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Pile It On Word of the Day : exaggerate
This verb, from the Latin verb exaggerare, illustrates how readily figurative meanings develop from literal ones. The word originally meant to pile up or accumulate. Later this developed into "intensify praise or blame." From there it was only a short hop to the current meaning: "enlarge beyond the bounds of truth." It's tempting to suppose a connection with aggregate, congregate, and segregate -- but there is none.
The Visual Thesaurus Crossword Puzzle: July Edition
It's the dog days of summer, but the Visual Thesaurus crossword puzzle should perk you up. Solve it and you could win a Visual Thesaurus T-shirt!
In Defense of Harding the Bloviator
During my appearance on WNYC's "The Leonard Lopate Show" yesterday to talk about Sarah Palin's much-ridiculed use of the word refudiate, I found myself in the odd position of defending Warren Gamaliel Harding, one of the least admired presidents in American history. In the commentary on Palin, Harding was revived as a point of comparison, particularly for his use of two memorable words: normalcy and bloviate. As I said on the show, I'd argue that Harding has gotten a bad rap on both counts.
Grammar Bite: Snuggling Up to "Only"
Here's a little grammar quiz from Erin Brenner of Right Touch Editing. Pop quiz time! If I want you to play a song just for me and I don't want you to play it for anyone else, where in my sentence do I put only? 1. Only play me a song. 2. Play only me a song. 3. Play me a song only.
"Refudiate" and Other Accidental Coinages
The dust has settled a bit since last week's Refudiate-Gate, when the blogosphere went into a tizzy after Sarah Palin used the word refudiate in a Twitter update ? and then defended her coinage by likening herself to Shakespeare. Now that we've gotten the predictably overheated reactions from the left and the right out of the way, let's take a look at this particular Palinism with a calmer perspective.
They Blinded Me With Science
Hello, dear "Teachers at Work" readers! I hope all is well, and that you, unlike me, have not yet begun to calculate how many days are left in the summer before school begins again. What can I say? I like to know my limits. But everyone else should chillax, as my students would say, were they not asleep on the beach.
John Cotter, Author of "Under the Small Lights"
I used to play at being a writer. Afternoons in Boston, in my early 20s, I'd pour three fingers of Black Bush whiskey, feed a page into my typewriter, and surround my desk with books by whoever I was reading then ? Bill Knott, Marguerite Duras ? and add to that bibles and newspapers. I'd open to random pages and write down whatever caught my eye, whatever seemed anachronistic or poignant, then I'd make a hash out of it.
"Mad Men": Capturing the Sound of the '60s
Just in time for Sunday's season premiere of "Mad Men," my latest "On Language" column in The New York Times Magazine considers how authentically the show represents the speech of the 1960s. The creators of the AMC series, led by head honcho Matthew Weiner, are obsessive about getting the details of language right, just like all the other details of the show. But fans can be equally obsessive, on the lookout for the smallest linguistic anachronisms.
Of Celebrations, Observances, and Circular Definitions
Wendalyn Nichols, editor of the Copyediting newsletter, writes: Recently on the Copyediting blog, I made a comment about Flag Day, saying we celebrated it rather than observed it. This was actually a follow-up to an earlier comment about Memorial Day, when I noted that it was to be observed rather than celebrated.
"Refudiate": The View from Oxford
The blogosphere has been abuzz over Sarah Palin's use of the word refudiate in a Twitter update, apparently mashing up refute and repudiate. Now OUPblog, the official blog of Oxford University Press, weighs in. "Refudiate this, word snobs!" chortles OUP lexicographer Christine Lindberg. Read all about it here (http://blog.oup.com/2010/07/refudiate/).
The Future of Electronic Reading
The Los Angeles Times takes a fascinating look at how electronic reading has the potential to revolutionize the concept of the book. "Books are increasingly able to talk to readers, quiz them on their grasp of the material, play videos to illustrate a point or connect them with a community of fellow readers." Read the article here (http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fiw-0718-reading-20100718,0,1216316,full.story).
Are the Kids "Alright" or "All Right"?
The new film The Kids Are All Right, directed by Lisa Cholodenko, owes an obvious debt of gratitude to The Who, even though the band's music doesn't appear on the soundtrack. The title is lifted from a classic song from The Who's 1965 debut album, which also served as the title of a 1979 documentary about the band. Discerning readers will notice a small but important difference: the song and the documentary were spelled "The Kids Are Alright." Did Cholodenko "correct" The Who's spelling?
Evie Wyld, Author of "After the Fire, a Still Small Voice"
One of the most important moments in writing my novel, After the Fire, a Still Small Voice, came when I realized I could reach outside of reality.
Remembering "The Voice of God"
A great voice was silenced earlier this week with the death of Bob Sheppard, longtime public-address announcer for New York Yankees baseball games and New York Giants football games. Sheppard, who also worked as a speech teacher at the high school and college level in New York, had such a memorable way of announcing players' names that he was fondly known as "the voice of God."
Revising Freedom: Jefferson's Rough Draft
New techniques of "digital archaeology" reveal long-lost secrets about how Thomas Jefferson tinkered with word choice while drafting the Declaration of Independence. University of Illinois linguist Dennis Baron has the full story.
Unlike People, Words Like Labels
Should college students be taught the parts of speech? Writing teacher Margaret Hundley Parker explains why she takes the time to work through this seemingly basic aspect of grammar with her students.
Meet the Dinosaur with "Mojo"
What happens when paleontologists get together for drinks and brainstorm for names of dinosaur species? They come up with Mojoceratops, inspired by the mystical, magical mojo. And with the publication of a paper in the Journal of Paleontology this week, the name is official.
Are You a Drip Who Leaves Writing to the Last Minute?
It was a Friday night and I was sitting at my computer studying Google maps. I had to give a speech to more than 200 people the next morning and ? given my notoriously bad sense of direction ? wanted to be sure I was heading for the right place. Suddenly, my husband yelled from the basement four words no homeowner wants to hear: "We have a leak."
Rocking the English Language
The latest quarterly update of the Oxford English Dictionary's online revision project covers the alphabetical range Rh to rococoesque, and it includes a fascinatingly complex entry for a seemingly simple word: rock, used as a verb. From the rocking of cradles in Old English sources to the rocking of microphones in rap lyrics, this entry has it all.
Does Spelling Still Matter?
Erin Brenner of Right Touch Editing provides "bite-sized lessons to improve your writing" on her engaging blog The Writing Resource. Here Erin wonders about the fate of spelling in the era of text messaging.
Be Not Afraid to Tackle Social Media
Teachers, are you wary of using social media and other online tools to foster student communication? Follow these tips from Michele Dunaway, who teaches English and journalism at Francis Howell High School in St. Charles, Missouri (when she's not writing best-selling romance novels).
All-American Polypragmatists Get Sprizzlefracked
USA! USA! USA! Sorry for the chanting and the giant foam finger. I just wanted to establish that this is a thoroughly all-American column and provide a smooth transition to a term that brings together two of my top two interests: euphemisms and dogs.
Realism: The Truth of Fiction
Michael Lydon, a well-known writer on popular music since the 1960s, has for many years also been writing about writing. Lydon's essays, written with a colloquial clarity, shed fresh light on familiar and not so familiar aspects of the writing art. Here Lydon shines a light on literary realism, the style by which writers "make the imaginary real and the real imaginary."
Don't Read This: What Kindle's Highlights Tell Us About Popular Taste
Users of Amazon's e-reader, the Kindle, can not only highlight their favorite passages, they can see what everyone else is highlighting. University of Illinois linguist Dennis Baron ponders the consequences.
The Submodified World
This month in the Language Lounge, we take a look at an underappreciated grammatical category: submodifiers. We hope that by shining the spotlight briefly on the term, we might win over a few converts, as well as alert readers to the nuances of the delightful class of words so designated.
Worst Opening Lines, 2010
In the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest, competitors are asked to write incredibly bad opening sentences to incredibly bad novels. The 2010 winner for worst opening line features a comparison to "the world's thirstiest gerbil." Read the whole thing, and the rest of the results, here (http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/).

