Lexicon Valley from Booksmart Studios
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Lexicon Valley from Booksmart Studios
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A podcast about language, with host John McWhorter.
Thousands of paid subscribers
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Let me read it first
Welcome to Lexicon Valley!
Luxuriate in the wonder of language.
Apr 8
11
1
Oversight Committee Overlooks
Listen now (4 min) | Words can literally mean their opposite. Deal with it.
Aug 10
6
Why Are We "Accessing" Everything?
The verbing of access became widespread only in about the 1970s, and now it's ubiquitous.
Aug 13
1
Why Fidget Poppers Are "Satisfying"
Listen now (38 min) | Plus, the colloquial currency of the past.
Aug 2
13
5
Most popular
The Evolution of 'Woke'
62
25
Let Sleeping Dogs Lay
41
56
You Are SO Articulate. Really.
42
3
Why Do Brits Put R's Where They Don't Belong?
11
9
JFK's Most Famous Sentence
41
9
Reviving Dead Languages
31
18
See all popular
New
Community
Do We Know How "Gender" Arises in Language?
Also, is Chomsky's "Universal Grammar" still a thing?
Jul 30
3
1
How Do You Say Intersection?
Listen now (4 min) | The way that you pronounce a word can alter its meaning in subtle ways.
Jul 26
11
3
Why Do We Dot Our i's?
Listen now (32 min) | A brief history of I, both the word and the letter.
Jul 19
20
7
Did Built Replace Builded?
Also, do French words change pronunciation more quickly among native French speakers?
Jul 16
The Anointed One
Listen now (3 min) | Cream and Christ share an ancient root that originally meant to rub.
Jul 12
4
2
You Are SO Articulate. Really.
Listen now (38 min) | Juggling thousands of bizarre idioms, nuanced definitions and subtle rules, we somehow wield our language handily. We're amazing.
Jul 6
42
3
Why Do Native Speakers Make "Mistakes"?
Also, how do you pronounce "often" anyway?
Jul 2
2
June, Jejune and Dinner
Listen now (7 min) | Are June and jejune related — and what does dinner have to do with anything?
Jun 29
2
3
See all
Most popular
The Evolution of 'Woke'
62
25
Let Sleeping Dogs Lay
41
56
You Are SO Articulate. Really.
42
3
Why Do Brits Put R's Where They Don't Belong?
11
9
JFK's Most Famous Sentence
41
9
Reviving Dead Languages
31
18
See all popular
Lexicon Valley from Booksmart Studios
A podcast about language, with host John McWhorter.
Subscribe
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Lexicon Valley from Booksmart Studios
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