Lexicon Valley from Booksmart Studios

Share this post

Sheriff, Plaintiff, Bailiff,

lexiconvalley.substack.com
Q&A

Sheriff, Plaintiff, Bailiff,

Why are there so many -iff words in law enforcement? Plus, the evolution of Word!

John McWhorter
Oct 17, 2023
∙ Paid
9
Share this post

Sheriff, Plaintiff, Bailiff,

lexiconvalley.substack.com
Share
Fictional Sheriff J.D. "Boss" Hogg of Hazzard County, Georgia.

Michael Davidson is wondering how we have gotten from “My word is my bond” to his kids — white, for the record — using “word as fuck” as an exclamation.

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to Lexicon Valley from Booksmart Studios to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2023 Lexicon Valley
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great writing