Geoff Pullum writes about an excellent article of his in press:
Pullum, Geoffrey K. (2014) Fear and loathing of the English passive. Language and Communication, in press, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.langcom.2013.08.009
(The URL is not yet functional, but will soon be.)
It comes in two parts — one about what passive clauses are, and a longer section on the damnation of the passive.
Posted in Passive, Syntax, Usage attitudes | 3 Comments »
Another Peanuts, this time with a pile of alliteration:
Who wouldn’t resent being called a tiny tot?
Meanwhile, the girls seem to be musically informed.
Posted in Alliteration, Language play, Linguistics in the comics, Music | 1 Comment »
A sudden avalanche of linuistically interesting cartoons, on a variety of topics.
Posted in Linguistics in the comics, Names, Portmanteaus, Sarcasm and irony, Word confusions | 1 Comment »
In the U.S., today is a serious holiday, Martin Luther King Day. But it’s also a frivolous day, Penguin Appreciation Day.
Passed on by Chris Ambidge, this fantastical video from 2010 with flying penguins:
(#1)
Chris also reminds me of Sandra Boynton’s attachment to penguins. Here’s a children’s board book on them:
Posted in Holidays, Penguins | Leave a Comment »
In the NYT Magazine (on Sunday the 19th), a “Who Made That?” piece by Daniel Engber on the captcha. Some weeks ago, another one of these pieces on laugh tracks on television.
Posted in Acronyms, Compounds, Innovations, Pop culture, Technology, Words | 1 Comment »
My posting on Reading PA mentioned pepper pot (or pepperpot) soup / stew. We’re talking Philadelphia pepper pot here; Reading is in Pennsylvania Dutch country, but it’s also in the ambit of Philadelphia, with which this hearty soup is associated.
Posted in Language and food | Leave a Comment »
Not about language, but about male photography on AZBlogX. There’s a new assortment of images (most X-rated) there.
Posted in Gender and sexuality, Not about language, Photography | Leave a Comment »
Last installment, on bossification, here. Now, a double-header, with Shoreditchification and hipsterfication (plus simple verbing of Shoreditch). From the Telegraph, Alex Proud on 1/13/14, “Why this ‘Shoreditchification’ of London must stop: The relentless hipsterfication of run-down urban areas leaves a bad taste in Alex Proud’s mouth”. From the piece:
But bear with me here. What I hate more than Shoreditch itself is the idea of Shoreditch and the way that so many of London’s neighbourhoods have been Shoreditched, are being Shoreditched or will be Shoreditched.
… Shoreditch is just a metonym for all those unlucky pieces of real estate that have had the hipster formula applied to them. The real problem is hipsters themselves.
Posted in Conversion, Derivation, Morphology, Social life, Verbing | 2 Comments »
A cartoon (whose ultimate source I don’t know) on the banality of sports interviews:
Posted in Discourse, Linguistics in the comics | 2 Comments »
This xkcd:
Academic rankings. Famously dismissive. Linguistics is presumably over there with sociology.
Posted in Academic life, Linguistics in the comics | 1 Comment »
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