Irony is a powerful and often elusive figure of speech—one that not every writer can wield with ease. Crafting truly clever ironic expressions requires a sharp wit, a deep understanding of language, and a keen sense of timing. The most effective irony is often subtle, sneaking up on you with a twist that makes you […]
34 Accidentally Ironic Images That Show the Universe Has A Weird Sense of Humor. Read More »
If you’ve ever corrected someone’s “your” to “you’re” in a text message and felt a surge of grammatical superiority, this post is for you. Welcome to the wonderfully nerdy world of grammar jokes—where misplaced modifiers and Oxford commas are no laughing matter… except, well, they kind of are. Whether you’re the type to diagram sentences
20 Hilarious Grammar Jokes and Puns That Will Give you a Good Laugh. Read More »
You may have noticed that people in America do things radically differently. I don’t know if that’s a tendency or that Americans try so hard to distinguish themselves from the rest of the world. I mean why would you choose Fahrenheit over the much more elegant Celsius, mile over kilometer (and don’t get me started on how kilometer is pronounced over there), pound (which
21 Phrases Americans Say That Make Zero Sense To Non-Americans. Read More »
A term of endearment is a phrase that people use to address someone they have affectionate feelings for. You sure can address your significant other by their name, but depending on the mood or what your significant other is up to you want to make them feel special by calling them with terms that capture
The Cutest Endearment Terms People Call Their Significant Others From Around The World. Read More »
Sometimes similarities may lead us to think that certain things are identical and therefore we tend to give them the same names. When we look closely, however, we find they are actually a little different but the same names are given. While some languages try to correct this over the course of time, most languages
24 Things Most People Think Are The Same But They Are Actually Different. Read More »
Translation is a hard-to-get skill that is not given to everyone. The fact that you speak two languages doesn’t make you a translator. If you haven’t taken any translation courses and attempt to translate, your translations will contain a lot of meaningless words such as “umm”, “err”, and “that thing..you know”. Sometimes, translations (mostly literal)
40 Hilarious Translation Fails From Different Languages. Read More »
What language do deaf people think in? This is a tough question to answer. Aside from the science behind what language deaf people think in and whether this question can be answered or not, there is a better way we can gain a clear insight into this. Why not ask deaf people themselves? Michele Westfall is our best candidate.
What deaf people say about the language they think in. Read More »
“When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, “it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less.” —Through the Looking Glass. Mr. Dumpty led down the most linguistic explanation of how words get their meanings. We, the people, assign what combinations of sounds we want to the
Made-up Words That Sound So Cool They Should Actually Exist. Read More »
An oxymoron is a figure of speech in which two or more words side by side contradict each other. Their use in speech often leads to humor, irony, and sarcasm. We’ve asked our followers at The Language Nerds to share their favorite funny oxymorons and the result has been nothing short of hilarious. Funny oxymorons are always
The Alphabet of the English language and most of the European languages was not thought of at the spur of the moment. Like the case with most language phenomena, it naturally evolved through centuries of accumulating changes that gave us the Alphabet as we know it today. The evolution of the alphabet is a fascinating journey. In what follows,
The Evolution of The Alphabet: From 1750 BC to Today. Read More »
