John Kelly

I will always maintain that Columbus, OH is, in fact, a foreign country. The sovereign state of OSU.

From my Cincinnati standpoint, this absolutely nails why Cleveland feels like a foreign country, despite being in the same state, and Louisville very much does not.

And to be clear, understanding our universe is not just science gratia science.

Recently spoke to particle astrophysicist. He works on axions/dark matter. I asked him what misconception he’d like to disabuse people of. He said he wants people to understand the huge economic impact abstract-seeking work actually generates. Science for its own sake has downstream benefits!

For most recent/current sense (which Swift uses but I love the idea of her/someone on her team diving into OED on this, too, and deepening the social/gender valences of her choice of title/theme), the OED cites George Soane’s drama ‘Lilian, the Show Girl’: “The tinsel dress of the poor show girl.”

The Life of a ‘Showgirl,’ #etymology edition.

Adapted from OED. Show + girl.

- 1750, young girl regarded as object of display, especially one who dresses/behaviors ostentatiously.

- 1816, young woman employed to model clothes.

- 1836–37, female performer in musicals, et al. (chorus girl)

Yes! Not just you.

Kavanaugh stop

#WordOfTheWeek

Fool me once: the magical origin of the word hoax Frauds, swindles, cons, scams, and deceptions are collectively known as hoaxes. But there's more than meets the eye.

I was interviewed by NPR the other day about the origin of "hoax"

www.npr.org/2025/10/01/n...

AI is definitely not a virgin because we all get fucked by it every day.

Apropos of absolutely nuthin:

TIL 'shotcrete,' a sprayed concrete.

1950. Blend of shot + (con)crete. So named because it's shot through a hose onto harder-to-pour surfaces.

Another term for 'gunite' (1912), originally a trademark. Based on gun + -ite. Think 'cement gun.'

'Grifter.' Recorded in early 1900s.

Probably from 'grafter,' someone who makes money dishonestly. Recorded in late 1800s for 'pickpocket.'

Based on verb or noun 'graft' (both mid-1800s), which concerns illicit money-making.

Further origin obscure. Evidenced now—and daily.

deemed *them (the animals in the scientific order)

A screenshot of the etymology of "Primates" from the Oxford English Dictionary.

TIL Carl Linnaeus included BATS in his classification of Primates, which he so named because he deemed of the highest order. ('Primates' is ultimately based on Latin "'primus," meaning 'first, foremost.') Bats rule!

Wow, this is really fascinating and consequential research.

Refreshing and exciting developments in the dictionary space. Definitely order yours today. Go really lexicographically bananas and add to it ‘Conversations on Dictionaries’ (ed. Ilan Stavans) from @universitypress.cambridge.org!

‘Lethality’ is recorded in 1656 another important early English dictionary of special distinction: Thomas Blount’s 'Glossographia,' regarded as the first English dictionary to include etymologies. Also a “hard words” dictionary and far larger than Cawdrey’s at over 11,000 entries.

'Lethal' is recorded by at least 1604 in Robert Cawdrey’s 'Table Alphabeticall,' considered the first monolingual dictionary in English and concerned with "hard words.” He entered over 2,500 of them.

In some Greek and Roman #mythology, the souls of the dead would drink from the River Lethe, one of five in the underworld, to forget their past lives before being reincarnated.

The history of the word ‘lethal’ in English touches on some important developments in English #lexicography.

First, its #etymology: from the Latin ‘lethalis’ (deadly, mortal, fatal), ultimately based on ‘letum’ (death) and apparently influenced by the Greek ‘lethe’ (forgetfulness, oblivion).

Thanks for sharing, Nancy!

2025 Punctuation Mark of the Year The em dash (—) straddles clauses—and urgent conversations about humanity and technology in 2025.

"We seldom see a typographical symbol—as a symbol—command so much attention in mainstream discourse." From @mashedradish.bsky.social: mashedradish.com/2025/09/24/2...

gibbering insanity

'Teem' originally meant "produce, bear, give birth," later developing to "be full, abound, swarm with."

OED first cites that latter sense in 1597.

random #etymology

Deeper roots of 'team' are Germanic. Cognates (in likes of Old High German) meant "bridle, rein, rope."

Yet more ancient, probably related to verb for "to drag, pull, lead," related to Latin 'ducere' that yields English words like 'conduct,' 'deduce,' 'educate,' and many more.

By mid-1400s, 'team' referred to a group of people working together on common cause—now especially in a professional manner.

OED first records 'team' in sports sense in 1834 in the context of cricket. 🏏

Team' is an Old English word that originally meant "child-bearing, offspring, family."

Also a group of work animals. This sense survives today in 'team of horses' or 'team of oxen.'

Even then 'team' took the form of 'team' in Old English.

I did not know this!

'Teem' is from 'team' or otherwise its same Germanic source. '

Neat! Short thread. 🧵

That, as they say (and having learned from having learned in Ireland for several years), is good craic.

Plus, my Irish friends took riffing/banter to the next level.

September linkstack Naming a new city, styling The New Yorker, expanding a dictionary, and more.

September linkstack! Credits: @byagoda.bsky.social @stefanfatsis.bsky.social @helenzaltzman.bsky.social @mashedradish.bsky.social @wordorigins.bsky.social @emilystewart.bsky.social and more. fritinancy.substack.com/p/september-...