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Word of the Day
Word of the Day: expatriate
This word has appeared in 39 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year. Can you use it in a sentence?
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Idiom of the Day
snatch (someone) from the jaws of death
To rescue someone at the last moment from near or certain death. Watch the video
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Slang of the Day | Vocabulary | EnglishClub
coke
cocaine
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Word of the Day
invertebrate
Definition: (adjective) Lacking a backbone or spinal column; not vertebrate.
Synonyms: spineless.
Usage: The sixth grade class groaned in unison as the students learned that they would be dissecting worms during their study of invertebrates.
Discuss
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Learn English Through Football
Euro 24 Football Language Phrase Day 9: Own goal
It’s the ninth day of Euro 2024, and the football phrase of the day has to be ‘own goal’ after an amazing in the Protugal v Turkey game. Learn what this phrase means by reading the post below. You can also check out our glossary of footballing phrases here and visit our site to access […]
The post Euro 24 Football Language Phrase Day 9: Own goal appeared first on Learn English Through Football.
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the booths had 900 copies of Xi's The Governance of China in around a dozen languages. Except for a small handful of copies that a few people had picked up for free, they all had to be pulped. Selected readings
* "Circumventing censorship in the PRC" (11/7/21)
* "Xi Jinping thought: watch for the possessive suffix" (9/2/17)
[h.t. Nick Kaldis]
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Language Log
Political implications of book placement
In a country like China that is drenched in censorship, people who have opinions that differ from those of the government resort to any means possible to get their message across.
"Bookstores Become Sites of Subtle Protest Against Xi Jinping", by Alexander Boyd, China Digital Times (7/18/24) http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/~bgzimmer/bookstore.jpg The novel “Changing of the Guard” displayed at left, alongside “Study Outline for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics”
Chinese bookstore shelf arrangements rarely go viral—that is, unless they contain a hidden message calling for Xi Jinping to step down. Since Xi has risen to power, placing Xi’s works next to other books to make a political point has become a relatively common, low-key mode of political dissent. It’s often unclear whether the juxtapositions are created by bookstore employees or the product of cheeky swaps by politically astute customers—or simply accidental.
The latest incident occurred last week. A photograph taken inside a Hangzhou bookshop showed the novel “Changing of the Guard” displayed next to the 2023 edition of “Study Outline for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics,” a juxtaposition that some read as an implicit call for Xi to step down.
The two large characters of the book on the left side of the photograph are: huànjiè 換届 ("change the tenure / term [of the office holder]"). Note between the two characters the following pinyin spelling: HUANJIE. I think the publishers may have added that because the variant 屆 of the second character, 届, is also widely used, which leads to confusion in the minds of some readers, although supplying the pinyin of book titles on their cover is frequently encountered. At one point, at least, it was required of publishers to include it, although some publishers "forgot / overlooked" that not strongly enforced regulation, or printed the pinyin as faintly as possible. The novel itself is not a work of secret dissent, but rather a paean to Party governance. Written by Zhang Ping, a former vice-president of the Party-dominated China Writers Association, the novel is set in the fictional city of Linjin. The novel’s plot centers on unprecedented rain and flooding striking the city just as the provincial and municipal authorities are set to undergo a leadership transition. Yet put alongside Xi’s works, the implication is obvious.
Previous instances have seen Xi’s books paired with the work of the philosopher Karl Popper, novels by Ernest Hemingway, childhood psychology books, Winnie the Pooh, books on Hitler, and studies of China’s imperial system. CDT has compiled a slideshow of the works:
[photos omitted]
“The Constitution of the People’s Republic of China” alongside “Winnie the Pooh”
“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “The Era of Creating Gods”
“Xi Jinping in Zhejiang” alongside “The Emperor’s Destiny and Dignity” and “Chronicle of Chinese Emperors
“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “The Dictator’s Handbook”
“Xi Jinping Tells a Story” and “Mao’s Last Decade” alongside “The Dictator’s Handbook”
“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “Elementary School Psychology Cartoons II”
A number of Party books, including Xi’s, alongside “Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography” and “The Nazi Seizure of Power”
A number of Xi’s books alongside “The Last Empire: The Final Days of the Soviet Union”
Xi Jinping’s works alongside “1984,” “The Last Empire” and “For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “The Open Society and its Enemies”
“Xi Jinping’s Seven Years of Educated Youth” alongside “Hitler’s Last Plot”
Once, about ten years ago at a book exhibit during the annual meeting of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), one of [...]
Learn English Through Football Podcast: Euro 2024 Week 1
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Idiom of the Day
faster than you can say Jack Robinson
Extremely quickly; almost immediately; suddenly or in a very short space of time. Watch the video
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Slang of the Day | Vocabulary | EnglishClub
once-over
a quick inspection or search
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Phrasal Verb of the Day | Vocabulary | EnglishClub
dying for
If you're dying for something, you really feel like it or you want it very much.
