Shows / Grammar Girl
Grammar Girl
Five-time winner of Best Education Podcast in the Podcast Awards. Grammar Girl provides short, friendly tips to improve your writing and feed your love of the English language. Whether English is your first language or your second language, these grammar, punctuation, style, and business tips will make you a better and more successful writer. Grammar Girl is a Quick and Dirty Tips podcast.
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Episodes
- Grammar Girl
756 - High Odds or Low Odds?
In this Super-Bowl-themed episode, we learn why "high odds" and "low odds" are confusing, we learn why you want a disinterested referee, and in honor of the…
- Grammar Girl
755 - How to Write Anything
Develop this one skill and you'll write better essays, profiles, movie reviews, complaint letters, and more. LINKS AND SPONSORS | Learn how you can get my…
- Grammar Girl
754 - The Tie Between Ann Landers and 'Could Care Less.'
Language experts actually have theories about why people say they "could care less" (instead of they "couldn't care less"). We dig deep to find the root of the…
- Grammar Girl
753 - Take Heart! Here's Why You Still Have Time to Write Your First Novel
In this interview, I talk with Bourne Morris about starting a writing career after you've retired. Bourne had one amazing career running a large advertising…
- Grammar Girl
752 - Why Do Asian Languages Have So Many Different Scripts?
You don’t have to learn a new script when you learn Norwegian, Czech, or Portuguese, let alone French, so why does every East Asian language require you to…
- Grammar Girl
751 - Why Are There So Many Spellings for 'Hanukkah'? (Or Is That 'Chanukah'?)
Hebrew and English don't use the same alphabet, which is why you see so many different spellings for "Hanukkah." The word is transliterated from Hebrew instead…
- Grammar Girl
750 - Pitch Black. Frankincense and Myrrh.
The sky is so dark in the Northern Hemisphere these days that it feels pitch black by 5:00 PM. Here's why call it "pitch black." Also, we know what gold is…
- Grammar Girl
749 - How to Identify Your Main Point. It's Harder Than You Think!
You think you know what you're trying to say, but are you making it clear? Joel Schwartzberg, author of "Get to the Point" has some great tips for, well…
- Grammar Girl
748 - Your Language Affects Your Perception of Time. 'Star Wars' Languages.
Do you think of the future as being in front of you or behind you? It might depend on what language you speak. Also, we explore the many languages of 'Star…
- Grammar Girl
747 - You Don't Have to Get Up on Stage for Improv to Boost Your Creativity
Are you looking for a way to jumpstart your creativity and writing? You may be surprised to find out how much techniques from improv can help! You'll love this…
- Grammar Girl
746 - How to Make Family Names Plural. How Come We Ask 'How Come?'
Making last names plural? Addressing more than one sister-in-law? More than one Mister? We show you how to address them properly. Also, we investigate why we…
- Grammar Girl
745 - 'More Than' Versus 'Over.' Is a Hamburger a Sandwich?
The AP Stylebook changed its stance on using "over" to mean "more than." Plenty of people were shocked, but they shouldn't have been. And then we debate the…
- Grammar Girl
744 - Cold Turkey, Talk Turkey, and More. The Weird Origin of the Cornucopia.
Have you ever wondered what cold turkey has to do with quitting a habit? We have the answer to that and we look at other turkey idioms. And continuing the…
- Grammar Girl
743 - How to Get Your Characters Right (Especially When They Aren't Like You)
In this interview, Diana Pho, a two-time Hugo nominated editor with Tor.com Publishing, helped me understand the role of sensitivity readers and how to write a…
- Grammar Girl
742 - Famous Quotations. Silent Letters.
You may think that quotation you love came from Plato or G. K. Chesterton, but are you sure? Also, we look at why it's tricky to to figure out why a letter is…
- Grammar Girl
741 - Behind the Scenes in Publishing.
If you're interested in publishing a YA novel (or are just interested in how publishing works), this interview with Kat Brzozowski about Swoon Reads and what…
- Grammar Girl
740 - Do You Know When to Use Quotation Marks? Also, How to Create a House Style.
Do you know when to use quotation marks? How about single quotation marks? Also, you know about the major style guides (AP, Chicago, etc.), but do you also…
- Grammar Girl
739 - The Problem with Sarcasm. Filthy Lucre.
People have been trying to create sarcasm punctuation marks for years, but the solution is already in our hands. Plus, have you ever wondered why we call money…
- Grammar Girl
738 - Can a Boy Raised by Wolves Learn to Speak Human Language? It Depends.
The story of Victor of Aveyron, a boy who was raised by wolves and taught us about language. LINKS AND SPONSORS | Learn how you can get my LinkedIn Learning…
- Grammar Girl
737 - Curtis Chen: Using NaNoWriMo to Kickstart Your Novel
How you can use NaNoWriMo to jumpstart your fiction writing. Plus, more extreme measures to move your writing forward...if you're up for it. LINKS AND SPONSORS…
- Grammar Girl
736 - Ghastly Words for Ghosts. Quid pro Quo.
