Misused word pairs can lead to embarrassing or confusing communication. NPR language experts breaks down the most commonly ...

In my last column, I objected to an opinion columnist's use of the word "shambolic," when either "chaotic" or "disorganized" would not chase a reader to the dictionary. In response, a high school ...

As a linguist, I’ve lost count of how many times I have been asked what I think of the various language-learning apps. The truth is that I don’t use them. But of late I have been watching my daughter, ...

Grammar jargon can be pretty off-putting. Try dropping a term like dangling participle or object predicative at your next office party and you’ll see what I mean. That’s why I avoid the ...

A verb is a word used to describe an action. That’s doing something. Or, a verb can be used to describe a state. That’s feeling something. Or, a verb can be used to describe an occurrence. That’s ...

Can you back your hard drive up? Or must you back up your hard drive? Can you calm yourself down? Or must you calm down yourself? Can you blow balloons up? Or must you blow up balloons? Can you hang ...

Bobble, sniffle, sparkle. Blabber, chatter, flicker. English, along with many other languages, has a delightful class of verbs called frequentatives. Fancy name aside, these words simply show some ...

If you’re grandiloquent, then you like to use extravagant, high-flown words—precisely like the 50 verbs listed here, which either refer to everyday activities or else can be used in place of everyday ...

The Thousand Words Project was an exciting lesson in my classroom; students were engaged and were able to see a new way of approaching writing. Students who are visual learners got a chance to ...

Active voice keeps readers interested and engaged. You can use Microsoft Word features to find passive verbs, and even entire passive sentences, while you compose your documents. Configure the Word ...