Gramping and ramscootering: Lucy Mangan takes on more of your submissions to Collinsdictionary.com

I once wrote this about camping, having been forced to undertake the activity for the first time by an editor with pages to fill and sadistic urges to satisfy. “It’s insanity, is what it is. For thousands of years mankind has sought to improve his condition; to protect himself from… Read More

Slender Man, Spornosexuals, and Smartphones – Trending Words in June 2014

Of course June is mostly about the World Cup. Which, if you’re English, is pretty bad news (but hey, there’s always Wimbledon!). Unfortunately, this month has yielded bad news of a more serious nature. Violence in Iraq has made ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) a household… Read More

Words You Need to Follow Tennis Like a Pro

Most of us know our racquet from our ball, our backhand from our forehand, and perhaps even our aces from our deuces. But what else will you need to know if you’re to follow the tennis and understand who’s the hot dog and who’s just getting a… Read More

Word-lover interview: Bruce Holsinger, author and scholar

We’ve been speaking to Bruce Holsinger, who as well as being a successful novelist, is also Professor of English at the University of Virginia, where he teaches courses on medieval and modern literature. You can read more about Bruce and his work at www.bruceholsinger.com as well as following him… Read More

Glasgow Patter – 12 Scottish Slang Words To Test You

It’s the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow! Get your Glasgow slang in place for a glorious Glasgow 2014! Most cities have their own quips, spoonerisms and slang terms, but few so famously as Glasgow, whose ‘patter’ has gained prestige from its use in television programmes, comedy sketches and poetry –… Read More

Pluviophile, rore and celefie: Lucy Mangan takes on your latest word submissions to CollinsDictionary.com

Let’s start with hootenanny’s ‘chuff chart‘. No, come back – it’s quite safe for work (though perhaps I’d better also check “hootananny” – yes, we’re okay), at least these days. It originated in the forces and referred to a chart that counted down the days until the end… Read More

Word-lover interview: Tim Gorichanaz of ScratchTap

Word-lovers abound in the Collins Dictionary community, and so we’ve kicked off an interview series with some of the ones we’re lucky enough to count as friends of the blog. Following our interview with Lynne Murphy of Separated By A Common Language, we’re delighted to speak to… Read More

6 ways to get an English accent that’s posher than the Queen’s

According to tradition, upon presentation to The Queen the correct formal address is ‘Your Majesty’ and subsequently ‘Ma’am’. We are all aware that there is certain etiquette to abide by when speaking to a member of the Royal Family, but how about speaking like a Royal?… Read More

World Cup Words You Need to be Brilliantly Brazilian

Although England are no longer involved in‘a Copa do Mundo 2014’ in Brazil, there are still plenty of reasons to get excited about this festival of football. With that in mind we have compiled a need-to-know list of Brazilian terms to allow you to follow the beautiful game… Read More