From the category archives:

Things People Say That I Hate

Literally

December 17, 2009

Tim Bowen, teacher trainer and Onestopenglish author of the OSE-BuzzWord Lesson Plans, ponders the use & abuse of the word literally…

Don’t forget! Macmillan Dictionary and Onestopenglish have teamed up for a fantastic Christmas special for teachers in the month of December!
On a recent train journey, I heard a fellow passenger say to her companion:
“It [...]

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Plain bad language – the winners

December 9, 2009

Well, it’s over. The Plain English Campaign 2009 awards were announced yesterday, and one of the winners was Lord Mandelson. Having left the cabinet twice in less than ideal circumstances, Mandelson is back in a position of some authority, and is seen as the government’s Great Communicator. But this observation, referring to the MPs’ expenses [...]

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Plain bad language

December 7, 2009

“Perhaps I could say, by way of introduction, welcome to our stakeholders. We look forward to our engagement, as we roll out our dialogue on a level playing field, so that, going forward in the public domain, we have a win-win step change that is fit for purpose across the piece.”
That was Dr Tony Wright, [...]

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Pedantic, moi?

November 12, 2009

One of the downsides of being in the dictionary business is that most people have a completely erroneous idea of what we do. A recent article in the Times ticked all the boxes in its caricature of the lexicographer: old, “boffinish” and hopelessly outmoded (still working with card indexes, apparently), we are nevertheless seen as [...]

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Cardiganed old duffers? A lexicographer responds

November 4, 2009

The sad news that Chambers Dictionary is about to lose its lexicographic staff prompted a sympathetic article in the Times. Its author, Allan Brown, contrasted the efforts of Internet dictionaries (“pop-cultural hogwash”) with what he regarded as the work of “proper” lexicographers (“we know that our tongue is safe in their hands”). Very nice of [...]

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‘Genius’ and ‘rubbish’ and other noun-like adjectives

August 5, 2009

Some people get very upset about nouns being used as verbs. A recent row in the press centred on the verbal use of medal (How many of their athletes were medalled at the last Olympics?) but it turns out that this usage is at least as old as Thackeray. Which is hardly surprising, since forming [...]

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