What’s better than a comic book when you’re a kid? How about a free printable comic book that doubles as a writing prompt for kids? Bam! Sure, reading comic books (and graphic novels for that matter) is a classic kid activity and one that’s expert-approved for helping kids commit to a lifelong love of reading. Look no further than the likes of Captain Underpants, Diary …
Quick: when you hear the word doctor, what do you picture? Most would probably describe someone in a white lab coat with a stethoscope hanging around their neck or someone in medical scrubs—someone you would seek out if you have a deep cut that needed stitches. That word doctor, however, is a title assigned to many who don’t come close to that description, many of …
by John Kelly, Senior Research Editor at Dictionary.com It’s easy to confuse disinfectants and antiseptics. They have a lot in common, after all. Both are chemical agents used to reduce the risk of infection from germs and help stop the spread of disease. But, disinfectants and antiseptics also have differences in their use—differences that can be critical to your health and safety. Here’s the key …
By Lindsay Barrett Parents, caregivers, and educators celebrate children’s mastery of the ABCs as an important milestone on the road to reading and writing. But, there’s much more to learning the alphabet than a cute rendition of the ABC song. Here’s the lowdown on the different aspects of learning about letters—and plenty of fun activities to help your children or students become alphabet experts. How …
by John Kelly, Senior Research Editor at Dictionary.com The situation of the coronavirus outbreak is changing fast. And news and information about the disease can be overwhelming, not least of which are the many new, confusing, and technical terms being used about the outbreak. Understanding these terms is essential to helping people stay informed and safe—and we take seriously our role in defining and explaining …
Normally, we track new words for years before seeing enough evidence to convince us they have the staying power to merit inclusion in our traditional dictionary. Well, it’s not a normal day at the office. We’re all working at home, for one thing. COVID-19 has changed the dictionary world as suddenly and profoundly as it has changed all of our personal and professional lives. In …
When surprising, shocking, or scary things like the COVID-19 pandemic happen, it’s sometimes difficult to find the words to talk about it. You may find yourself straining to remember terms you learned a long time ago, or repeating the same words and phrases over and over again because you just don’t know what else to say. While the world is quarantined due to the novel …
We love the earth, it’s beautiful, amazing … and it needs our help. The phrase Earth Day originated in 1969. It means “a day’s observance of the need to protect the Earth’s environment, in many countries on April 22.” The first Earth Day was organized by Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin in 1970. He was upset that politics and media were not addressing the concerns of our …
by John Kelly, Senior Research Editor at Dictionary.com Economics—as if understanding its facts and figures, number and statistics, and charts and graphs isn’t challenging enough. Economics also relies on some tough terms. No, we don’t just mean the more advanced argot of arbitrage or leveraged buyout. Even more familiar economic terms many of us encounter in the news (or, more frighteningly, feel in our pocketbooks), …
by John Kelly, Senior Research Editor at Dictionary.com The coronavirus pandemic isn’t only affecting people’s health and safety. It is also impacting people’s livelihoods as the virus hits the economy. Cancellations, quarantines, and social distancing are causing many companies to furlough or lay off employees—and in some instances, both. But what is the difference between furloughs and layoffs? For health, safety, and medical emergencies or …
Are you staring at piles and piles of junk and becoming increasingly concerned about the accumulation in, uh, someone‘s apartment? No judgment if you’re asking for “a friend”! We’re here to help you use the right words to describe this problem. To properly examine the issue, we’ve got to get the vocabulary pinned down: does this chaos signal a problem with hoarding? Or the tendency …
Expand your child’s vocabulary with these fun word activities Have your child complete one of the vocab activities below to build their language or complete one of the family activities to get a little learning boost for all those involved. Learning words for feelings Put these videos on for your child, one at a time. After each video, ask them what the kids in the …
