Podcast appearances and mentions of peter sokolowski

988. Peter Sokolowski, an editor at Merriam-Webster, goes through the fascinating history of the Armed Services Editions, a series of books published during World War II for distribution among the troops. We look at the special problems of wartime publishing, the collaborative efforts among publishers, and the lasting influence of these books on the publishing landscape.| Edited transcript with links: https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/sokolowski-wwii/transcript| Please take our advertising survey. It helps! https://podsurvey.com/GRAMMAR| Grammarpalooza (Get texts from Mignon!): https://joinsubtext.com/grammar or text "hello" to (917) 540-0876.| Subscribe to the newsletter for regular updates.| Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.| Peeve Wars card game. | Grammar Girl books. | HOST: Mignon Fogarty| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475) or https://sayhi.chat/grammargirl| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.Audio Engineer: Nathan SemesDirector of Podcast: Brannan GoetschiusAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina TomlinDigital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon.

Peter Sokolowski is an editor-at-large at Merriam-Webster Dictionary. He spoke to Andrew Carter about 2023's most searched words.

Dawn Kegan Fleming, Peter Sokolowski, John Moore, Tom Mulcair, Dr. Mitch Shulman, Stephanie Torriani, Michaela Di Cesare, Sarah Deshaies

​​The Merriam-Webster Dictionary's 'Word of the Year' is "authentic." Editor at Large Peter Sokolowski talks about why Merriam-Webster selected that word, what words he considers "runners up," plus some of the new words added to the dictionary in 2023. And listeners call in to share the words that mattered to them this year.

