March 15 is known as the ides of March. But why do we need to “beware” of them? What’s so inauspicious about this otherwise normal day? Why has this humdrum mid-month point become a harbinger of ill fortune? Where did the phrase ides of March come from? First, let’s talk calendars—specifically, the ancient Roman calendar. Unlike today, the ancient Romans didn’t simply number their calendar days in …
It’s that time of year again. No, we aren’t just talking about the holidays. We mean that it’s officially Hallmark holiday movie season. Each year, there’s a new lineup of cozy, festive holiday romance movies to watch while you’re sipping hot cocoa or wrapping gifts. If you’re a fan of these movies, chances are you’ve noticed that they stick to several common romance tropes, like …
You don’t need us to tell you that there are a lot of superheroes and supervillains out there. And that’s just at your local movie theater! But have you ever stopped to think about the superpowers that go along with these superpowerful characters? Would you be able to identify a hero or villain based on the power they have? Take this superquiz to find out! …
Information pollution, jawn, decision fatigue, jolabokaflod, grandfamily, NIL, algo, amalgagender. Unbox the new terms and meanings just added to Dictionary.com. by Nick Norlen, Senior Editor, and Grant Barrett, Head of Lexicography Our fall new words drop is here! The words don’t stop coming, so we’re updating the dictionary more frequently than ever. And not just with any words: this update includes an incredibly useful concentration …
All brains are not the same. This is part of what the word neurodiversity is often used to express. But both the word and the concept are subject to varying use and interpretation. In this article, we’ll discuss the evolving conversations and preferences around words like neurodiversity, neurotypical, neurodivergent, and others. We’ll focus on some of the key terms you need to know to be …
Thirty years ago, in his 1993 song “Hip Hop vs. Rap,” hip-hop legend KRS-One summarized his view of the difference between the two: “Rap is something you do. Hip hop is something you live.” Today, 50 years after the date in 1973 that is considered the birth of hip-hop, the terms rap and hip-hop are still often used interchangeably and in distinct ways. Join us …
Every day, Americans from all around the country use Dictionary.com to look up words. One of the things that the lookup data shows is which words were looked up most by residents of each of the 50 states (and Washington, D.C.). As you might expect, many of these most-looked-up words are the same from place to place. (Spelling accommodate is hard no matter where you …
by Min Straussman The language of queer identity is constantly evolving and expanding, and there will always be new terminology to learn. Pride Month is the perfect opportunity to increase understanding and awareness of the kind of emerging and newly prominent terms that we’re constantly adding to our Gender and Sexuality Dictionary. Language is an important part of how queer people, and particularly nonbinary and …
Self-coup, latine, rage farming, petfluencer, nearlywed, hellscape, talmbout, cakeage. Explore the explosive variety of new terms and meanings just added to Dictionary.com. by Nick Norlen, Senior Editor Historically significant moments. Stunningly advanced AI. Very expensive eggs. There is a lot happening out there, seeming as if it’s everything, everywhere, all at once. The events are relentless, but so is the pace with which language adapts …
Whenever lookups for a particular five-letter word spike at Dictionary.com, it’s a sure sign that the day’s Wordle answer is a real stumper. This actually happens quite often. Here are the top 25 Wordle answer lookups from 2022, ranked by search volume—along with their definitions. How many did you guess correctly? 1. trice noun a very short time; an instant. 2. knoll noun a small, …
Spanish is the second-most spoken language in the United States, after English. With so many Spanish-speakers, it is no surprise that there is a lot of crossover between the two. There are Spanish words adopted into English and English words that have been adapted into Spanish, and often people will use these two languages in combination or interchangeably (sometimes this is known as Spanglish). Let’s …