Articles tagged with funwithwords
Is It OK to Use 'Female' as a Noun?
Your English teacher may have acted as though language is a static thing, with a vocabulary fixed at the moment you entered first grade and grammar rules written in stone. But language is actually a pretty fluid thing. It evolves – much the same way
Dutch Windmill Cookies: St. Nicholas Treats
When I was a little girl my mother would always buy a bag of mixed cookies when she did her grocery shopping. Her favourites were these flat spiced cookies in the shape of a windmill. I always just thought they were some kind of ginger snap, but they are a
Fun With Words: Esbat
Most Pagans today associate the word “esbat” with a ritual gathering held at the full moon or new moon. In fact, the word has become so closely associated with the lunar cycle that many books on contemporary Pagan religion define esbat as a ful
Why Writing 'Xmas' is Not Disrespectful
With the cold winter weather already upon us, folks have begun their yearly campaign about the “reason for the season” and the politicizing of Christmas greetings. The denizens of Facebook want us all to know it is not acceptable to make substi
French Kissing - In French
In English we often call a very passionate kiss that involves the tongue, a French kiss. But like French fries and French toast, this isn't an expression that translates literally into French. So what is the idiom used in the French language? There are se
Fun with Words: Blonde Coffee vs Blond Brownies
Blonde coffee. Blonde beer. Blond brownies. Why the difference? A little over a year ago, a writing friend started a Facebook conversation about usage of the words blond and blonde. (Yes, my writing friends are cool that way. We tend to get whole bunches