How did American English become distinctive from British English? How does American English reflect American society? And how do Americans look at their own language? Van Dale's publisher Jaap Parqui talks about this and more with Peter Sokolowski, Editor at Large of Merriam-Webster.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted Nov. 27 at 7:15 a.m. CT: TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel and Hamas appear open to extending a cease-fire in Gaza that has halted their deadliest and most destructive war but is set to expire after Monday. A fourth exchange of militant-held hostages for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel is planned for later in the day. Israel has said it would extend the cease-fire by one day for every 10 additional hostages released. Hamas has also said it hopes to extend the four-day truce. The cease-fire came into effect Friday after several weeks of indirect negotiations mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt. Police say a suspect has been arrested in the shooting of three young men of Palestinian descent who were attending a Thanksgiving holiday gathering near the University of Vermont campus. Police say the three were shot and injured Saturday night in Burlington. One of the men has suffered serious injuries and the others are in stable condition. Police Chief Jon Murad says a white man with a gun approached the trio, who were walking, and fired at least four rounds before fleeing. Murad says the shooting may have been a hate crime. Protests have been widespread and tensions have escalated in the U.S. as the death toll rises in the Israel-Hamas war. PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon's largest school district says it has reached a tentative agreement with its teachers union and its roughly 45,000 students will be back in class on Monday after more than three weeks. The agreement must still be voted on by teachers who have been on the picket line since Nov. 1 over issues of pay, class sizes and planning time. It must also be approved by the school board. Portland Public Schools students missed 11 days of school before the district began its weeklong Thanksgiving break. As the strike dragged on, tensions rose and one school board member's rental property was vandalized. Consumers are scouring the internet for online deals as they begin to cap off the five-day post-Thanksgiving shopping bonanza with Cyber Monday. Even though e-commerce is now part and parcel of our everyday lives, Cyber Monday – a term coined back in 2005 by the National Retail Federation – continues to be the biggest online shopping day of the year. For several major retailers, the “Cyber Monday” sale is a days-long event that began over the weekend. Consumer spending for Cyber Week - the five major shopping days between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday - provides a strong indication on how much shoppers are willing to spend during the holiday season. NEW YORK (AP) — The Walt Disney Co.'s “Wish” had been expected to rule the Thanksgiving weekend box office, but moviegoers instead feasted on leftovers, as “The Hunger Games: Songbirds and Snakes” led ticket sales for the second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Neither of the weekend's top new releases — “Wish” and Ridley Scott's “Napoleon” — could keep up with Lionsgate's “Hunger Games” prequel. It led all films with $28.82 million over the weekend and $42 million over the five-day holiday frame. “Napoleon” outperformed expectations to take $32.5 million over the five-day weekend and an estimated $20.4 million Friday through Sunday. But “Wish” wobbled, coming in with $31.7 million over five days and $19.5 million Friday through Sunday. WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will convene the first meeting of his supply chain resilience council. The Democratic president is using Monday's event to announce 30 actions to improve access to medicine and needed economic data and other programs tied to the production and shipment of goods. Biden's announcement comes after supply chain problems fueled higher inflation as the United States recovered from the coronavirus pandemic in 2021. Consumer prices are down from last year's peaks. But polling shows that inflation remains a political challenge for Biden going into the 2024 presidential election. Jalen Hurts continues his MVP push as the NFL game of the day needs overtime to decide the Eagles and Bills, Patrick Mahomes is on his game Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers find their offense on the road, Trevor Lawrence puts up some hefty numbers and so does Jason Tatum in the NBA. NEW YORK (AP) — Rep. George Santos says he expected to be expelled from Congress following a scathing report by the House Ethics Committee that found substantial evidence of lawbreaking by the New York Republican. The comments on Friday came during a three-hour conversation on X Spaces in which Santos lashed out at colleagues and described the committee's report as “slanderous.” House investigators say Santos used campaign funds for personal purposes and caused the campaign to file false or incomplete reports. Since the release of the report earlier this month, several members of Congress who previously voted against expelling Santos have publicly reversed themselves. On Friday, Santos said he has done the math on the votes and “it doesn't look really good.” NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Daryl Hall has sued his longtime music partner John Oates, arguing that his plan to sell off his share of a joint venture would violate a business agreement the duo had. The move quickly prompted a judge last week to temporarily block the sale during legal proceedings and arbitration. The lawsuit contends that in their roles as co-trustees, Oates and other defendants were moving to sell their part in Whole Oats Enterprises LLP to Primary Wave Music. The lawsuit says they were doing so without Hall's consent and in violation of their business agreement while arbitration hadn't been completed. A court order Wednesday released more details from the case. NEW YORK (AP) — Merriam-Webster's word of the year for 2023 is “authentic.” Editor at large Peter Sokolowski told The Associated Press ahead of Monday's announcement that lookups for the word rose to new heights on the company's website throughout the year. There are many reasons. It's an age of deepfakes and post-truth. The rise of artificial intelligence also contributed. So did talk of authentic cuisine, authentic voices and authentic selves. Sokolowski called 2023 a crisis year of authenticity. This year's pick follows “gaslighting” in 2022. Authentic marks the 20th anniversary of Merriam-Webster choosing words of the year. Among the runners-up for 2023 were deepfake, implode and kibbutz. —The Associated Press About this program Host Terry Lipshetz is a senior producer for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate. Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peter Sokolowski, Lexicographer at Merriam Webster's Dictionary, speaks about their list of new added words/definitions on Newsline with Brigitte Quinn.

Peter Sokolowski joined Merriam-Webster in 1994 as the company's first French-language editor, and has since written definitions for many of the company's dictionaries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Peter Sokolowski, Santa Claus, John Moore, Tom Mulcair, Dr. Mitch Shulman, David Phillips, Bruce Sellery

Peter Sokolowski is an editor-at-large at Merriam-Webster. He spoke to Andrew Carter about the word of the year.

The word of the year for 2022 is gaslighting.  Merriam-Webster chooses the word of the year based only on data from lookups and in 2022, lookups for gaslighting increased 1,740%.  Most interestingly, there was not a particular news event that drove the lookups, it was a word that had interest every single day of the year.  Peter Sokolowski, editor at large for Merriam-Webster joins us for a definition of this year's top word and a look at some more including oligarch, codify, sentient, and loamy.   Next, Elon Musk has been under a lot of scrutiny since he took over Twitter, but another one of his companies is being looked at for ghosting cities across America.  Musk's Boring company, which has teased cities with plans to dig out underground tunnels to help relieve what he called “soul-destroying” traffic, has had a lot of big ideas but rarely followed through after being confronted with the realities of building public infrastructure.  The only place where Musk has been able to showcase a finished project has been a 1.6 mile “loop experience” under the Las Vegas Convention Center.  Ted Mann, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how many cities still want to work with the Boring Co. despite its uneven record.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Merriam-Webster has named 'gaslighting' its word of 2022. Its a term that has permeated various discourses. Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Webster's Editor at Large, explains the choice, and listeners tell us how they use the word.

