Topic
Language
74 published works
Law School Academic Support Blog
Let Me Use Words You Can Understand
Last year, one of my international students brought to me a response she had written to a mid-tern exam question. She was wholly perplexed, because the professor had given her…
The Right Coast
English Is Not Normal
English speakers know that their language is odd. So do people saddled with learning it non-natively. The oddity that we all perceive most readily is its spelling, which is indeed…
Sentencing Law and Policy
“Language matters for justice reform”
The title of this post is the headline of this notable recent Hill commentary authored by Deanna Hoskins. I recommend the whole piece, and here is an excerpt: Words such…
The Right Coast
8 Truly Untranslatable German Words | Merriam-Webster
Accept no substitutes via www.merriam-webster.comIt's so je ne sais quoi.
The Right Coast
Shibboleth – Wikipedia
The term originates from the Hebrew word shibbólet (é´Áѹ¼Ü¶ê,), which literally means the part of a plant containing grains, such as an ear of corn or a stalk of grain[6]…
Gender and the Law Prof Blog
A History of the Word “Ladies”
By Tracy Thomas
Jessica Halem and Jen Manion, Why Do You Call Us Ladies? History, Gender and Manners in Public LifeIt seems as if the term ‘ladies’ has made a comeback in public life.…
Gender and the Law Prof Blog
Demphasizing Gender with the Neutral Pronouns Mx and Their
By Tracy Thomas
Heath Fogg Davis, How We're Redefining Gender in the 21st CenturyIn the United Kingdom, the gender-neutral honorific "Mx" is increasingly being used on driver's licenses and bureaucratic forms such as banking statements. Americans,…
The Right Coast
Hot take: Trump using the term “paddy wagon” is offensive to Irish-Americans – Hot Air Hot Air
There are so many of them that there are barely enough paddy wagons in the United States to cart them all away when they re out in the street on…
The Faculty Lounge
Is Bryan Garner Always Right on Usage?
Bryan Garner's "Usage Tip of the Day" is always welcome when it arrives in my inbox. His discussion of language, etymology, and popular usage is invariably interesting and informative. I…
Legal Writing Prof Blog
Your Scrabble Word of the Day: Syzygy
"Syzygy" is a straight-line configuration of three celestial bodies within the same celestial system, such as during a solar or lunar eclipse. It's pronounced /siz-ә-jee/.Hat tip to Bryan Garner.(mew)