We get pretty excited about the spring equinox bringing us out of winter and officially starting the season of spring. But what exactly is the spring equinox? And does an equinox happen at the start of every season? First, let’s get into the equinox, which actually occurs just twice a year. The word equinox comes from Latin and means “equality of night and day.” So, …
Did you lose that sock in the dryer … or loose it?Lose is a verb, while loose is almost always an adjective. They’re often confused because of their similar spelling. When to use lose Lose can only be used as a verb. It describes when you “come to be without something” (e.g., to lose a sock in the laundry) or “to suffer defeat or fail …
In the US, the word boxing usually refers to two athletes stepping into a padded ring, each with the intention of knocking the other off their feet. But the day after Christmas brings up a new version of the word: Boxing Day The holiday is less familiar in the States, but it’s observed in the UK and Commonwealth nations on the first weekday after Christmas. It …
Since pour is a common word and sounds identical to pore, many English speakers use the verb pour in the verb phrase pore over meaning “to meditate or ponder intently.” Oops, we’ve definitely written that one incorrectly before … What does pore mean? When talking about carefully reading books, wills, or other documents, pore is the verb that you’re looking for.Pore means “to read or study with …
On Bastille Day, the world parties in the name of France. But do you know what makes Bastille Day so important not just for France but the history of all democracies? What is a bastille? A bastille is French for “fortress,” “castle,” or “bastion.” What is Bastille Day? But, Bastille Day is specifically about the Bastille Saint-Antoine, which is a fortress-prison in Paris that was stormed …
The winter solstice lasts for just one moment. It occurs exactly when Earth’s axial tilt is farthest away from the sun. This usually happens around December 21 or 22 in the Northern Hemisphere or June 20 or 21 in the Southern Hemisphere. If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, during the solstice the sun will be at its southernmost point in the sky. The higher in …
Dictionaries vary in particulars about the definition of cliché, but they all agree that a cliché is not a good thing. Despite the low regard in which we all hold clichés, we all use them, certainly in speech, if not in writing. Is there a contradiction here? Yup. Formally, a cliché is “a trite, stereotyped expression; a sentence or phrase, usually expressing a popular or common thought …
Wherever we go on the internet, we encounter CAPTCHAs, those twisted words that block or enable entries on websites. Need to post an ad on Craigslist or log into your email from a new device? You may meet a CAPTCHA. Want to comment on an article or blog post? CAPTCHA. So, why do we have them? How do CAPTCHAs work? CAPTCHAs were invented to block …
The term “AMBER Alert” has become synonymous with stories of missing children. So who is Amber? And why is her name blasted out to cellphones and on highway signs every time police need our help locating a child in danger? What is an AMBER Alert? First, the basics. In the suspected kidnapping of a child, an AMBER Alert is issued. This urgent bulletin is voluntarily …
For the last 14 years, Jack was the most common boy’s name in England and Wales. Last year, though, Oliver overtook Jack to take the top spot. There’s a more interesting story, though, in the statistics: over 7,000 newborn boys in Britain were given one of 12 variations of the name Mohammed, such as Muhammad or Mohammad. Combined, these forms place it in the top …
No letter in the English language gets around like X. The 24th letter of the alphabet shows up everywhere, from the popular Xbox to standing in for a signature on legal documents. It represents a chromosome, signifies the multiplication process, and marks “the spot” on treasure maps. Let’s explore just a few of the uses of this versatile letter.
The common cholesterol drug Lipitor was recently subject to a recall due to reports from consumers about a “musty” odor associated with the bottles. We aren’t interested in the drug — this post concerns stink, stench, aroma. Smell may be the hardest sense to describe in words, which is why we are eager to take a whiff. The sense of smell is known as olfaction …
