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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: English

English stories: 20 news summaries
OPINION

You're 'Me,' Not 'Myself,' and Other Grammar Peeves

Sad kids do not 'literally tear' the heart out of a mall Santa, and other mistakes

Sep 10, 09 4:16 PM CDT
(Newser) - Some common grammar mistakes are also inexcusable, Johnny Truant writes for Copyblogger. Too many of the following, and your readers may decide "that you’re actually a chimpanzee—and not one of the smart ones, either."
  • It's "me," not "myself:" People often "
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
writing • list • language • English • mistake • grammar • proper usage • word choice

(Newser) - Three weeks ago, a well-dressed man carrying $600 in his sock wandered out of a Seattle park with no idea who he was or how he got there. His identity was a mystery until today, when the Seattle Times ran a story on its front page with his picture... More »

MORE ABOUT:
China • Internet • chef • English • online newspapers • amnesia • Seattle Times • Edward Lighthart

 Jargon Not a Best Practice, 
 Brit Bureaucrats Told 

Confusing phrases are keeping people from using services: agency

Mar 18, 09 3:46 PM CDT
(Newser) - This recession requires the British government to drop its jargon and get consensually transparent, er, clear. A government agency frets that people are missing out on services because they don't understand bureaucratic lingo like the following phrases, per Reuters:
  1. Slippage: Why not just admit the delay?
  2. A menu
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
list • British • bureaucracy • English • Britain • irritating phrases

(Newser) - The Dictionary of American Regional English, a 40-year lexicographical labor of love, will be competed next year, Good reports—with compilers finally making it to Z. The tome, which revels in local disparities, has been a boon not only to word lovers; it helped bring down the Unabomber through his... More »

MORE ABOUT:
United States • language • English • dictionary • vernacular • regional • dialect

(Newser) - "I," "we," "two," and "three" have existed for tens of thousands of years, making them among the oldest words in the English language, new research reveals. Computer analysis of Indo-European languages helped isolate "the ways we think words change and their... More »

MORE ABOUT:
English • vocabulary • words • English language • parts of speech • Reading University

 Obama Speeches Help 
 Japanese Learn English 

Students use his speeches to learn language

Feb 21, 09 9:55 AM CST
(Newser) - Barack Obama is fast becoming a popular English teacher—in Japan. His speeches have become a hit for people learning the language there, the Wall Street Journal reports. Obama's slow and careful enunciation make him a particularly good model, teachers say. One book of speeches, complete with a dictionary for... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • Japan • English • speech • foreign languages • English language

 Obama Speeches Teach English, Hope to Japanese 

Dem's speeches good for language-learners, more inspiring than local pols'

Jan 21, 09 10:46 AM CST
(Newser) - The Japanese version of Amazon.com features an unlikely bestseller: the collected speeches of Barack Obama, with Japanese translation and accompanying CD, Reuters reports. Obama’s inspiring but straightforward rhetoric is perfect for teaching English in a country that hankers to learn the language. He “uses words such as... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • Japan • language • English • translation • book • Japanese • foreign languages • Amazon.com • best seller • President Obama

OPINION

English Language
Nears 1M Words

Foreign words help language reach milestone

Jan 2, 09 4:58 PM CST
(Newser) - If your New Year’s resolution is never to use the words “change,” “bailout,” and “Phelpsian” again, you’ll get some help on or about April 29, when the English language will acquire its millionth word—or so says a Texas-based group that tracks such... More »

MORE ABOUT:
language • English • words



 Top 10 
 Most 
 Irritating 
 Phrases 

Absolutely a nightmare, 24/7

Nov 7, 08 10:12 AM CST
(Newser) - At the end of the day, it's not rocket science, but the Guardian reports that researchers at Oxford University have been working absolutely 24/7 to compile a fairly unique list of phrases which, with all due respect, are some of the most irritating in popular use. You’ve just read... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Oxford University • language • English • linguistics • irritating phrases • expressions • Damp Squid

OPINION

Gosh Darn if Her Jargon Isn't as Empty as Folksy

Palin's 'pompom patois' obscures a big lack of substance

Oct 5, 08 12:31 PM CDT
(Newser) - From the party whose leader infamously asked "Is our children learning?," we now have the baffling homespun language of Sarah Palin, for whom Maureen Dowd isn't thrilled to have to translate. The vice presidential candidate's "sing-songy jingoism" conceals a mass of contradictions and often a lack of... More »

MORE ABOUT:
English • Maureen Dowd • Election 2008 • Sarah Palin • grammar • vice presidential debate