Below, you'll find extensive information on leading technical dictionary articles and products to help you on your way to success.

Copywriting
By Wild Bill Montgomery, Sat Dec 10th

1) Think about your Readers

When writing ad copy be sure that the average reader can easilyunderstand and relate to it. Put yourself in their place. Wouldyou understand? Would you say, "That's me"? One way to help youwrite for your readers, is to write just as if you were sayingit to their face. Address the reader as "you" in your copy. Justlike a one on one conversation. Sometime take a closer look atsome of the advertising around you. How many times do you seethem using "you"?

Make your copy interesting to read, almost story-like, all thetime generating enthusiasm for your product or service. Findways to place facts in your copy without sounding like an ArmyService Manual. The trick is to convey the hard dry facts andnumbers, while making them interesting to read.

Don't talk about yourself. Readers don't care what you like,what you did or what you think. They want to know if they willlike it and how it will benefit them.

2) Organize your Copy

When you write your copy you should always know what yourprimary message or selling point is as well as all the secondaryselling points. You might want to use your primary message aspart of your headline and then dedicate a few lines or paragraphto expand on it. Then fit in your secondary selling points inlines or paragraphs after that. Whether they are a few lines ora paragraph would depend on the size of your copy. How muchspace you can set aside for your selling points? Before youstart writing your copy write down all your selling points. Sortthem in the order of importance. When writing your copy, movesmoothly from point to point, one leading into the next.

