Six guesses, five letters, infinite boasting rights. Since the word puzzle Wordle first released publicly online in October 2021, it has become a blockbuster hit. The principle of the game is simple: each player has six chances to guess one five-letter word. After each guess, the letters change color: green for right letter, right location; yellow for right letter, wrong location; and gray for wrong …
The words to, too, and two sound exactly alike but are used in completely different ways. They are classic examples of what we call homophones—words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings and spellings. Because they’re so similar, they often get mixed up in written language. In this article, we’ll give you everything you need to make sure you choose the right to, …
Have you been overcome with wanderlust lately? If you’re antsy to travel or are already planning a trip to a faraway locale, you might want to take a moment to consider the name of your destination. It’s possible that you may not even know how to pronounce the name of this city! As it turns out, even the most well-known cities around the globe can …
The words affect and effect are two of the most commonly confused words in the English language. They’re pronounced pretty much the same, used in the same contexts, and both can be used as both a verb and a noun. So how can you remember the difference? In this article, we’ll explain: The difference between affect and effect When to use affect or effect affects …
You’ve probably seen the hashtags on TikTok: cottagecore, royalcore, normcore. It’s clear they’re associated with a specific aesthetic and that people are major fans, but what’s the deal with every social trend suddenly getting its own unique -core name? Fandoms naming themselves isn’t a new thing—just ask Taylor Swift’s Swifties or Beyonce’s Beyhive. But the -core trend takes the idea of fandom and applies it …
Break out the maple syrup, because we are about to dig into some tasty stacks of pancakes, flapjacks, and hotcakes. But do these three words all refer to the same thing, or are there subtle differences? And what about griddlecakes? In this article, we’ll serve up an explanation of how the words pancakes, flapjacks, hotcakes, and griddlecakes differ and how they overlap. A pancake is …
You know that thing that happens when you first learn about something and then you start seeing it everywhere? Or when participants in a medical trial start to feel better even though they’ve been taking the pill with nothing in it? Helpfully, there are names for these things. In the context of psychology, these “things that happen”—these phenomena—are often referred to as effects, especially in …
You probably already know that English features many, many words with silent letters—letters that appear in the word but aren’t pronounced and often make us wonder what they are even doing there. For example, the letter B in the words debt and thumb. Or whatever the heck is going on in the words colonel, queue, and bourgeoisie. Even though you’re probably already familiar with silent letters, …
If your cello sounds a little fishy, it might be a bass. Terrible puns aside, it can be easy to confuse the two lowest and largest members of the violin family. But are the cello and bass really all that different? In this article, we’ll break down the difference between a cello and a bass and explain why the bass that’s a member of the …
![List of words in outlined font, with central word in bold teal font, on light teal background: “dwarfism, dwarf, little people, little person [in bold], people of short stature, short statured people"](https://www.dictionary.com/e/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/20220510_littlePerson_800x800-380x380.png)
Most people are familiar with the use of the term little people in reference to people who have dwarfism—people whose short stature is the result of a medical or genetic condition. But it’s not the only term. In this article, we’ll note the range of terms and preferences and explain some of the notable reasons behind these preferences. Content warning: The end of this article …
You scream, I scream, we all scream for… wait, is that ice cream or gelato? Or frozen yogurt? And what’s the deal with sherbet and sorbet? Are all of these things ice cream, too? Don’t get a brain freeze. We’ll break down the similarities and technical differences between these frozen treats—based on ingredients and how they’re made—in addition to dipping into the overlap of the …
It’s in human nature to tell stories and in many ways, our stories—our mythologies—work their way into every aspect of our daily lives, from meme culture to the language we speak. You may be familiar with some of the words derived from the names of Greek and Roman gods and characters (herculean, echo, narcissist, to name a few). But some of the words with similar …
