These are strange, anxiety-inducing times – but there are reasons to be cheerful

These are strange, anxiety-inducing times – but there are reasons to be cheerful. That’s what the English language seems to be telling us in 2019. Having trawled websites, newspapers, magazines, social media, and everyday conversations, Collins’ lexicographers have detected an uptick in words linked to both environmental and digital derangement… Read More

Top 10 Crossword Tips

Bamboozled by crosswords? Here are our top ten tips to help you hone your puzzle-solving skills! Crossword Tip #1: Quick crosswords Crossword puzzles tend to be basically ‘quick’ or ‘cryptic’. A quick crossword usually relies on a one- or two-word clue which is a simple definition of the answer required. Read More

9 Spelling Differences Between British and American English

It is sometimes joked that the United Kingdom and the United States are two countries separated by a common language. Indeed, while the British and the Americans understand each other the vast majority of the time, there are still many important differences between UK and US English, which can lead… Read More

Spanish word of the week: despertar

despertar VERB to wake up Despertar means to wake … up, that is when you wake someone else up. In other words it’s transitive. Despiértame a las ocho, mamá. Wake me up at eight, mom. If you want to describe waking up of your own accord — in other… Read More

Remember, remember, the 11th November: the Transit of Mercury

On November 11 there is a transit of Mercury, when, as viewed from Earth, Mercury passes across the face of the Sun. (Almost needless to say, but never view the Sun directly, either with the naked eye or with any form of optical instrument. Always use a proper… Read More

4. Mental health and disability: new words in COBUILD English Usage

In our fourth blog post about the new edition of COBUILD English Usage, Julie Moore looks at some more of the changes in language usage that emerged from research for the new edition. In this post, she explores how language shifts reflect changing ideas about mental health and disability. Read More

3. Gender and identity: new words in COBUILD English Usage

In the next two blog posts about the new edition of COBUILD English Usage, Julie Moore looks at some of the changes in language usage that emerged from research for the new edition. In this post, she explores how language shifts reflect changing ideas about gender and identity. Traditionally,… Read More

2. COBUILD English Usage: Changes in vocabulary and grammar

In the second of our blog posts about the new edition of COBUILD English Usage, Penny Hands details some of the findings that came out of the team’s research into the ways in which new words and uses are created, and usage changes in vocabulary and grammar. The second… Read More

1. COBUILD English Usage: Updating the examples

In the first of our blog posts about the new edition of COBUILD English Usage, Penny Hands details some of the changes she made to the examples to ensure they reflect changes in society, and ponders on how future-proof these changes are likely to be. One of our aims… Read More