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Language Log
Exercising the brain: handwriting vs. typing
Elegant writing by hand has always been a trial for me. The harder I try to make my handwriting presentable, the more it turns out looking like chicken scratches. I'll never forget how my second grade teacher, Mrs. Kiefer, was in despair over my poor penmanship, almost to the point of crying. "Vicky," she would say, "you are such a good student in all other respects, why can't you write better?" It's the same way with my brother Denis. Watching him write, and seeing the product as it emerges on the page, it is obvious that forming letters on the page is a kind of suffering for him. And yet, both Denis and I prefer to compose whatever we really care about on paper — be it a poem, an essay, or just random thoughts.
I'm a super fast typist, and I can spew out things on a computer screen almost as fast as I normally talk. It's easy as abc. When I do so, however, I'm not thinking, I'm just gurgitating.
Currently, psychiatrists and neuroscientists have been studying exactly what happens in the brain when a person writes letters and words by hand. What they are finding is that this neuromuscular activity stimulates creativity.
"Why writing by hand beats typing for thinking and learning", by Jonathan Lambert, npr (5/11/ 24)
——
If you're like many digitally savvy Americans, it has likely been a while since you've spent much time writing by hand.
The laborious process of tracing out our thoughts, letter by letter, on the page is becoming a relic of the past in our screen-dominated world, where text messages and thumb-typed grocery lists have replaced handwritten letters and sticky notes. Electronic keyboards offer obvious efficiency benefits that have undoubtedly boosted our productivity — imagine having to write all your emails longhand.
To keep up, many schools are introducing computers as early as preschool, meaning some kids may learn the basics of typing before writing by hand.
But giving up this slower, more tactile way of expressing ourselves may come at a significant cost, according to a growing body of research that's uncovering the surprising cognitive benefits of taking pen to paper, or even stylus to iPad — for both children and adults.
In kids, studies show that tracing out ABCs, as opposed to typing them, leads to better and longer-lasting recognition and understanding of letters. Writing by hand also improves memory and recall of words, laying down the foundations of literacy and learning. In adults, taking notes by hand during a lecture, instead of typing, can lead to better conceptual understanding of material.
"There's actually some very important things going on during the embodied experience of writing by hand," says Ramesh Balasubramaniam, a neuroscientist at the University of California, Merced. "It has important cognitive benefits."
When I contemplate what the essential difference between handwriting and typing is for creative thought, it seems that the former forces you to ponder, to slow down, to draw deep connections, to reflect, while the latter invites you to let verbiage flow freely.
A slew of recent brain imaging research suggests handwriting's power stems from the relative complexity of the process and how it forces different brain systems to work together to reproduce the shapes of letters in our heads onto the page.
Both handwriting and typing involve moving our hands and fingers to create words on a page. But handwriting, it turns out, requires a lot more fine-tuned coordination between the motor and visual systems. This seems to more deeply engage the brain in ways that support learning.
The npr article offers much more anecdotal and experimental evidence in favor of introducing children to handwriting from the very beginning of literacy training. Here on Language Log, we have[...]
Word of the Day
Word of the Day: incessant
This word has appeared in 89 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year. Can you use it in a sentence?
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Word of the Day
impermanent
Definition: (adjective) Not lasting or durable; not permanent.
Synonyms: temporary.
Usage: After weeks of carefully constructing the beautiful sand mandala, the Tibetan monks quietly swept it away in a ceremony emphasizing the impermanent nature of existence.
Discuss
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Learn English Through Football
Euro 2024 Football Phrase Day 10: Sucker Punch
Day 10 at Euro 2024, and our football phrase of the day is ‘sucker punch’; one of many phrases in football taken from boxing. This phrase comes from the Scotland v Hungary Group A game. Learn what this phrase means by reading the post below. You can also check out our glossary of footballing phrases […]
The post Euro 2024 Football Phrase Day 10: Sucker Punch appeared first on Learn English Through Football.
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Word of the Day
facile
Definition: (adjective) Working, acting, or speaking with effortless ease and fluency.
Synonyms: eloquent, silver-tongued, smooth-spoken, fluent, silver.
Usage: Those facile and brilliant phrases and ideas struck me as the finest things I had yet known in literature, and I borrowed the book and read it through.
Discuss
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Phrasal Verb of the Day | Vocabulary | EnglishClub
fall back on
to use or do something else because what you used or did first has failed
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Idiom of the Day
jaw away
To talk incessantly and/or at great length. Watch the video
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Slang of the Day | Vocabulary | EnglishClub
hustler (2)
a skilled player, esp. at pool or billiards, who cheats other players by pretending to be an average player and then challenging them to play for money
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ights into relations between families, individuals and ethnic groups in the steppe territory.
