Grace Tierney

Happy Ireland Reads Day! I'm currently reading "The Time of the Child" by Niall Williams - a wonderful followup to his "This is Happiness". It's a book to savour by one of my favourite Irish writers. What are you reading today?
#IrelandReads #GetLostInAGoodBook #amreading

Marsh’s - The Oldest Public Library in Ireland

My article about visiting Marsh's Library (the oldest public library in Ireland) is now live on Mainly Museums - an excellent site devoted to museums worldwide. You'll find it at mainlymuseums.com/post/1419/ma... #librarylife #visitDublin #Iwantalibraryladder

LMFM logo - 95.8FM, red and white on blue background

Wordfoolery logo - black and white jester hat with bells on an orange background

I'll be chatting with Gerry on LMFM's Late Lunch today at 2 o'clock about the stories behind canapé, magenta, crapulous, and fiat. We've two (linked) mystery words too - splorroch and sploonging. Can you guess what they mean? Tune in or listen at www.lmfm.ie. Podlink later. #etymology

a baby yoda from the mandalorian is manifesting new high paying jobs . ALT: a baby yoda from the mandalorian is manifesting new high paying jobs .

“It’s so hard to get a permanent job though. You have to fill dead men’s shoes."

A recent trial in the High Court talked about a person hiring a hit-man for €5,000. We couldn’t help noticing that assassinating an archive’s curator could be a worthwhile career investment.
#1linewed #librarylife

The Librarian's Secret Diary <p>Nina is the new librarian on the block. She’s learning the shelves with her buzzword-spouting boss and the senior librarian who hates reading and can’t wait to retire. She records the crazy reader ...

The latest episode of "The Librarian's Secret Diary" is now live on Channillo. This week Nina is up to her neck in grant research while her Inter Library Loan Guy, Alex, dons his suit to brave an interview. Subscribe to read at channillo.com/series/the-l...
#librarylife #serial #irishfiction 📚💙

Sophie Blanchard 1778 – 1819 was a French aeronaut and the wife of ballooning pioneer Jean-Pierre Blanchard. She was the first woman to work as a professional balloonist, and after her husband's death she continued his work, making more than 60 ascents. #CelebratingWomen

The Imprecise History of Drizzle Hello, Having just returned from running a weekend writing retreat, I was disappointed to find yet more drizzle on my daily walk today. So here, for your encouragement through a damp Februrary (fol…

Another damp Monday here, so I decided to share the imprecise history of drizzle on the blog today. wordfoolery.wordpress.com/2026/02/23/t... Also - news of my upcoming female words for Women's History Month, starting on the 1st of March. #etymology #amblogging #weather

A gathering of beach stones on a gateway pillar - one of which has eroded into a facial expression of horror or surprise.

Spent the weekend at a stone cottage by the beach - writing, plotting, and topping up inspiration with friends. Loved this stone an earlier visitor had gathered on their walk. Hope it's not horrified by our fiction! #writinglife #writingretreat

a person with a hood on says i was at a party , you know ALT: a person with a hood on says i was at a party , you know

Five authors I’ve read at least 5 books by:

Terry Pratchett
Charles Dickens
Diana Gabaldon
Robin Hobb
Christopher Fowler

a shelf full of books including one that says ' i love you ' ALT: a shelf full of books including one that says ' i love you '

This week's word from the dusty Wordfoolery archives is abibliophobia - one for the readers amongst us. I also chatted about the challenges of NaNoWriMo that year (2015) when I was writing a historic fiction novel.
wordfoolery.wordpress.com/2015/12/09/a... #etymology #amreading #amblogging

dipper from gravity falls is holding a clipboard ALT: dipper from gravity falls is holding a clipboard

An intern escorted me from reception to where we’d be filming season two of “Storyteller and Bear”, as the place is a maze. He looked about twelve years old and clutched his clip board like it would save him from the zombie apocalypse.

#1linewed "The Librarian's Secret Diary

The Librarian's Secret Diary <p>Nina is the new librarian on the block. She’s learning the shelves with her buzzword-spouting boss and the senior librarian who hates reading and can’t wait to retire. She records the crazy reader ...

This week in "The Librarian's Secret Diary" Nina and Bob the Library Bear are back in TV-land to record a new series of "Storyteller and Bear" and Nina gets some good news. Subscribe to read at channillo.com/series/the-l... #serial #irishfiction #librarylife

The Roman & Turin History of Fiat Hello, I’ve been reading up on Latin words and phrases lately. I’ve two more books, at least, to publish in my Wordfoolery series before I reach “Words the Romans Gave Us”, …

This week on the blog - the history of the word fiat - from medieval decrees and kings, to currency and cars. Read all about it at wordfoolery.wordpress.com/2026/02/16/t...
#etymology #WordsRomansGaveUs #Latin

I enjoy the praise for my plot (nonfiction= no plot) 😀
Laugh, delete. Repeat.
Unfortunately these flood my inbox daily. I shudder to think how many they catch and scam.
Good luck with the release!

