Accusing a person or company of ‘virtue signalling’ has become a common putdown. But slurs like these are not new.
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
Articles on Linguistics
Displaying 141 - 160 of 365 articles
Updates to the Oxford English Dictionary provide a fascinating glimpse into how language changes in the face of rapid and unprecedented social and economic disruption.
In languages from Central Asia to the Amazon and New Guinea, stringing multiple ideas together is something children learn at an early age.
“Karen”, the name that has become code for boorish, entitled behaviour, joins a long history of names being appropriated for various purposes – often unkindly.
The use of military metaphors in some contexts can be helpful. In medicine? Not so much.
We want to be whitelisted and not blacklisted for jobs. White lies make stretching the truth okay, but you don’t want to receive a black mark on your record.
New linguistic research suggest early Germanic language and culture was strongly influenced by the Mediterranean superpower Carthage more than 2,000 years ago.
Because sarcasm is often difficult to discern and improperly used, it can operate as a linguistic mulligan. But deploy the excuse too much, and you might raise some eyebrows.
Worried you won’t be understood while wearing a mask? Don’t be. We studied how people sound while talking through fabric and the results are encouraging.
Those with a diagnosis of schizophrenia may be more likely to interpret metaphorical thoughts literally.
Generic names can take on a linguistic life of their own, becoming powerful forms of social commentary.
Dickens had some clever little narrative tricks, which become clear when his work is analysed as a single data set.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee highlights the richness of the English lexicon by picking some tough entries with foreign roots.
The etymology of an epidemic.
One anthropologist found 1,072 similar words for ‘mom’ and ‘dad’ in the world’s languages. It turns out a mix of biology, culture and encouragement from parents explains this phenomenon.
Second-language learners from different age groups seem to have equal chances of becoming highly proficient speakers as long as they are placed in a supportive environment.
Have you been pulled up by a “grammar Nazi”? Now you can correct them back.
It’s all about context.
On International Mother Language Day, Canadians can celebrate multilingual heritage by recognizing flexible uses of languages.
Accents differ depending on where we’re from, even in the same country.
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Kate Burridge is a Friend of The Conversation.Professor of Linguistics, Monash University
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Senior Lecturer in Linguistics, Monash University
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Associate Dean and Professor of Psychology, University of Memphis
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