Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

943. Join us for a fascinating romp through the evolution of phrases like "you know," "right?" and "I mean" from Beowulf's time to today. Plus, we look at how people's feelings about using...

942. We’re diving deep into the chameleon-like nature of the "a-" prefix, tracing its journey from Latin, where it often started out as "ad-," to its function as a preposition in French, and its...

941. Whether you've been betrayed by autocorrect or your own fingers, almost everyone has made embarrassing typos. Even the Bible isn't immune: typos led to an old version called the "Sinners...

940. Pork bacon, manual transmissions, and acoustic guitars: retronyms help us describe the original form of something that has now become a class. But sometimes, retronyms go even further. This...

939. When I say the word "tattoo," you probably think of body art, but "tattoo" has another meaning that's related to a famous Edinburgh festival that is happening this month. Plus, we look at why...

938. Love it or hate it, the exclamation point has been on the red carpet lately because we're using it more. But it also has a fascinating history: the man who invented it was trying to fix a...

In this special bonus episode, I sat down with Laura Adams and Monica Reinagel, who host Money Girl and Nutrition Diva here on the Quick and Dirty Tips network, to celebrate their 15th...

937. Today, we explore the traditional advice of using "fewer" for things you can count and "less" for things you can't, but you'll also learn about the idea of using "less" for singular nouns and...

936. Have you ever wondered about the nuanced differences between "aspirational" and "inspirational"? Today, we look at a newer, more cynical meaning of "aspirational." Plus, you've probably heard...

935.  Ever been puzzled by the difference between "slow down" and "slow up"? Curious about how they can possibly mean the same thing (or do they)? We answer a burning listener question about why...

934. Ever wondered why "whyever" isn't as popular as "wherever," "however," or "whenever"? Join me as we delve into the world of "-ever" words and their curious usage. We explore the relationship...

933. Have you ever looked at a word and it didn't seem like a real word anymore? It's a specific thing that happens in your brain called semantic satiation, and we have the fascinating ins and...

932. When I saw Amy Schneider's new book, The Chicago Guide to Copyediting Fiction, I realized that I have never seen a book that specializes in editing just for fiction, and immediately saw that...

931. Darth Vader wasn't the best father (understatement!), but his name is a wonderful jumping off point to discuss the origin of the word "father." Plus, we explain why I said he wasn't the "best"...

930. How YOU doin? Today we’re going to MacGyver up some fun memories and tips. And then we'll look at the rules about using "more" and "most" or "-er" and "-est." It'll be a yowlie howlie good...

929. While we were looking into why we use the word "score" to mean "twenty," our minds were blown by how many languages still have remnants of a base-20 counting system. And then we learned the...

928. Listen to the interview that got me playing Wordle again. Lynne Murphy shared all sorts of things you probably didn't know about this game!Lynne Murphy is professor of linguistics at the...

927. Whether you're a bird brain or a wise old owl, you'll love this week's episode as we fight an uphill battle to understand a language filled with metaphors.| Transcript:...

926. You may remember being told not to start sentences with "there are," but do you know why? We have the answer! Plus, for Cinco de Mayo, we have five fun facts about Spanish.| Transcript:...

925. The existence of the manchineel tree does NOT beg the question of how many different ways a tree can actually hurt you. But it does show that you can't always use taste to tell whether...