In honor of Halloween, we look at ghastly words for ghosts. Also, people have been asking how to properly use the phrase "quid pro quo," so we have the answer…
- Grammar Girl
735 - Dave Itzkoff on Writing a Biography of Robin Williams
LINKS AND SPONSORS | Ways to get my LinkedIn Learning course free: https://t.co/coQuXJRtrT | Capterra: https://capterra.com/grammar | GRAMMAR GIRL EMAIL…
- Grammar Girl
734 - Ghost Words
In honor of Halloween, we talk about ghost words such as "phantomnation," "gravy," "twill," and more. Words that shouldn't exist. LINKS AND SPONSORS | Learn…
- Grammar Girl
733 - Why People Hate Words Like 'Moist'
When people have a negative physical reaction to a specific word, it's called word aversion (not misophonia as some people mistakenly presume). "Moist,"…
- Grammar Girl
732 - How to Write a Conclusion. ‘Rebut’ or ‘Refute’?
Writing a conclusion can be the hardest part of writing an essay. We have help! Also, a listener asked me to explain the difference between "rebut" and…
- Grammar Girl
731 - Compound Possession. 'Friday' or 'On Friday'?
In this show, we answer two listener questions: 1. Should you write about "Bill and Ted's trip" or "Bill's and Ted's trip"? 2. Should you say you'll listen…
- Grammar Girl
730 - Turning a Podcast into a Novel: 'The Bright Sessions' to 'The Infinite Noise'
Lauren Shippen, the creator of one of my new favorite audio dramas, "The Bright Sessions," talks about turning a podcast into a novel and about going from…
- Grammar Girl
729 - Making Words That End in Y Plural.'Primer' Pronunciation.
If you've ever wondered why "primer" is sometimes pronounced "primmer," this show is for you! We also talk about why you make words that end in Y plural in…
- Grammar Girl
728 - How English Words Came Into French After World War II
French authorities tried to keep English out of their language, but “tank,” “bulldozer,” and “jeep” got the ball rolling, and it kept going from there. LINKS…
- Grammar Girl
727 - The Quirky Australian 'Crime' Tense. 'Hopefully.'
A listener asked why Australians use the present perfect tense in a way you won't hear in British or American English. You'll often hear it in crime reports or…
- Grammar Girl
726 - A Cup of Joe. ‘Smokey’ and ‘Smoky.’
In honor of National Coffee Day, we talk about the origin of coffee and all its nicknames. Plus, I'll help you remember the difference between "smoky" and…
- Grammar Girl
725 - Interviewing, Story Structure, and Writing Tools with Jonathan Small
If you've ever been nervous before interviewing someone, struggled to write a good lede, or just want to get some tips on handy tools for writers, this…
- Grammar Girl
724 - Why Esperanto Is an Amazing Language. 'Fall' or 'Autumn'?
Created on purpose and easy to learn, Esperanto will amaze you. Once you learn the origin of "fall," you'll look at trees in a whole new way. LINKS AND…
- Grammar Girl
723 - Grammar Girl #723. Tips for Fact Checking. Why We Use the Term 'Watershed Moment.'
Learn from our fact checking tips that come from years of experience. Also, we answer a listener question about why we call something a "watershed moment."…
- Grammar Girl
722 - 'Math' or 'Maths'? Irregular Verbs.
Have you ever wondered why the British say "maths" and "in hospital" and Americans say "math" and "in the hospital"? We have some answers. Also, we look at why…
- Grammar Girl
721 - Verbing Nouns. 'It Is I' or 'It Is Me'?
Alan wonders what to think about his co-workers "solutioning" problems. Also, we investigate whether you should tell people "It is I" or "It is me." LINKS AND…
- Grammar Girl
720 - Getting Your Tricky Conditionals Right. Wheelhouse.
We think there are better ways to talk about conditionals (such as "If Squiggly knew the answer...") than to use the vague terms first, second, and third…
- Grammar Girl
719 - Why 'Literally' Doesn't Mean 'Literally' Anymore. Video Games for Language Learning.
If you hate how people misuse words like "literally" and "awesome," at least you can learn that there's a name for that kind of misuse: semantic bleaching…
- Grammar Girl
718 - Writing Scripts and Speeches. Ask and Aks.
Writing for speech is different from writing for print. The "aks" pronunciation for "ask" has a nearly 1000-year history. LINKS AND SPONSORS | Magoosh…
- Grammar Girl
717 - Words that Sound Funny
Use these tricks to get a laugh. LINKS AND SPONSORS | Merrill Financial Advisor Development Program: http:/careers.bankofamerica.com | Magoosh…
- Grammar Girl
716 - What's Up With Words That Are Spelled the Same but Sound Different?