Holyoke Media, en asociación con WHMP radio, emiten diariamente la Síntesis informativa en español a través del 101.5 FM y en el 1240 / 1400 AM. Esta es la síntesis informativa del martes 29 de noviembre de 2022: - El presidente Joe Biden pidió el lunes al Congreso que interviniera y bloqueara una huelga ferroviaria antes de la fecha límite del próximo mes en el estancamiento de las negociaciones contractuales y la presidenta de la Cámara de Representantes, Nancy Pelosi, dijo que los legisladores adoptarían una legislación esta semana para imponer el acuerdo que los sindicatos acordaron en septiembre. “Permítanme ser claro: un cierre ferroviario devastaría nuestra economía”, dijo Biden en un comunicado. “Sin el tren de carga, muchas industrias estadounidenses cerrarían”. En un comunicado, Pelosi dijo: “Somos reacios a eludir el proceso de ratificación estándar para el Acuerdo Tentativo, pero debemos actuar para evitar una huelga ferroviaria nacional catastrófica, que detendría nuestra economía”. Pelosi dijo que la Cámara no cambiaría los términos del acuerdo de septiembre, lo que desafiaría al Senado a aprobar el proyecto de ley de la Cámara sin cambios. El acuerdo de septiembre que piden Biden y Pelosi es una ligera mejora con respecto a lo que recomendó la junta de árbitros en el verano. El acuerdo de septiembre agregó tres días libres no remunerados al año para que los ingenieros y conductores atiendan citas médicas siempre que las programen con al menos 30 días de anticipación. Los ferrocarriles también prometieron en septiembre no penalizar a los trabajadores hospitalizados y seguir negociando con los sindicatos una vez que se apruebe el contrato para mejorar la programación regular de los días libres. Cientos de grupos empresariales habían estado instando al Congreso y al presidente a intervenir en las conversaciones contractuales estancadas y evitar una huelga. FUENTE: AP - "Gaslighting" (manipulación de la mente, groseramente engañoso, francamente engañoso) es la palabra del año de Merriam-Webster. Las búsquedas de la palabra en merriam-webster.com aumentaron un 1740 % en 2022 con respecto al año anterior. Pero sucedió algo más. No hubo un solo evento que generara picos significativos en la curiosidad, como suele ocurrir con la palabra elegida del año. El gaslighting fue generalizado. "Es una palabra que ha aumentado tan rápidamente en el idioma inglés, y especialmente en los últimos cuatro años, que en realidad fue una sorpresa para mí y para muchos de nosotros", dijo Peter Sokolowski, editor general de Merriam-Webster. La principal definición de gaslighting de Merriam-Webster es la manipulación psicológica de una persona, generalmente durante un período prolongado de tiempo, que "hace que la víctima cuestione la validez de sus propios pensamientos, percepción de la realidad o recuerdos y generalmente conduce a confusión, pérdida de confianza y autoestima, incertidumbre sobre la propia estabilidad emocional o mental, y dependencia del perpetrador”. Gaslighting es una herramienta atroz utilizada con frecuencia por los abusadores en las relaciones, por gente en posiciones de poder y por los políticos y otros creadores de noticias. Puede ocurrir entre parejas románticas, dentro de una unidad familiar más amplia y entre amigos. Puede ser una táctica corporativa o una forma de engañar al público. También existe el "gaslighting médico", cuando un profesional de la salud descarta los síntomas o la enfermedad de un paciente como "todo en su cabeza". El término gaslighting fue utilizado más tarde por profesionales de la salud mental para describir clínicamente una forma de control coercitivo prolongado en relaciones abusivas. "Gaslighting", dijo Sokolowski, pasó todo el 2022 entre las 50 palabras principales buscadas en merriam-webster.com para ganar el estatus de mejor palabra del año. La elección del año pasado fue "vacuna". FUENTE: NPR