I propose to make universal the old policy of the Blackfriars conference at the American Shakespeare Center:

If you do not end your paper on time, you will be forced to exit, pursued by a bear. Literally, a bear will come take your paper from you.

Googolplex – perfect word for maths lovers Hello, Until recently I’d forgotten that I love maths. I’ve had an on-off relationship with it. Adored it up to age 12, got distracted by other subjects from 12-15, struggled from 15-19…

This week's dusty gem from the 2015 Wordfoolery archives is googolplex, a rather cool word, created by a nine-year-old. Read all about it at wordfoolery.wordpress.com/2015/10/05/g... #etymology #stem

Words Christmas Gave Us by Grace Tierney, red and white cover, with fabric love hearts on wooden background

Happy #ValentinesDay! ❤️

Closeup of daffodil on the cusp of opening its petals, with drops of rain along them.

The first daffodil in my garden this year, withstanding all the rain we've had lately.
#bloomscrolling #SpringIsComing #speirgorm

A stack of "Words The Vikings Gave Us" by Grace Tierney - green cover with long ship motif

4) Litmus entered English in the early 1300s as lit-mose, a blue dye obtained from lichens. The word was formed from Old Norse building blocks – lita (to dye or stain) and mos (moss).

Enjoy learning about words with Viking roots? Check out "Words the Vikings Gave Us" by Grace Tierney.

3) The idea of litmus paper dates to 1803 when it was created by the French chemist J.L. Guy-Lussac (1778-1850) whose career also included recognising iodine as a new element, co-discovering boron, and establishing with Humboldt that water is two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen.

a person is holding a cup of purple liquid in front of a chart that says ph color chart ALT: a person is holding a cup of purple liquid in front of a chart that says ph color chart

2) Every science student performs a litmus test to check pH levels and few realise they have the Vikings to thank. Litmus dye is naturally blue but turns red when exposed to acid and is restored to blue by alkaline exposure.

#OnThisDay 1939, the death of Danish scientist Soren Peder Pauritz Sorenson, a chemist in the Carlsberg Laboratory in Copenhagen, Denmark. He invented the pH scale in 1909. #etymology #sciencehistory 🧵

How to Get Your Name in the Dictionary by Grace Tierney, orange cover

7) His patents were challenged and the legal costs drove him to bankruptcy, twice. He died in poverty in Paris.

If you enjoy learning about the people whose names became words, check out "How to Get Your Name in the Dictionary" - amzn.to/2ygxZMH. There's an entire chapter about inventors.

6) He fell from a height of three floors onto stone, burnt himself in a gunpowder explosion, survived poisoning and suffocation thanks to varnished items in his bedroom, was hit on the head by a cobblestone, and fell into a river and barely survived.

a cartoon ghost with a surprised look on his face is standing in front of a rock wall . ALT: a cartoon ghost with a surprised look on his face is standing in front of a rock wall .

5) Sax created his own instruments from a young age as both his parents were instrument designers themselves. His neighbours called him “little sax, the ghost” when he was growing up as he survived so many near-death experiences.

4) Sax, who played the clarinet and flute himself, also created the saxtromba, saxtuba, and the saxhorn, but none of them gained an audience. The saxhorn is still sometimes played and laid the groundwork for the flugelhorn which is played in brass bands.

3) It was first shown to the public in 1844 and music was written for it by Berlioz and Bizet but it is mostly used for jazz and dance music now.

2) A sax is a keyed woodwind instrument with a brass body. It was invented by Belgian inventor and musician Adolphe Sax (1814-1894) who was working in his father’s instrument workshop in the 1840s.

a puppet with blue hair is playing a saxophone in a youtube originals video ALT: a puppet with blue hair is playing a saxophone in a youtube originals video

Happy National Inventors' Day! I'm sharing the story of the saxaphone to celebrate. 1/7
#etymology #NationalInventorsDay #inventions 🧵

Wordfoolery Whispers is out This Friday, plus Wordfoolery jester doll in red green and yellow motley complete with bells

Wordfoolery Whispers is out on Fri 16th Jan. Read about Writing Retreats, Romantic Words, Blog Highlights, Good Books and histories for canapé, tittle, jargogle, spuddle, hooch, and throttlebottoms.

Subscribe at subscribepage.io/wordfoolerywhispers & remember to confirm your email. #etymology