SUS-pect and sus-PECT. IN-valid and in-VALID. English is filled with words that are spelled the same but sound different. We dug in and found a few interesting…
- Grammar Girl
715 - POV. Plus 'Tinderella,' 'phubbing,' and more words at the intersection of relationships and technology.
We rock. You rock. They rock. Understanding point of view in fiction. "Tinderella," "phubbing," and more words at the intersection of relationships and…
- Grammar Girl
714 - Eponyms: Cardigan, Dunce, Quisling, and More.
Some words get their names from people, and when they do, the stories are usually fascinating. LINKS AND SPONSORS | Magoosh: http://magoosh.com code: GRAMMAR |…
- Grammar Girl
713 - More Apostrophe Mayhem. Dyslexia Writing Tips
One of the most common questions I get is how to make a word like "Kansas" possessive. There isn't a right or wrong answer, but I can help you decide which is…
- Grammar Girl
712 - Apostrophe Catastrophe. What (or Who) Is a Cipher?
It's not your fault apostrophes are confusing. We have help. Also, I called someone a "cipher," and my husband didn't know what that meant. LINKS AND SPONSORS…
- Grammar Girl
711 - Misheard Song Lyrics and Eggcorns. The Ampersand.
When you mishear song lyrics, the resulting (often funny) error is called a mondegreen. We have the story about why and the run-down on similar funny errors…
- Grammar Girl
710 - Vacay. Why Some People Call Green Peppers 'Mangoes'
It's time to take off, and we have 10 words to describe it. Also, we dig in to an interesting mystery: Why some people call green peppers "mangoes." LINKS AND…
- Grammar Girl
709 - Surprise! The History of Semicolons Is Exciting.
I talked with Cecelia Watson, author of the new book "Semicolon" about how grammar writers in the 1800s became fabulously wealthy, struggled to create rules…
- Grammar Girl
708 - Why Alcohol Is 'Hard.' 'Phenomena' or 'Phenomenon'?
A listener asked why we call some kinds of alcohol hard drinks and spirits, so we found the answer! Also, I'll help you remember the difference between…
- Grammar Girl
707 - How and Why the Internet Is Changing Language
Gretchen McCulloch studies how people use language on the internet, and today we talked about her new book, "Because Internet." I bet you'll recognize yourself…
- Grammar Girl
706 - Sometimes It's Not a Bad Idea to Dumb Down Your Language.
Why sometimes it's not a bad idea to dumb down your language. LINKS AND SPONSORS | True & Co: http://trueandco.com/grammar code:GRAMMAR | Grammar Girl Email…
- Grammar Girl
705 - 'Blue Collar,' 'Bluestocking,' and 'the Blue Hair Brigade.' 'Oral' Versus 'Verbal.'
We talk about the origins of the phrases "blue collar," "bluestocking," and "blue hair," and discuss whether you should follow a rule you may not have even…
- Grammar Girl
704 - Present Tense When Writing About Fiction. The Poop Emoji and Eggcorns.
If you're writing about fiction, especially time-shifting fiction, it can be tricky figuring out whether to use present tense or past tense. We have help!…
- Grammar Girl
703 - Why There Are 9 Different Ways to Pronounce the Letter T
We count nine different allophones of the letter T. Odds are good you'll recognize them all (and some of them may annoy you). LINKS AND SPONSORS | Babbel…
- Grammar Girl
702 - ‘All of a Sudden’ or ‘All of the Sudden’? ‘Baited’ or ‘Bated’ Breath?
I had a listener insist the wrong way of saying "suddenly" was right, so I had to look into it. Also, I'll help you spell "bated breath" properly (and explain…
- Grammar Girl
701 - ‘Biweekly’ or ‘Semiweekly’? ‘Foward' and ‘Forward.’
Today I have a Quick and Dirty Tip about the difference between “biweekly” and “semiweekly,” and I respond to a listener question about why I pronounce…
- Grammar Girl
700 - When to Capitalize 'Google.' Why Zero is 'Love' in Tennis.
Today I answer a listener question about how to write "Google" when you use it as a verb, and we talk about the strange scoring system in tennis. Wimbledon is…
- Grammar Girl
699 - When to Capitalize Computer Terms. StetWalk
Today I answer listener questions about how to write about a Word document, a PDF file, or a zip file. And learn how to play along with #StetWalk! LINKS AND…
- Grammar Girl
698 - 'Subpoena.' When To Capitalize 'The' in Titles.
I could never remember how to spell "subpoena" until I came up with a memory trick! Also, we go over the tricky cases of when to capitalize the word "the" in…
- Grammar Girl
697 - What Anyone Can Learn From the College Essay Process
Even if you're not applying to college right now, the format of the college essay has a lot to teach about writing and self-reflection. A college essay can be…