Merriam-Webster's word of the year is 'gaslighting.' The NY Post reports: The newly common term for lying to someone in order to mentally manipulate them topped Merriam-Webster's list of 2022's hottest words and phrases, which also included terms such as “cancel culture,” “oligarch,” and “Queen Consort.” While “gaslighting's” first place spot wasn't due to a single event that drove searches for the term, which saw a 1740% increase in 2022, officials with Merriam-Webster said its rise makes sense given the social climate. “In this age of misinformation — of ‘fake news,' conspiracy theories, Twitter trolls, and deepfakes— gaslighting has emerged as a word for our time,” Merriam-Webster said in announcing the word of the year Monday. Peter Sokolowski, the dictionary's editor at large, said the word was looked up every day in 2022. This is appropriate, as Nicholas Clairmont wrote at the Washington Examiner: Why does everything feel fake? ... The answer to all this is in a book that came out six decades ago this month, The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America by Daniel Boorstin. Since it is about “the menace of unreality,” the book is at least as important on its 60th anniversary as it was at the moment of its release. Its simple answer is this: Everything feels fake because, in part, it is. More specifically, everything feels fake because since the invention of the photograph and many technologies that followed from roughly the same time period, the reproduction and dissemination of words and images has become so technologically cheap and easy that ideas, too, have become cheap. Everything is now a copy, often a copy of a copy.        Get exclusive content here!: https://thepetekalinershow.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shrinkflation, subvariant, baller, and even pumpkin spice are now officially in the dictionary. We speak to Merriam-Webster's Editor at Large, Peter Sokolowski about how words are chosen and take listener calls.

It's our 100th episode, which seemed like a good occasion to answer a listener question of a more personal type: how did we—that is, we three editors—get here?Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Writing advice often includes hackneyed phrases we're supposed to avoid. The phrases we're warned against today are different from the ones of yesteryear. We'll explore both.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Whether you're hoping to improve your high school French or just order that croissant with more confidence, we have some tips for you.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A discussion of various kinds of slips of the tongue and errors of the ear.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the disconcerting event that your travels by air deliver you, but not what you've packed, to your destination, you may find yourself filing a lost luggage claim, or a lost baggage claim—it could be either. Instead of ruminating over the awful circumstances, we turn our attention to the words themselves; we also revisit the recombobulation area we first discussed in episode 86.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sometimes a word, over time, will take on a meaning that doesn't play very nicely with its original meaning, leaving a person who knows both meanings unsure what to do. Is the word still usable? Or is it … skunked? Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We've discussed how words come to be entered in our dictionaries before, but today we're going to talk about removing words from dictionaries. Which words get dropped? And why? Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Some listeners want to know if working with words professionally makes a dictionary editor better, or worse, at Wordle, and another listener wants us to weigh in on the difference between 'nauseated' and 'nauseous'—which doesn't turn our stomachs in the least.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The earliest dictionaries were the fruit of one person's labor, but the 1864 Webster's Unabridged changed all of that.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jacques Bailly has been the official pronouncer for Scripps National Spelling Bee since 2003—23 years after winning the bee himself. A professor in the Classics department at the University of Vermont, his language expertise is vast, and talking to him is a delight.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

An exploration of Thomas Nashe's use of animals as metaphors for those who imbibe heavily; And what *is* the plural of octopus?Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

An exploration of spellings—like 'ect.' for 'etc.'—that reflect alternative pronunciations, and the unexplainable favoritism that is shown to 'inexplicable.'Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A visit to the mailbag provides us with a sartorial use of ‘hipster,' some schooling on 19th century locomotive technology, and a question about sneaking words into dictionaries.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We all know how to find opposites by removing prefixes: 'unhappy' becomes 'happy'; 'disagree' becomes 'agree.' Easy peasy. But some words resist prefix removal—or, at least they try. Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcripts available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

George Orwell published his famous essay "Politics and the English Language" in 1946, and we mostly wish he hadn't.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

