Language Evolves: Its Literally Fine
If you read the title of this episode and cringed, you\u2019re not alone. At Merriam-Webster, editors and lexicographers receive countless letters grousing about the addition of certain words to the dictionary. And here at Science Diction, we get our fair share of emails pointing out our linguistic missteps.\xa0\nBut the more you dig into the origins of words, the more you notice that when it comes to language, \u201ccorrectness\u201d is a slippery concept. In fact, some of our most beloved English words - nickname! newt! - were born of mistakes.\xa0\nIn this episode, Merriam-Webster lexicographers Emily Brewster and Peter Sokolowski explain the mistake-ridden origins of our words, how language evolves, and how wrong becomes right. Plus, we answer a listener question about the most exported word in the English language.\nGuests:\xa0\nEmily Brewster is a Senior Editor and Lexicographer at Merriam-Webster.\xa0\nPeter Sokolowski is a Lexicographer at Merriam-Webster.\nCredits:\xa0\nScience Diction is produced by Johanna Mayer and Senior Producer and Editor Elah Feder. Daniel Peterschmidt composed our music, and they mastered this episode. Nadja Oertelt is our Chief Content Officer.