by Kevin Burton If you start talking about the fauna and flora of a certain environment, people are going to be weirded out. Why? Well, we usually say flora and fauna, not the other way around. Is there a good reason for this? Maybe not, but don’t buck the trend, unless weirdness is …
Category Archives: dictionary
“Zoomies” And Other Peculiar Animal Behavior
by Kevin Burton As a baseball fanatic growing up I learned that a bunt is a purposely short hit, made to surprise the defense or to move the runners along. Leave it to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, as it defines the strange things animals sometimes do, to teach me that “bunt” has another meaning and …
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These Ten Words Emerged From the Military
by Dictionary Scoop. Most nations in history have taken great pride in the strength and honor of their military. So it seems logical that something as valuable for any society has a profound and direct impact on the way we communicate with each other. We have selected a few words we use every day that have military …
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Making The Case For Ten Underused Words
by Dictionary Scoop English is full of beautiful terms that we use every day, but it also holds many other gorgeous words that, unfortunately, we have stopped using over time. Here are ten 10 beautiful English words that we don’t use much anymore -but definitely should. 1-Murmuration “Murmuration” is a beautiful word in our language that …
A River Of Words, Words About Rivers
by Kevin Burton Residents of one Alaska neighborhood in my newspaper’s coverage area sought to correct a flooding problem by putting rocks in a river. Riprap, they called it, which is, as I would learn, “a foundation or sustaining wall of stones or chunks of concrete thrown together without order.” From that …
Conquering Mathematics By Definition
by Kevin Burton Fear not, dear reader. Easy does it. This won’t hurt a bit. For your attention today we bring terms and definitions from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary for elements of mathematics. But there will be no test. Or, if you consider it a test, you are auditing this one. Take from …
Are Your Leftovers Making You Sick
by Kevin Burton I hate wasting food, and I’ve been known to stretch the plausible life of leftovers into a danger zone. I famously told my then girlfriend Jeannette that there was middle-aged food in my fridge that I would eat, but not serve to her. That was the place where chivalry …
“Charity” And Words That Changed Meanings
by Kevin Burton The first time I encountered “charity” in the King James Bible, it made me scratch my head. It didn’t seem to fit just right. Given time, words will do that to you. “Charity” in the King James most commonly means “love.” Here are more specifics on the Biblical definition …
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Use A Variety Of Verbal Tools To Communicate
by Kevin Burton In my early studies in journalism I heard or read somewhere that a news reporter should write at a 10th-grade level. I never did that. I wouldn’t. I was very aware that I was talking to everyone, “broadcasting,” in the print news sense of the word, with the emphasis on …
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Healthy Phrases For A Healthy Vocabulary
by Dictionary Scoop Health is an important issue for everyone, and our language is proof of that! English offers us many health-related idioms with very interesting origins. To discover the meaning and roots of ten of them, read on! 1-An apple a day keeps the doctor away . You were probably just a child the first time …
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