English borrowed lots of words from French. And it liked some of those words so much it borrowed them twice. Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If brevity is the soul of wit, are abbreviations the language's best jokes?Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Whistleblowers didn't always tell secrets and hipsters weren't always hip. This episode explains how 'whistleblower' and 'hipster' came to have their current meanings.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In English, there's a certain way adjectives tend to fall in line. It's natural to hear something like "brown leather wallet," but "leather brown wallet" would sound slightly off. So... why? We'll look into it.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're back to the mailbag this week with some excellent questions, including:When will 'yeet' be in the dictionary?What's the difference between a typeface and a font?Why do people say 'lo and behold'?Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Usually, a word begins with a literal, concrete meaning. (Like concrete, for example.) Then, eventually, it starts being used metaphorically. (Hey again, concrete!)But with these words, that's not the case. These words began as metaphors and then went backwards.Then: what's the difference between ferment and foment?Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Should we only enter words everyone knows, or does the dictionary need to cover the obscure as well? The answer is, well, pretty philosophical.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On today's episode of Spectacular Vernacular, Nicole and Ben pay tribute to the late pioneer in linguistics and cognitive science, Lila Gleitman. They also interview Peter Sokolowski of Merriam-Webster and Fiona McPherson of the Oxford English Dictionary about the keywords of 2021. And finally, we bring on a listener for some wordplay. We hope you're familiar with the diversity of English dialects. You could win a year's membership to Slate Plus. Do you have any language questions or fun facts to share? Email us at spectacular@slate.com.   Produced by Jasmine Ellis and Asha Saluja.  Here are some notes and references from this week's show: Lila Gleitman's obituary in the New York Times  Lila Gleitman's interview at the 2017 Association for Psychological Science conference  Oxford Languages Word of the Year  Merriam-Webster Word of the Year  American Dialect Society Word of the Year  American Dialect Society's 2021 Word of the Year livestream — register to join the virtual voting session! Subscribe to Slate Plus. It's only $1 for the first month. To learn more, go to slate.com/spectacularplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode of Spectacular Vernacular, Nicole and Ben pay tribute to the late pioneer in linguistics and cognitive science, Lila Gleitman. They also interview Peter Sokolowski of Merriam-Webster and Fiona McPherson of the Oxford English Dictionary about the keywords of 2021. And finally, we bring on a listener for some wordplay. We hope you're familiar with the diversity of English dialects. You could win a year's membership to Slate Plus. Do you have any language questions or fun facts to share? Email us at spectacular@slate.com.   Produced by Jasmine Ellis and Asha Saluja.  Here are some notes and references from this week's show: Lila Gleitman's obituary in the New York Times  Lila Gleitman's interview at the 2017 Association for Psychological Science conference  Oxford Languages Word of the Year  Merriam-Webster Word of the Year  American Dialect Society Word of the Year  American Dialect Society's 2021 Word of the Year livestream — register to join the virtual voting session! Subscribe to Slate Plus. It's only $1 for the first month. To learn more, go to slate.com/spectacularplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jordan Rich fills in on NightSide with Dan Rea:The English language is always evolving, from pronunciations to the invention of new words. Changes can occur when new technology is developed or as new generations emerge. The pandemic alone has made some contributions such as “super-spreader” and “vaccine-passport.” Joining Jordan to chat about the latest additions to the English language is Peter Sokolowski, Editor-at-Large for Merriam-Webster.

First: someone who owns or runs a restaurant is called a restaurateur. What? How did that happen? Is 'restauranteur' a valid word? We'll get into it.Then: why do people say 'meteoric rise' when meteors are famously things that fall?Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When is it 'sneaked' and when is it 'snuck'? And how about 'dreamed' vs. 'dreamt'? 'Creeped'/'crept'?It's Irregular Verbs Week here on Word Matters.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.Our podcast is sponsored by Betterhelp. To receive 10% off your first month, visit betterhelp.com/mattersSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How did 'snake-oil salesman' become a term for a swindler? It's a complex story.How was 'asshat' formed? It's about what you'd expect.Today we're getting into the intricacies of vulgarities.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

