Dear Richard Lederer: Have you ever done a column on spoonerisms? My husband and I find them amusing and entertaining, yet we are a little amazed that so many of our friends haven’t heard of Rev. Spooner and his twists of the tongue. Perhaps you can enlighten them! Your raithful feeder! Joan Bryant, Coronado On […]
This past Saturday, May 4, marked the 150th (sesquicentennial) anniversary of the running of the Kentucky Derby. The premier event took place at Churchill Downs, in Louisville. In a heart-thumping finish, Mystik Dan won the race by a flared nostril. I’m full of horse power and feeling my oats — champing (not chomping) at the […]
DEAR RICHARD: The word buck has nine different definitions as presented in dictionary.com. This set me to wondering “Is there a definition of words with many definitions? What words in the English language are like this? Which has the most? How does this happen to begin with?” –Michael Stewart, Scripps Ranch If you need a […]
Little information about William Shakespeare’s personal life is available, but from municipal records we can deduce that he was born in the English village of Stratford-upon-Avon, in the county of Warwickshire, on April 23, 1564, and that after retiring to his home town around 1612, he died there on April 23, 1616. His life encompassed […]
A Sesquicentennial Celebration of poet Robert Frost’s birth is coming to San Diego on Wednesday, March 20, through Sunday, March 24 at our San Diego Central Library, 330 Park Blvd, downtown and at UCSD Park and Market in East Village. Dozens of America’s most acclaimed poets will attend, and so can you, free of […]
In America, we celebrate just about everything, so it may come as no surprise to you that, in two days, March 4 (March Forth!), my pun pals will observe National Pun Day. After all, a good pun is like a good steak — a rare medium well done. A few weeks ago, I participated […]
Presidents’ Day (please note my placement of the apostrophe) began life as a celebration of George Washington’s Birthday, February 22, 1732, But Washington was really born on February 11, 1731, according to the Julian calendar, which was in effect when Washington entered the earthly stage. When the Gregorian calendar was adopted in 1752 throughout […]
The word history descends from the Latin historia, meaning “narrative, take, story,” and the saga of our American presidents is festooned with fascinating stories. Here are a few of my favorites: Our second and third presidents, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, political rivals, then friends, both died on July 4, 1826, exactly 50 years […]
What do you get when you dip your little finger into a bottle of writing fluid? An inky pinky. Looking for an entertaining way to sharpen both your ear for rhyme and your skill in defining words? Try the Inky Pinky game. In Inky Pinky, the first player offers a concise, clear definition, and […]
DEAR RICHARD: Now retired from 50 years of college teaching and having no more student papers to grade and critique, I address your recent U-T column. I so enjoy, appreciate, and support your language advocacy, and then, in the third sentence, you split an infinitive on me (“to carefully proofread my books”)! This notwithstanding, you continue to have […]