(Wikipedia)
Still to come in this series on communication in the Great Plains, I will write on the Pony Express, the transcontinental railroad, and the telegraph, plus how and when they shaped our nation, not to mention how Gothenberg — in the heart of Nebraska — came to be called by that Scandinavian name. Selected readings
* "The Fall Eggcorn Crop" (11/26/04) — "bobwire," etc.
* "Fecal compounds" (3/5/16) — "barbed wire canoe"
[Thanks to Nancy Fisher and Bryan Walker]
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Language Log
The semiotics of barbed wire fence
A week ago, I was in Gothenberg, Nebraska and went to the local historical museum. I asked the volunteers there what was the most unusual, interesting, and important exhibit they had. One of them, Barbara Fisher, thought for a moment, then said, "We have a unique collection of barbed wire fence downstairs, each strand of which is specific to the ranch or tract where it was used." She must have read my mind and heart, for that is just the sort of thing that would captivate me.
So I dashed down the stairs and beheld: http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/~bgzimmer/barbedwire1.jpg That incredible collection of barbed wire fences — each one different (I'll describe that in more detail below) — was put together by Roy Farnstrom, a retired electrician.
Here's one panel of the collection: http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/~bgzimmer/barbedwire2.jpg And here are some closeups: http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/~bgzimmer/barbedwire3.jpg http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/~bgzimmer/barbedwire4.jpg From the way the barbs were wrapped around and woven through the horizontal strands, the ranchers could tell at a glance if the land and animals enclosed within belonged to them — I call them "signature barbs" — sort of like a premodern QR code.
When people started settling the Great Plains, there was nothing out here but millions of buffalo and some scattered Indians. There were no land divisions, no fences, no houses, no roads, no towns…. Moreover, since the land was so inhospitable, most people were intent on going further westward — even to the coast.
The first barbed wire was invented in 1867 by Lucien B. Smith of Kent, Ohio, which is 32 miles from my home in Osnaburg, Ohio. That changed everything. Wooden fences were vastly more expensive (there were very few trees out here then), difficult to install, and hard to maintain — plus they weren't as effective as barbed wire. So the barbed wire fences started to impose some order on the Great Plains.
After studying the Farnstrom collection for several hours, I went back upstairs and was surprised to find this: http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/~bgzimmer/barbedwire5.jpg The first row is German barbed wire from WW I, the second is US "entanglement wire", and the third is Korean "large war wire".
A hundred miles to the west, at Crusty's Feed Store in Arthur, I was delighted to find this collection of barbed wire fence with signature barbs: http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/~bgzimmer/barbedwire7.jpg It was assembled by Barbara Jean Hartman. According to the naming practices of the area, she had several nicknames: Bobbie, Bobbie Jean, and Cookie. The last one derives from her serving as cook on the chuckwagon when the ranchers and cowboys went out to brand their cattle or engage in other group efforts.
There are other ways that ranchers signal their ownership of animals, the most colorful of which is branding, a practice that goes all the way back to ancient Egypt. Here in the sandhills of western Nebraska, the members of the community will come together and brand one rancher's recently born cattle on a Saturday morning, then have a meal together, somewhat like an Amish barn raising.
Branding reminds me of the tamgas of Central Asian peoples:
A tamga or tamgha (from Old Turkic: , romanized: tamga, lit. 'stamp, seal'; Turkish: damga; Mongolian: tamga; Adyghe: тамыгъэ, romanized: tamığə; Kabardian: дамыгъэ, romanized: damığə) was an abstract seal or stamp used by Eurasian nomads and by cultures influenced by them. The tamga was normally the emblem of a particular tribe, clan or family. They were common among the Eurasian nomads throughout Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages. As clan and family identifiers, the collection and systematic comparison of tamgas is regarded to provide ins[...]
Phrasal Verb of the Day | Vocabulary | EnglishClub
run down (2)
If you run somebody down, you criticize them and tell them they're no good.
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Language Log
Demic and cultural factors in the spread of Austronesian languages in Southeast Asia
As someone deeply interested in the languages of Taiwan, I have long been preoccupied by the origins and expansion of Austronesian on the island circa six millennia ago and its spread from there around four thousand years ago throughout Southeast Asia, to Oceania and as far as Madagascar. This new research article from PLOS ONE sheds light on how a part of that process occurred.
"Investigating Demic versus Cultural Diffusion and Sex Bias in the Spread of Austronesian Languages in Vietnam." Thao, Dinh Huong et al. PLOS ONE 19, no. 6 (June 17, 2024): e0304964.
