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English Language

I Am Charles Ramsey and Sweet Brown: "You Do What You Have To Do" and "Aint Nobody Got Time For Dat"

Reverend Charles E. Williams II | Posted 05.10.2013 | Black Voices
Read More: Charles Ramsey Autotuned, Amanda Berry, W.E.B. Dubois, Cleveland, Charles Ramsey, Racism, Ebonics, Rev. Charles Williams II, Sweet Brown, English Language, Black Voices News
Reverend Charles E. Williams II

Many laugh when they watch the Charles Ramsey and Sweet Brown interviews, but the joke is really quite sad.

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'Ultraconserved Words' From Last Ice Age Identified

| Posted 05.08.2013 | Science
Read More: Ice Age, Ultraconserved Words, Video, Linguistics, Language, Eurasiatic Language, Language Ice Age, Language Ancestors, Protowords, Human Ancestors, English Language, Science News

By Elizabeth Norton If you've ever cringed when your parents said "groovy," you'll know that spoken language can have a brief shelf life. But freq...

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Flammable or Inflammable

William B. Bradshaw | Posted 05.03.2013 | Business
Read More: Soldiers, Latin, Explosives, Definitions, Training, Safety, Packaging, World War II, Labels, Munitions, English Language, Business News
William B. Bradshaw

"Inactive" means not active; ""incapable" means not capable; "inseparable" means not separable; and on and on the examples go. It doesn't make sense that "inflammable" means flammable. But we need to keep in mind that it's not always easy to translate one language accurately into another.

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3 Common Language Errors That Drive Me Crazy

Shelley Emling | Posted 05.01.2013 | Fifty
Read More: Language Mistakes, Pet Peeves, Language Errors, post50, Grammatical Errors, Grammar Mistakes, English Language, Fifty News
Shelley Emling

There are common language mistakes that provoke the same response in me as fingernails on a blackboard. Here are just three of them. Feel free to add your own pet peeves in comments.

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English Learning Students Are Growing Population

AP | CHRISTINE ARMARIO | Posted 04.15.2013 | Latino Voices
Read More: English Learners, English as a Second Language, Education System, English Learning Students, Hispanic Heritage, Students, Latino Students, Hispanic Students, English Language, Asian Students, Latino Voices News

MIAMI -- Duna Lopez started school in Miami last fall not knowing a single word of English. The 8-year-old girl from Barcelona, Spain, with dark blon...

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LOL: Grading College Essays With a Computer Program?

Khanh Ho | Posted 04.06.2013 | College
Read More: Noam Chomsky, New York Times, English Novel, Moocs, Illiteracy, Grading, English Language, Internet Lingo, Internet Slang, Slang, Adrienne Rich, College News
Khanh Ho

The debates are all about drawing a line in the sand: a line of culture and merit and standards. This is all well and good until you realize that this line is constantly being redrawn, rubbed out, revisited.

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Choosing Your Words Wisely Will Empower You And Those Around You

Cathy Chester | Posted 05.21.2013 | Fifty
Read More: Empowering Women, Gay, Enlightenment, Self-Empowerment, English Language, Words, post50, Vernacular, Fifty News
Cathy Chester

The vernacular of our language changes every day. Words that were used centuries ago may no longer exist today. They disappear, or change meaning or are no longer relevant in today's society. This week, I was disturbed by some words I read, words that were written by people I thought were intelligent and well educated.

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Why Only Some Grammar Rules Are Breakable

Dr. Joel Hoffman | Posted 04.11.2013 | Books
Read More: Linguistics, Grammar, Writing, English Language, Split Infinitive, Grammar Lesson, Books News
Dr. Joel Hoffman

A misguided debate is ranging over English grammar. It began when authors Patricia O'Conner and Steward Kellerman claimed in the Smithsonian that "most of what you know about grammar is wrong."

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'Affect' or 'Effect'

William B. Bradshaw | Posted 03.19.2013 | Home
Read More: Grammar Pet Peeves, Grammar, Words, Teachers, Dictionary, English Language, Home News
William B. Bradshaw

For most people, it is difficult to know when and how to use "affect" and "effect." Their meanings and uses have stabilized in recent years, so let's sort this all out. It's really not all that difficult.

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On the Topic of GREATNESS

Joshua Braff | Posted 01.16.2013 | Comedy
Read More: Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Neil Diamond, Snooki, Red Hot Chili Peppers, English Words, Barbara Streisand, Tome Brokaw, English Language, Alex Lifeson, Greatness, Comedy News
Joshua Braff

Muhammad Ali was the GREATEST of all time, at punching men into unconsciousness. Michael Jordan for human flight, Gretzky for hockey, The Babe for hitting, Julia Child for sautéing. Rampal for flute.

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Sex Matters -- At Least in English

Ming Chen | Posted 01.06.2013 | College
Read More: English Language Women, English Language Men, English Language Proficiency, English Language, English, College News
Ming Chen

EF's English Proficiency Index's recent survey of 1.7 million adults from 54 countries has concluded that when it comes to adopting the world's lingua franca, females are outperforming males.

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The Unifying Power of Language

Michael Benson | Posted 12.22.2012 | Home
Read More: Foreign Language, Language, English Language, Home News
Michael Benson

Recognizing that success in everyday American life is inexorably tied to one's ability to communicate in English is vitally important.

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Where To Teach English For Non-English Teachers

Leora Novick | Posted 12.22.2012 | Travel
Read More: Madrid, Esl, English, Travel, Spain, Teachers, Teaching, English Language, Culture, Travel News
Leora Novick

While traveling through Spain I had the good fortune to be able to participate in two English immersion programs, Vaughan Town and Pueblo Ingles, respectively. Each week was magical, and nothing could have prepared me for the emotions I would feel after working so closely with these inspiring Spaniards.