 Dictionary Gives 
 Rare Words 
 One Last Chance 

Apodiectic use could save niddering and oppugnant

Oct 4, 08 8:49 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Collins English Dictionary is giving rarely used words a last chance before they are dumped from the new edition, Time reports. Language lovers were outraged at plans to  exuviate (shed) words like oppugnant (combative), so the editors have made public a list of 24 candidates for deletion. If the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
language • English • dictionary • words • lexicon

LPGA Backs Off English-Only Policy

Tour bows to sponsors, civil rights groups on controversial rule

Sep 5, 08 2:43 PM CDT
(Newser) - A firestorm of criticism has forced the LPGA to overturn its plans to penalize tour players who failed to pass an oral English evaluation after 2 years, GolfWeek reports. “After hearing the concerns, we believe there are other ways to achieve our shared objective of supporting and enhancing... More »

MORE ABOUT:
golf • LPGA • English • Asians

 LPGA to Test Players' English 

Tour worries about sponsor interaction as foreign players increase

Aug 26, 08 4:12 PM CDT
(Newser) - The LPGA will begin mandatory oral English tests for its players next year, and those who fail face suspension and required tutoring, Golfweek reports. The tour is stressing the importance of English as players from Asia have come to play a prominent role in the sport. Of the 121 international... More »

MORE ABOUT:
sports • South Korea • golf • LPGA • LPGA Tour • language • English

300M 'Chinglish' Speakers Can't Be Wrong

English as spoken in China may soon become a dialect

Jun 29, 08 5:52 AM CDT
(Newser) - Some 300 million English speakers in China are altering the language in small but important ways—and may be creating their own dialect, Michael Erard writes in Wired. So-called "Chinglish"—which stresses unique syllables, drops dos and dids, and adds sounds for questions—has already been studied in... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Singapore • language • English • Chinese • grammar

 Phonetics Reformers
 Buzzing at Spelling Bee 

Revitalized movement wants to simplify the language

May 30, 08 11:15 AM CDT
(Newser) - Every year, the National Spelling Bee sparks a protest from an 800-year-old movement that aims to simplify spelling by using phonetics, the Wall Street Journal reports. (Think thru vs. through.) “We have 42 different sounds in English, and we spell them 400 different ways,” says the 102-year-old... More »

MORE ABOUT:
English • spelling • spelling bee • grammar

Grammatical Dynamic Duo
Wages War
on Typos

Two men travel the
country on a mission

May 21, 08 8:50 PM CDT
(Newser) - Jeff Deck and Benjamin Herson are out-of-work Ivy Leaguers on a mission. They just wrapped up a three-month cross-country drive to eradicate typos and grammar gaffes in public spaces. Sharpies in hand, the pair confronted store owners about typos on their signs and windows and did their best to correct... More »

MORE ABOUT:
education • English • dictionary • grammar

Philly Steak Shop Can Keep
'Please Speak English' Signs

Statement political, no service denied: panel

Mar 20, 08 5:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - The owner of a Philadelphia institution can keep signs that ask customers to order their cheese steaks in English, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. A city agency ruled the signs at Geno's Steaks—"This is America. When ordering, please speak English"—do not violate discrimination rules; owner Joey Vento... More »

MORE ABOUT:
immigration • America • Philadelphia • language • English • Joe Vento • cheese steak shop • Geno's • foreign languages

If You Really Want to Hear About It ...

Though pushing 60, Holden Caulfield's
story never gets old

Jan 21, 08 7:57 PM CST
(Newser) - Holden Caulfield was an angsty teen before James Dean and rock and roll made alientaed youth an icon. "There's really not the sense of teen culture that there is now," says the producer of "Gossip Girl." NPR takes the measure of Holden, J.D. Salinger, and... More »

MORE ABOUT:
literature • English • The Catcher in the Rye • Tobias Wolff • JD Salinger

Winning Word of 2007: 'W00t'

Merriam-Webster word of the year is gamer's victory cry

Dec 12, 07 10:47 AM CST
(Newser) - W00t is Merriam-Webster’s word of the year. The term is the victory cry of computer hackers and gamers, who also heatedly argue its origins. Merriam-Webster cites the explanation that gamers coined it as an alphanumeric acronym for “We Owned Other Team.” Contentious hackers claim it was code... More »

MORE ABOUT:
language • English • lexicography • Merriam Webster • w00t • dictionary

Immigrant Kids Talk the Talk: 90% Master English

Fluency makes dramatic leaps across generations

Nov 30, 07 5:40 AM CST
(Newser) - Although many Spanish-speaking immigrants who moved to America know little English, that's not true of their children and grandchildren, according to a new Pew survey. Only 23% of first-generation immigrants said they were competent in English, but 88% of second-generation and 94% of third-generation residents said they can carry on... More »

MORE ABOUT:
immigration • language • English • Latinos • immigrant • Spanish • bilingual education

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