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What’s in a name?
Now that March is upon us, chances are you’ll hear someone bellowing phrases like, “Beware the ides of March” and “In like a lion, out like a lamb.” Ever wonder about the true meaning behind words? One cannot escape the power of language, especially with all of the current speeches and heated debates presently taking place between the potential presidential candidates.
One of the best resources for tracing the meaning of a word is the “Oxford English Dictionary”. It covers the English language from the earliest times to the present day. According to Oxford, “Beware the ides of March” was first used in 1601 by Shakespeare in “Julius Caesar.” For a look at the original play, check out Early English Books Online.
Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable is an excellent source for phrases that have their roots in literature or mythology. Follow the research and reference links from the Bibliomania home page.
If you’re more interested in the language of today, check out Word Spy, which is devoted to “lexpionage,” the sleuthing of new words and phrases. These aren't "stunt words" or "sniglets," but new terms that have appeared multiple times in newspapers, magazines, books, Web sites and other recorded sources. For example, a “Frankenstein veto” is a veto in which the words in a bill are deleted or rearranged to form a new bill with an entirely different meaning.
Annoyed by alliteration? Baffled by balderdash? Evan Morris, a.k.a. The Word Detective on the Web, provides readers with amusing and enlightening answers to questions about the meaning, origin and usage of some of today's most baffling words and phrases.
Fun-With-Words offers both an educational and entertaining take on the English language. With language trivia and word games, it covers such topics as redundant phrases, ambiguity, etymology, tongue twisters, anagrams, palindromes, pangrams, rebus puzzles, the longest word, word riddles and more. Related books are reviewed and recommended.
Apple, Zahara and Shiloh are some nontraditional names recently chosen for celebrity babies. For the scoop on the most popular names, arranged by year and country, use Behind the Name.
If you want to share your love for words, wordplay, language and literature, visit Wordsmith.org. Chat with renowned authors in the field of linguistics, such as Michael Erard, author of “Um...: Slips, Stumbles, and Verbal Blunders, and What They Mean.”
Haven’t had your fill of words? Test your knowledge of where our everyday language comes from with the Phrase Origins Quiz at The Phrase Finder.
—Laura Taddeo, University Libraries