You know that old cliche, "When they look up X in the dictionary, they'll see your picture"? Well, for these folks, that saying is true. Today we're talking eponyms.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Transcript: Hey pod lovers. If you're joining us for the first time, welcome! The Mastercast is a podcast recommendation show that consists of seven non-spoiler, binge-worthy reviews of the best podcasts in a short and sweet two- to three-minute summary on everything you could want to know, from the number of hosts to on average how long you can expect each episode to be. For more details and more reviews, I highly recommend checking out the first three episodes. We have some lengthy reviews which I'm sure you know by now means I was very excited about these podcasts, so let's get started. "Surprisingly Brilliant""Surprisingly Brilliant is about science history, covering the hidden stories and unsung heroes of some of the greatest accomplishments of science. For iHeartRadio and Seeker, passionate hosts and writers Maren Hunsberger and Greg Foot take turns telling each other the origins of fascinating scientific ideas from all disciplines of science in a way that is not only easy to understand but jaw-droppingly entertaining. You don't have to have a background in science or have had gotten top marks in school to enjoy the topics. The detail in each hour-long episode is made greater by an esteemed guest from the field who helps tell the story lost to history books. It's so nice to hear a show coming from people who genuinely love science and have a dynamic that makes them sound like they grew up friends. Apple Podcasts has an average of 4.5 stars, 365 ratings and 80 written reviews. The 2020 show has two seasons so far and a total of 30 episodes, and Hunsberger confirmed via Twitter the show's third season is in the works. When releasing, episodes usually come out on Fridays. The most popular episodes according to OwlTail are "The Puzzle Beneath Your Feet" and "The Electronic Ear." I LOVED the electronic ear episode also. As a huge fan of audio, I thought it was fascinating to hear about implants and the preferred terms and language associated with them. I think it's so important to make the medium of podcasting more accessible. Music is subtle and comes in and out at important parts of the story. The commercial amount is average. I can't express how much I've enjoyed the show. I can't wait for season three to come out. If you've been a fan of Hunsberger 's YouTube, Seeker or "Science in General," this podcast is a must-listen.Similar Pods: "Short Wave," "SideDoor," "99% Invisible" and "Ologies""No Strings Attached"It's April 5, 2015, and Vicky Cilliers, an army captain, loving wife and mother goes to jump out of an airplane like she has so many times before. The experienced freefall instructor has completed 2,600 jumps safely, but on this Easter Sunday her parachutes have been tampered with causing them to fail. Will she survive the 4,000-foot fall? What looks like an accident leads detectives to uncover a story of infidelity, debt and manipulation when Cilliers' picture-perfect life turns out to be not what it seems. From ITV News and hosted by Rob Murphy, "No Strings Attached, the 2020 podcast has 4.8 stars from Apple Podcast, 17 ratings and only 2 written reviews. The hidden gem is completed with eight episodes total that average about 32 minutes in length. Each contains interviews from those involved with the case as well as insight into how the British legal system differs from the American system. Extra video content can be found on their website. No commercials and minimal music. Trigger warnings for abuse and violence.Similar podcasts: "Conning the Con," "The Sure Thing" and "Culpable""I Spy""I Spy" offers an amazing inside peek into the world of espionage and intelligence agency operations. It's produced by Foreign Policy, the makers of the news magazine and website by the same name. Each half-hour well-produced episode is a first-person account of a specific event they were involved in, and the subject is something completely original. What other podcast has behind-the-scenes access to secret missions? It's hosted by Margo Martindale who plays a very minimal role, doing only the intro and outro. The interview questions seem to be edited out, resulting in the guest telling a seamless, detailed story much like what's heard in "This is Actually Happening." The tales come not only from American agents but spies from other intelligence programs. No matter how you feel about some of the things done by different governments, it's neat to see how the inside functions. It's suspenseful but not true crime. The show will have you sitting in your car to finish an episode and frustrated anytime someone interrupts you. Gripping and binge-worthy, the stories cover a wide range of perspectives, such as politics and history, while being real-life action thrillers. So far there are 22 episodes from three seasons and no word if we can expect a fourth. Apple Podcasts has 4.7 out of 5 stars, 2,443 ratings and 216 written reviews. My favorite episodes have been "The Sleeper Agent" and "The Counterspy." OwlTail's most popular listed episodes are "The Man With the Antidote" and "The Narc part 1." There is music that I didn't find bothersome, but some do. Trigger warnings for violence.Similar pods: "American Jihadi," "Wind of Change" and "Spy Affair""LeVar Burton Reads"As a kid, I was a loyal "Reading Rainbow" fan. I never missed it, and now I can continue curling up to enjoy more of LeVar Burton in "LeVar Burton Reads," done with Stitcher. The show has 4.9 out of 5 stars for a reason. Every Tuesday, solo host Burton (with the help of his team, whom he never fails to credit) reads one of his favorite fictional short stories from a diverse selection of contemporary and classic writers. I've found so many more authors of color from this pod than I would have on my own. The support and inclusiveness is a goal to emulate. Production is excellent across the board with voice and soundscaping expertly done. Equal parts soothing and familiar, Burton's talented reading is another great staple of the show. It's perfect for every character regardless of which emotion is being conveyed, and the selection of stories always challenges listeners to think critically. Just a warning for those who are looking for happy ever after endings: The stories read usually spotlight science fiction, speculative fiction and fantasy, which sometimes results in suspenseful, unresolved conclusions. Despite this, one similarity between the tales is that they are all brilliant. So much so that I listen to them twice: once as I go to sleep and then again the next morning to hear what I missed. They're too good to be only for sleep. Beware of episode notes about content, which he reminds listeners of every episode. There is swearing, and once I heard a slur, but again it's all in the show notes and a part of the read story. At the end of every story, Burton gives his own opinions about the reading in a short debriefing that wraps everything up nicely. 146 episodes so far, all about 45 minutes on average with new episodes coming out weekly on Tuesdays. My favorite episodes have been "'Dark Spaces on the Map' by Anjali Sachdeva" and "'Jump' by Cadwell Turnbull." OwlTail's most popular are listed as "LIVE! in DC: 'A Dark Night' by Edward P. Jones" and "'Multo' by Samuel Marzioli." The commercial amount is average but never wakes me up. This pod is for anyone who considers themself a lover of books or fantastic narration.Similar Pods: "Fictional," "Book Cheat" and "Phoebe Reads A Mystery""Convicted: Across Borders"This 2021, five-part series is about some of the 3,000 Americans that are imprisoned abroad every year. "Convicted: Across Borders" is all about showing how a person doing what they think is living a normal life can cause them to be imprisoned by a legal system they know nothing about in a language they don't speak and with no one to help them, all of this while being told they'll never be able to leave. It's very similar to "Locked Up Abroad;" however, it features more wrongfully convicted stories. Produced by L.A. Times Studios and Treefort Media, it is funded by Focus Features and was made to accompany their new Tom McCarthy-Matt Damon film, "Stillwater," the same production Amanda Knox spoke out about as fictionalizing her murder trial in Italy. A few promos for the movie play throughout the series but aren't any longer or more bothersome than regular commercials.It's hosted by famed lawyer and bestselling author Marcia Clark who was the lead prosecutor in the O.J. Simpson murder trial. I don't recommend Clark's previous pod "The First 48," but as mentioned, this one is well done. A big part of that comes from how the stories are told in the first person from the men and women who lived through these nightmares. Additional guests are sometimes family, international affairs specialists or lawyers who helped with the case. The stories of suffering and heartbreak from everyone involved are upsetting but also inspiring. It has 4.9 stars, 86 ratings and eight written reviews on Apple Podcasts. Episodes were 33 minutes long on average. The show doesn't have the twenty episodes required for OwlTail to do the most popular calculations, but my favorites were "Nightmare in Nicaragua" and "Villian of Venezuela." Music wasn't disruptive and the show had an average amount of commercials. Trigger warnings for wrongful conviction and hopelessness.Similar Pods: "The World Beneath," "Kremlin File" and "Heist with Michael Caine""The Offensive""The Offensive," an award-winning show by Stak, is a mockumentary sports podcast that follows the fictitious premiere football club Ashwood City through the eyes of the CEO, sports director and director of communication with some help from a narrator. The show is absolutely hilarious but not for kids. I wasn't sure how a mockumentary would go on just audio because so much of my favorite shows depend heavily on visual cues, but I can confirm this pod nails it. It's what I put on when I'm having a really bad day. I actually tried not to binge it too quickly because I didn't want to run out of episodes, and that's the first time I've ever done that for any podcast. I kept thinking the show would fall off, but with 121 episodes and new episodes coming out every Monday, it doesn't look like the comedy is