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Why Big German Words Like Vergangenbangenheit Carry Weight

Francis Levy | Posted 12.15.2012 | Books
Read More: Vergangenbangenheit, Gesellschaftsgeschichte, Gemeinschaft, Wissenschaft, Leidenschaft, German Words, French Words, English Language, History German, German Language, Books News
Francis Levy

Big German compound words radiate authority. They're verbal weapons guaranteed to neutralize your opponent.

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The Importance of English

Amy Wu | Posted 12.08.2012 | World
Read More: China, Hong Kong, English Language, Hong Kong Journalism, Hong Kong English, World News
Amy Wu

Hong Kong's English level is on the decline. Most people in Hong Kong know this, and treat it as yet another post-97 reality. Even worse, some educators and young people regard it with a shrug.

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Jerry Seinfeld Writes in to The New York Times to Valiantly Defend 'Really?'

Vanity Fair | Posted 12.06.2012 | Comedy
Read More: New York Times, Celebrity, Jerry Seinfeld, Journalism, English Language, Jerry Seinfeld New York Times, Comedy News
Vanity Fair

On Monday, The New York Times published an exhaustive opinion piece by TV critic Neil Genzlinger about the "Really?" epidemic -- what he sees as a troublesome trend in which lazy comedy writers resort to the one-word rebuttal for a cheap laugh.

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Are Immigrants Really All that Funny? Sofia Vergara Denied an Emmy, Again

Vanessa Perez | Posted 11.26.2012 | Latino Voices
Read More: Latino, Sofia Vergara, English Only, Immigration, Bilingualism, Modern Family, Emmy Awards, English Language, Latino Voices News
Vanessa Perez

Sofia Vergara is an Emmy nominated actor and one of the leads in ABC's seven-time Emmy award-winning series "Modern Family." She is the hottest Latina actor of the moment. What do you mean no one can understand what she's saying?

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Asshole Rising

Stuart Whatley | Posted 11.26.2012 | Books
Read More: Book Reviews, Geoffrey Nunberg, Assholes, Language, Book Review, Curse Words, Ascent of the a-Word, English Language, Books News
Stuart Whatley

Never was a word that you're not supposed to say naturalized in such a way.

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Jennifer Lopez Now 'Owns' A Cable Network

Posted 09.13.2012 | Latino Voices
Read More: Nuvotv-Latinos, Video, Jennifer Lopez and Nuvotv, Latino Entertainment, Jennifer Lopez, Nuvotv, Latino-Tv-Shows, Latino-Entertainment, English Language Latino Channel, Latino Prosperity, English Language, Latino Voices News

Jennifer Lopez already has her own production company, Nuyorican Productions, and now the former "American idol" judge will also be part-owner of a ca...

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Woes Of Modern-Day Language

James Granleese | Posted 10.29.2012 | Teen
Read More: Linguistics, Language, English Language, Communication, Teen News
James Granleese

Us young people we live under the philosophy that as long as the message gets across, then the spelling, punctuation and grammar is irrelevant.

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In Italy, Clean Toilets And Structured Panic

Sarah O'Leary | Posted 10.02.2012 | Travel
Read More: Mental Health, Lonliness, Love and Relationships, Humor, Writing, Mindfulness Meditation, Italy, Travel, English Language, Isolation, Mind-Body Connection, Travel Tips, Mindfulness, Panic, Foreign Language, Home-Exchange-for-Travelers, Meditation, Living, Prayer, Italian Food, Anxiety, Love, Meditation Practice, Travel Blogs, Travel News
Sarah O'Leary

Alone on a hilltop somewhere over the coastal town of Lerici, I prayed that the insanity I felt wouldn't prove permanent. Although I'd never believed in it before, the little bit of Catholic that was left in me was given real consideration to the notion of purgatory.

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English As She Is Spoke

American Anthropological Association | Posted 09.22.2012 | Home
Read More: Prescriptivism, Anthropology, Human Language, Linguist, Language, Tower of Babel, Bad Grammar, English Language, Home News
American Anthropological Association

Social and cultural equality is out of our reach not because we are unable or unwilling to acknowledge and accept difference, but because we haven't yet been successful at eliminating difference.

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The Price Of Paradise In Sri Lanka

American Anthropological Association | Posted 09.09.2012 | Travel
Read More: Tourism, Vacation, Real Estate, International Destinations, English Language, Economic Development, Sri Lanka, Summer Vacation, Travel News
American Anthropological Association

How do far-flung places come to be such tourist hot-spots -- and, perhaps more intriguingly, what are the local consequences?

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Why Do We Care About Grammar?

Kimberly Tan | Posted 08.29.2012 | Teen
Read More: Grammar, The Lexicographer?S Dilemma, Jack-Lynch, High-School-English, English Language, Teen News
Kimberly Tan

Why do we care about grammar so much? Of course, it can be valuable to guarantee clarity and bring a level of order and elegance into the language. But beyond that, why does it matter?

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You're the Sole Survivor at the End of the World. Do You Have What It Takes?

Blake Henderson | Posted 08.25.2012 | Comedy
Read More: Reinvention, Language, Art, Natural Disasters, Survivor, Armageddon, Survival, English Language, Civilization, Investors, Comedy News
Blake Henderson

With any luck, there would be an engineer or a scientist left behind instead of me. They would possess the skills and knowledge to use their own DNA to clone themselves and re-start a new human race. But, alas, I am no engineer or scientist. I struggle to assemble IKEA furniture.

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