Category: Queen’s English / Latin Lovers

In the Book of Judges 12:5-6, we learn that the original shibboleth was an arbitrary word that Jephthah used to spot his enemies: the Ephraimites had trouble with the sh sound, and when asked to pronounce a word with sh in it, they revealed they were enemy spies (“. . .… Continue reading →

In the last Sunday of December of each year in the New York Times, Timothy Egan provides us with a list of words which might have been colorful at one time but whose overuse has caused them to become pallid clichés and candidates for his… Continue reading →

Most lawsuits are personal in nature, reflecting claims brought against individuals or legal entities such as corporations, limited liability companies and the like (all of which are considered legal “persons”).  Such personal claims are referred to as in personam actions.  There is another form of… Continue reading →

Meanings of words change over time mostly because of general usage.  It is not uncommon for purists, who usually wish to preserve our language “as is”, to be offended by these changes; but often to resist them is to try to reverse the changing tides.… Continue reading →

Homonyms, words that sound alike but are spelled differently, are sprinkled throughout English.  Here are some to test your ears Bill’s expression was marred by a nervous tic/tick. The resolution of the suspense peaked/piqued her interest. The story had two discreet/discrete endings The messenger might… Continue reading →

  We are taught to use complete sentences when we write, that every sentence should contain a subject, a verb, and convey a complete thought.  However, Roy Peter Clark in his “Glamour of Grammar” maintains that there are times when sentence fragments can be injected… Continue reading →

The Queen’s (Somewhat Fractured) English Among the many gifts Baseball has bestowed upon us are two notable philosophers, Casey Stengel and Yogi Berra.  Both have left a legacy of wonderful aphorisms, which often appear to be contradictory, but somehow most make sense.  You judge. Casey: Most… Continue reading →

A metaphor is defined as a figure of speech in which a word or phrase that designates one thing is applied to another in an implicit comparison.  It is a tool to be used with discretion; much more often than not, the metaphor can be a… Continue reading →

        (a)          “Bring and take: the New York mistake.” (A charming, and true, ditty). If the object to be moved is there, and I’m here, I say to the person who’s there, “Bring me the book.”  If the object is here, and it is to… Continue reading →

        “Stet” is a Latin word meaning “let it stand.”  It’s traditionally used as a proofreader’s mark or direction to a typist or typesetter.  The instruction means that a previous change should be ignored and the text should be left in its original condition.  Thus,… Continue reading →