waning anytime soon. One of the best parts about the show is that if you're a fan of football, this show is accurate, but if you aren't, you're in luck as well because the rapid-fire snark is mostly about the relationships between the main characters that anyone can enjoy. There's so much backstabbing, scheming and stupidity that it's very much a combination of “The Thick of It” and “The League.” Writers of the show credit weekly happenings in real-life football as inspiration for some of the crazier calamities in the pod. The show has 4.8 out of 5 stars, 553 ratings and eight written reviews. As of August 2021, the show had reached over a million downloads, making it one of the most popular fiction comedy podcasts available. The content is exceptional, and the voice talent is as well with over 80 actors having parts throughout the show. Sometimes they're even recording in the same room. The show has a pretty creative Twitter account that is managed in-character with live tweets from “games” being made. Fans of the podcast respond in kind by tweeting back abuse. There's also a very well-done merch store with home and away shirts as well as mugs, hats, pop sockets and a few other items. Personally, I'm waiting on the scarf. Commercials start off really rare and then increase to average over time. The music is on-theme and usually comes after a cold open. I will mention that along with profanity there, is a fire alarm that sounds in one of the earlier episodes. I don't think it's excessive, but it could be a trigger warning.Similar Pods: "A Very Fatal Murder," "Dead Authors Podcast" and "Hello from the Magic Tavern.""Word of the Day"The "Word of the Day" podcast by Merriam-Webster is the audio version of their Word of the Day email newsletter, written to educate listeners on a fresh word every day. It covers the word's etymology and other fun facts about it. I really enjoy queuing a few at the beginning of my day's feed. All of the context for the words makes them really easy to remember. Even if I know the word, I can still learn something new about it. It might be one of the most useful podcasts I follow. Hosted by Peter Sokolowski, the show is 4.4 out of 5 and 952 ratings. Apple Podcasts only seems to have the latest 10 episodes, but through art19.com I was able to find every episode back to the show's air date on October 24, 2006. Since then the show has posted a word of the day every single day including holidays for 5,389 three-minute-long episodes total. The pod had some technical issues in the distant past but has since cleared them up including download issues, mistitled episodes and uneven volume for intro and ads. The pod is 15 years old, so some growing pains are expected. Ads seem to be the chief complaint among listeners, but I think they're fine, especially if you only listen to one or two a day.Similar Pods: "Spectacular Vernacular," "The Allusionist" and "A Way with Words."Remember to share the show with the pod lovers in your life and tune in next month for the best of September. If you would like your music to be a feature on the show or a podcast to be recommended, send us an email at thmastercastpodlist@gmail.com. Marie Tanksley, KCSU's podcast director can be reached at podcast@kcsufm.com. Sources:https://www.apple.com/apple-podcasts/https://www.owltail.com/https://www.podchaser.com/Art19.comhttps://stak.london/shows/the-offensive/https://podbiblemag.com/the-offensive-podcast/ ★ Support this podcast ★

Today we're looking at two of the English language's most persistent questions. First, is there an actual difference between 'ax' and 'axe'? What's up with that? Then, the great debate continues to rage over what can be called a 'podium' and what is a 'lectern.'Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week we finally address it: the two spellings of everyone's favorite North American marsupial.Plus, we do a deep dive on 'staycation' and various other leisure-related portmanteaus!Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're joined this week by Mignon Fogarty, aka Grammar Girl, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of her show Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Last week we told you about our irascible forefather Noah Webster. But where does the "Merriam" factor in? Here's the story of George and Charles Merriam, the brothers who took Webster's work and brought it to the world stage.Hosted by Emily Brewster, Ammon Shea, and Peter Sokolowski.Produced in collaboration with New England Public Media.Transcript available here. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

People are passionate about language, especially language change, and words matter. And nobody knows this better Peter Sokolowski, who is an editor at the Merriam-Webster dictionary, one of the most famous and most trusted dictionaries in the world. Peter has spent his life immersed in words and their meanings, and all the complications that come along with that work. In this interview we talk about the role of the dictionary, standard and non-standard English, language and culture, how to learn English with a dictionary, and how dictionaries are a sign of human agreement, and sometimes profound disagreement.