up pairs of words is farther and further. They are both adverbs relative…