Abstract
Austronesian (AN) is the second-largest language family in the world, particularly widespread in Island Southeast Asia (ISEA) and Oceania. In Mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA), groups speaking these languages are concentrated in the highlands of Vietnam. However, our knowledge of the spread of AN-speaking populations in MSEA remains limited; in particular, it is not clear if AN languages were spread by demic or cultural diffusion. In this study, we present and analyze new data consisting of complete mitogenomes from 369 individuals and 847 Y-chromosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 170 individuals from all five Vietnamese Austronesian groups (VN-AN) and five neighboring Vietnamese Austroasiatic groups (VN-AA). We found genetic signals consistent with matrilocality in some, but not all, of the VN-AN groups. Population affinity analyses indicated connections between the AN-speaking Giarai and certain Taiwanese AN groups (Rukai, Paiwan, and Bunun). However, overall, there were closer genetic affinities between VN-AN groups and neighboring VN-AA groups, suggesting language shifts. Our study provides insights into the genetic structure of AN-speaking communities in MSEA, characterized by some contact with Taiwan and language shift in neighboring groups, indicating that the expansion of AN speakers in MSEA was a combination of cultural and demic diffusion.
…
Conclusion
…our survey of the mtDNA and MSY relationships of all of the extant VN-AN groups, along with their AA neighbors, illustrates a complex history of migrations as well as cultural diffusion via language shifts and contact, resulting in the spread of AN languages across Vietnam. We see more or less the same picture for both mtDNA and the MSY, suggesting little sex bias in this process (consistent with a primary role for cultural diffusion); however, we caution that our inferences based on the MSY are more limited than for mtDNA, due to the underlying nature of the data. More in-depth studies of MSY variation, as well as genome-wide data, will provide a more holistic picture of the history of AN groups in Vietnam.
Selected readings
* "Austronesian languages of Taiwan" (6/2/23)
* "A museum for the languages of Taiwan" (1/5/20)
* "Diversification of Proto-Austronesian" (2/26/23)
* "An Austronesian word for 'betel'" (5/23/21)
* "Taiwan's vanishing indigenous languages" (6/9/21)
* "Documenting and Revitalizing Austronesian Languages: free online book", Pinyin News (4/30/08)
* "Diversification of Proto-Austronesian" (2/26/23)
* "New results on Austronesian linguistic phylogeny" (1/23/09)
* "More on the Spread of the Austronesian Languages", Languagehat (2/25/16)
[h.t. Edward M. McClure]
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Word of the Day
floorwalker
Definition: (noun) An employee of a department store who supervises sales personnel and assists customers.
Synonyms: shopwalker.
Usage: Although Bill thoroughly enjoyed the raise associated with his promotion to floorwalker, he disliked answering customer complaints and sometimes wished he had remained a cashier.
Discuss
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Learn English Through Football
Euro 2024 Football Phrase Day 8: String of Chances
On day eight of Euro 2024, the phrase of the day is ‘string of chances’ which describes the match between France and The Netherlands. Learn what this phrase means by reading the post below. You can also check out our glossary of footballing phrases here and visit our site to access all our previous posts […]
The post Euro 2024 Football Phrase Day 8: String of Chances appeared first on Learn English Through Football.
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often discussed the relative benefits of cursive vs. printing. That, I believe, is largely a matter of esthetic preference. More important is the dichotomy between handwriting (whether cursive or printing) and typing. It would be an educational and cultural tragedy if we simply let learners tap out their messages on a keyboard before they have become intimately familiar with the cognitive power of writing by hand. Selected readings
* "The benefits of handwriting" (9/16/19) — with extensive list of readings
* "Handwriting Shows Unexpected Benefits Over Typing", by Denis Storey, Psychiatrist.com (1/30/24)
* "Swype and Voice Recognition for mobile device inputting" (1/22/14)
* "Writing characters and writing letters" (11/17/18)
* "Handwriting legibility" (10/19/15)
* "'They're not learning how to write characters!'" (11/5/21) — with long bibliography
* "Cursive" (3/30/14)
[h.t. John Rohsenow]
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Learn English Through Football
Euro 2024 Football Phrase (Day 7): Rocket
In this football language post we look at the word, 'rocket' from the England versus Denmark Group C match at the 2024 Euros.
The post Euro 2024 Football Phrase (Day 7): Rocket appeared first on Learn English Through Football.
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Idiom of the Day
jack it in
To quit or abandon something, especially an endeavor or enterprise. Can also be worded as "jack in something." Primarily heard in UK. Watch the video
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Slang of the Day | Vocabulary | EnglishClub
quack
someone who cheats people by claiming to have special knowledge, especially in medicine
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