3) Short is Better

Everyone knows that short sentences are easier to read andcomprehend than long sentences. One thing that all writers havein common is that they are taught to write short andto-the-point sentences. Read back through your copy. If you finda sentence that has more then 12 words, find a way to break itdown. Break all long sentences into 2 sentences. If necessary,break them down again. You can also use hyphens to help separatelong sentences. This is not to say that all your sentencesshould be the same length. Copy can become boring when thesentences are all the same length. Vary their length. Just keepthem under 12 words. Remember you are writing copy, not fiction.Sentence fragments, as long as they sound good to the readersear, are completely acceptable in copywriting.

4) Don't be a Dictionary

Use simple and easy words. That's what a reader understands.Consider the mindset that you are communicating with. Thisreader is not trying to dissect and devour your copy. This issomeone, who for one reason or another has been distracted fromtheir primary goal to read what you have to say. It's only ashort pause they're taking to quickly read your words. If youuse complex words, you will either annoy or completely lose yourreader. Keep It Simple Stupid! Ad Copy is Communication. Don'tthink that you are impressing them with words they probablycouldn't spell and would never use themselves. Make it easy forthe reader to understand and keep up with the copy.

5) Keep Clear of Tech-Terms with Wide Audiences

If your copy is to be read by a wide audience, don't wrongfullyassume that they will know what

Ecological genetics of freshwater bacteria surveyedEurekAlert (press release), DC - 19 minutes agoThe authors of the first “21st Century Directions in Biology” article summarize the history of techniques that allow the study of bacteria
PC The Cowl (subscription), RI -"My research is on climate change and its affect on the marine environment," said Sullivan-Watts. "As scientist, we think about things such as is the marine ...
West considers special academiesNewHampshire.com, NH - 8 hours agoAriel Wilson, 15, of Hooksett, is a freshman at West and wants to get into marine biology. None of the planned academies would likely fit her career ...Ohio Launches New S
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, FL -The daughter of two educators who were also naturalists, Blackburn initially considered careers in veterinary medicine or marine biology. ...
Ecological genetics of freshwater bacteria surveyedEurekAlert (press release), DC - 19 minutes ago... Directions in Biology.” Most issues of BioScience will include an article about the impacts of new molecular techniques on a range of b
The Georgetown Voice, DC -Fr. Fitzgerald, the third speaker at the discussion panel who holds a degree in both philosophy and molecular biology, noted that “Catholics’ role in ...

you know. If you feel that thesefacts must be used, find a way to convey these terms in the bestway that they can be understood. Don't use a technical termunless it is the best choice. Sometimes you have no other routethan to use technical terms. Lets use "software" as an example.What other way can you put it? It's software. But then again youwouldn't want to say "C++ Software" just Software. The averagereader has no idea that C++ is a programming language and couldcare even less.

6) Clear & Concise

Keep your ad copy free of clutter. Don't use words that aren'tneeded. You are wasting your readers' time, weakening your salesmessage and taking up valuable space that could be better servedin your interest. Your readers ' attention span is short andthey are usually in a hurry. Avoid redundancies, over-wordedphrases and other poor writing mistakes that serve no otherfunction than taking up space. Provide specific and concreteinformation in a clear and straightforward manner. The morespecific you are the less chance your readers have ofmisunderstanding you.

7) For God's Sake, Get to the Point

Be direct and to the point. There is not time for beatingaround the bush or to keep your reader guessing.

Next to the headline, the first paragraph of your ad copy isthe most important text in your work. The first paragraph,better known as the "Lead" paragraph, is what draws in thereader. If your lead paragraph is uninteresting to the reader,they will surely move on. Move right into your primary sellingpoint. Don't waste time with introductions and explanations. Ifyou must use them, use them later. Your ad copy should be theessence of sell from the first word to the last. Loose the fluffand fringes. They're for weddings not ad copy.

8) There's No Place for Sexism or Racism

I was listening to an ad on a college radio station in themiddle of the summer semester. It was an ad for a localbusiness. During the course of this 30-second ad they managed toinsult the Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Thai and all womeneverywhere. Now needless to say that any type of racist orsexist attitude doesn't go far in advertising. But here we havea student population, which during the summer, by the statisticstaken each year, is almost 30% of oriental origin and 65%female. Not only was this commercial poor advertising, but justplain stupid.

Gender bashing, racist remarks and general rudeness offendspeople. You don't sell by offending others. The hardest of themto deal with is the use of gender in your copy. How do youhandle it? Instead of "service man", it's "service person".Instead of "his", it's "his/hers". There are however a couple ofother ways to help deal with this problem. One is two useplurals. Instead of his or her, try they, them or theirs.Another is to rewrite your copy taking out any reference to sexat all. You may even try alternating sexes through the ad copy.

Well, that's it for now, hope you're walking away with more thanyou came with.

Listed above are just a few techniques that you can use to helpyou write better ad copy.

Remember good copy sells, but great copy sells well!

About the author:Wild Bill Montgomery ATTENTION: Are You Tired Of Fooling AroundYet? When It's Time For You To Get Down To Business, Get TheBest In Marketing & Business Information! To Subscribe & GetYour FREE Reports & Software go to