Choosing the 2023 Word of the Year: Q&A with Ben Zimmer and Kelly Wright
Since 1990, the American Dialect Society has annually unveiled a Word of the Year — a newly prominent word that reflects significant events, societal shifts, and prevailing themes over the…
What Makes a Great Love Song?
“The Love Song is the noise of love itself.” — Nick Cave, Australian musician (from a lecture delivered at the Atelierhaus der Akademie der Bildenden Kunste, Vienna on September 25,…
The Language Science Station at Planet Word
The following is a guest blog post written by Dr. Charlotte Vaughn and Hannah Mechtenberg. In this guest blog, we’re delighted to introduce you to the Language Science Station,…
Putin, Bush, and Pronouns: Presaging War?
Can linguistics help predict a war? This past weekend, Planet Word Advisor James Pennebaker and his colleagues Ryan Boyd and Ashwini Ashokkumar posted a short article on their blog, Wordwatchers,…
Empathy, Art, and Telling Important Stories: Q&A with Jason Reynolds
Long Way Down—Jason Reynolds’s bestselling novel in verse—makes its way to the Kennedy Center. Reynolds, a member of Planet Word’s Advisory Board, talked to us about empathy, the theatrical adaptation…
Five Obscure(ish) Words for Crossword Puzzlers
Read up on the five words that New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz thinks you should know, then try your hand at a puzzle made by the Planet Word team!
