Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we orient ourselves with “orientate”…
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we explain “literally”, literally… Q: I
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we battling through like a
Venerate (verb) [ve-nə-ˌrāt] “I was reading a book the other day and came across a word that isn’t used that much so I thought I’d include it here. Venerate. The book was referring to a ‘venerated member of the police force’. According to the Macquarie Dictionary it means ‘to regard
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we’re taking our hats off
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we’re not stopping till we
Imprecation (noun) [im-pri-key-shuh-n] “This is used to describe when you’re swearing at someone wishing them ill or even wanting them to die. So you might say: ‘The man yelled vicious imprecations at the mugger who tried to steal his car.’” To hear Valerie and Allison chat more about this and
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we’re clarifying loose vs lose…
Ineffable (adjective) “The Macquarie Dictionary says this means something: ‘that cannot be uttered or expressed; inexpressible; unspeakable’. The example they give is ineffable joy. Now, this word is often associated with God in that it’s too great or massive or huge to be explained in words. You might experience ineffable
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we run rings around the
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week we’re sneaking a peek… Q:
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week we’re living a life of luxury…
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we explore the phrase “one
Paean (noun) [pee-an] “This comes from Ancient Greece and refers to a song that gives thanks to a god (specifically Greek god Apollo). Since it’s not likely we are singing such things these days, it’s now used to describe a form of rapturous or extravagant praise. So you might say:
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, it’s all systems GO… Q:
Antediluvian (adjective) [anti-duh-LOO-vee-in] “This cute word means ‘in the period before the flood’ – as in the one Noah was in! But it can be also used in a humorous fashion to refer to something that is antiquated or old-fashioned or outdated. So you might say: ‘Her grandfather’s antediluvian opinions
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, please excuse our French… Q:
Specious (adjective) [spee-shus] “No, this is not a typo. I don’t mean spacious. According to the Macquarie Dictionary, specious is something that is apparently good or right but without real merit. So you might have a ‘specious argument’ or say ‘the artistic work had a specious air of quality but was
Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, the possibilities are myriad… Q:
Polemical (adjective) [po-LEM-ickle] “This means controversial, especially when it’s associated with a particular doctrine. And a polemic is a noun that means a controversial argument. So you might say that a chef who writes a blog post about how everyone should be on a Paleo diet has written a
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