Blog Excerpts - | Vocabulary.com

The Linguistic Society of America today named Vocabulary.com-Visual Thesaurus Executive Producer Ben Zimmer as the first recipient of the Linguistics Journalism Award. The award honors "the journalist whose work best represents linguistics" during the past 12 months. In addition to his stellar work on Vocabulary.com and the Visual Thesaurus, the LSA singled out Zimmer's language column in the Wall Street Journal, as well as "articles on linguistic topics for the Boston Globe, The Atlantic, Slate's 'Lexicon Valley' blog, and Language Log."

Topics: Language Linguistics Linguists

Following up on the American Association of School Librarians' selection of Vocabulary.com as a "Best Website for Teaching and Learning 2014," the association released a review of Vocabulary.com, in which it recommends our site for differentiated learning and suggests several concrete ways teachers can make use of our tool.

Dictionary Day comes but once a year, and here at Vocabulary.com we're whooping it up, tweeting our favorite word blurbs all day long. Continue reading...

Topics: Dictionaries Fun Words

As Americans celebrate Columbus Day, it's worth reflecting on the complicated cultural and linguistic legacy that Christopher Columbus left behind. There's a single word that aptly illustrates this legacy and all of its contradictions: Indians, the mistaken name that Columbus gave to the native peoples of the Americas. Continue reading...

Topics: Language Word Origins Words

In anticipation of her school's "official jump" to the Common Core, English teacher Jennifer Johnston of Rialto High, in Rialto, CA created a dramatic new word learning program using Vocabulary.com. She was hoping for measurable improvement. What she ended up with was a dramatic change. Now, in the International Reading Association's online magazine Reading Today, Johnston explains how she made this happen. Continue reading...

Did you know today is National Punctuation Day? Celebrate with some of our punctuation-related articles from the past...

· Exclamation Nation

· Learning to Love the Semicolon

· "Punctuation Hero" or Vandal?

· What's Your Favorite Punctuation Mark?

· Throwing Light on Shady Characters

· The Problem with Punctuation: Some Classroom Findings

Topics: Fun Language Usage

On the first Monday in September, the United States observes Labor Day, while Canadians celebrate Labour Day. If you want to know why labour is the accepted spelling in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth countries like Canada, while Americans prefer labor (and color, favor, honor, humor, and neighbor), check out this classic Word Routes column by Ben Zimmer.

Vocabulary.com Blog Blog Excerpts

Ben Zimmer Wins LSA's Linguistics Journalism Award

School Librarians Recommend Vocabulary.com for Differentiated Word Learning

American Association of School Librarians review comes after site is named "Best Website for Teaching and Learning 2014"

We're Whooping It Up for National Dictionary Day!

We're whooping it up.

On Columbus Day, a Look Back at the "Indian" Misnomer

From IRA's "Reading Today," a Vocab Success Story

English teacher Jennifer Johnston explains how she changed word learning at her school...almost overnight.

Happy National Punctuation Day!

Celebrating Labor (and Labour) Day

Ben Zimmer Wins LSA's Linguistics Journalism Award

Happy National Punctuation Day!

Celebrating Labor (and Labour) Day

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