‘Alternative facts’, ‘Executive Orders’, and ‘fantastic relationship’: January’s Words in the News

If 2016 was the year of post-truth, perhaps 2017 will be the year of alternative facts. That’s the term the Trump Administration has selected for statements that are, to use parliamentary language, economical with the truth. The phrase was coined by “Senior White House Aide” Kellyanne Conway (yes, that is… Read More

Etymology Corner – ‘Rugby’

The Six Nations begin tomorrow so we’ve decided to look at the etymology behind the word ‘rugby’. ‘Rugby’ is what is known in etymological parlance as a toponym: a word that is derived from a place-name. In this case the word comes from the town of Rugby… Read More

Paul Noble’s Five Top Tips for Learning a Language

Number One – Study (at least a little) every day Learning a language is like building a fire – if you don’t tend to it, it will go out! So, once you have decided to learn a foreign language, you really should study it every day. It doesn’t have to… Read More

Lucy Mangan checks out your recent word submissions, from ‘Manfant’ to ‘funsultant’.

The Trumpocene era begins. As the unnatural orange rays of a new dawn start to glow on the horizon, it has given us several gifts already. First, the word manfant, a combination of “man” and “infant”, deployed by many people to describe a president elect who is a combination… Read More

We take a look at the etymology behind the word ‘rocket’ and it’s Italian origins

Over 300 common English words can be traced back to Italian, and it will come as little surprise to hear that a large number of these relate either to music or to food. Most of the technical vocabulary of music is borrowed from Italian and so English speakers are accustomed… Read More

We take a look at the etymology behind the word ‘canapé’ and its French origins

William the Conqueror’s victory at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 brought not only a new ruling dynasty to England but also a radical change in the nature of the English language. Over the following centuries the language of the Norman French invaders became intertwined with that of the defeated… Read More

We take a look at the etymology behind the word ‘bonanza’ and it’s Spanish origins

A Spanish bonanza To celebrate the launch of our brand-new Unlocking Spanish with Paul Noble we’re looking at commonly used English words that originally came from Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries. Some of these are words that are still strongly associated with Spanish culture, so it is no surprise… Read More

10 weird and wonderful language facts from Paul Noble

1. Learning another language makes your brain function more effectively. Recent studies have shown that it helps increase intelligence, empathy and attention span. It has also been shown to slow down the brain’s ageing process and so reduce the risk of dementia – a good reason to sign up for… Read More

Brexit, Trump, and celebrity deaths: the perfect storm of 2016’s Words in the News

On 28 December 2016, an independent comedy production company called Friend Dog Studios produced a mock-trailer of the year 2016 as a horror film. Though not everyone will agree, 2016 was a pretty bizarre year on the world stage. At the start of it, David Bowie, Prince, Carrie Fisher, Alan… Read More