grammarist.com

Sitio interesante recomendado por +Gabriela Wolochwianski en el sitio del Colegio de Traductores de la Provincia de Santa Fe - 2º Circunscripción en LinkedIn.

An example:

Fly-by-night

Fly-by-night was originally a noun referring to one who goes out at night,1 usually for some wicked or mischievous purpose. It later gained a slang sense, referring to someone who gets out of a bill or a debt by fleeing in the middle of the night. From this derives the modern sense: today, fly-by-night is usually an adjective describing a fraudulent or dishonest business or money-making scheme. Fly-by-night operations tend to sell shoddy goods or to promise more than they can deliver, and quickly fold or disappear without providing refunds or returns on investment.

10 Language Mistakes Kids Make that Are Actually Pretty Smart

Little kids make such cute mistakes when they talk. We know they’re still learning the language, so we tolerate their errors and chuckle at how funny they sound. Behind that chuckle is the assumption that the kids are getting it wrong because they just don’t know the rules yet. In fact, kids’ mistakes show they know a lot more about the rules than we think. The mistakes are evidence of very smart hypotheses the kids are forming from the limited data they’ve been given so far. Here are 10 really smart language mistakes that kids make. Read the full text here: http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/153742#ixzz2DziGVCvT --brought to you by mental_floss!

¿El lenguaje tiene sexo?

Interesante artículo sobre sexo, género e incompetencia verbal.
¿El lenguaje tiene sexo?

HOW THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE WAS DEVELOPED

The history of English in ten minutes.
For a good laugh.

Thanks Aurora Humarán, from IAPTI.

How language transformed humanity

Read this article and watch its related video. I found it enlightening.
Thanks Lorena Vicente, from IAPTI.org.
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Natively Speaking Comics

To practise vocabulary, idioms, collocations, etc.
Thank you 2011 FCE student Nick Ba.

Learn American English on the Way!

Un buen sitio con podcasts para aprender inglés americano, con secciones específicas para gramática, frases, pronunciación, música, juegos, entre tantos otros.
Gracias a la colega cañadense Susana Bruera.
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Daniel Balmaceda: "Ciertas palabras encierran una magia, y son las que se establecen"

Daniel Balmaceda: "Ciertas palabras encierran una magia, y son las que se establecen"

En "Historia de las palabras", el investigador Daniel Balmaceda hace un recorrido por aquellos términos que tiene origen en acontecimientos históricos, ya sea por sus personajes o por las circunstancias en que fueron pronunciadas por primera vez.

Famosos insultos gastronómicos

Salame, perejil, papafrita y ñoqui son algunos de los alimentos que usamos para maltratar al prójimo. En esta nota, el origen de cada uno. 

Y no se pierdan los comentarios de la gente, al pie.
¡Salud!

Recomendaciones de la FUNDÉU

La Fundación del Español Urgente recomienda que se use consejero delegado en lugar de la sigla CEO para referirse al cargo ejecutivo de mayor rango en una empresa o compañía.

Se recomienda que, en lugar de la sigla CEO (en inglés chief executive officer), se utilice el nombre del cargo correspondiente: consejero delegado (mayoritariamente usado), presidente ejecutivo, director general, director ejecutivo, etc., siempre que se conozca; en caso contrario, se aconseja optar por la forma más genérica primer ejecutivo.

You've been verbed

Friending, trending, even evidencing and statementing... plenty of nouns are turning into verbs. Anthony Gardner works out what’s going on ...

From INTELLIGENT LIFE Magazine, Winter 2010

Mothers and fathers used to bring up children: now they parent. Critics used to review plays: now they critique them. Athletes podium, executives flipchart, and almost everybody Googles. Watch out—you’ve been verbed.
The English language is in a constant state of flux. New words are formed and old ones fall into disuse. But no trend has been more obtrusive in recent years than the changing of nouns into verbs.
Clic aquí para leer el texto entero.

Babel y el origen de las lenguas

Podés leer el texto completo aquí.

Aunque parezca increíble, el Castellano cinco y el Inglés five provienen de la misma palabra Indoeuropea, penk´e:

La explicación de que dos palabras tan distintas tengan un antepasado común estriba en uno de los mecanismos básicos de la evolución de los idiomas: la mutación consonántica.

Words and Their Stories: Money, Part 1

I think people everywhere dream about having lots of money. I know I do. I would give anything to make money hand over fist. I would like to earn large amounts of money. You could win a large amount of money in the United States through lotteries. People pay money for tickets with numbers. If your combination of numbers is chosen, you win a huge amount of money – often in the millions. Winning the lottery is a windfall.
A few years ago, my friend Al won the lottery. It changed his life. He did not have a rich family. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Instead, my friend was always hard up for cash. He did not have much money. And the money he did earn was chicken feed – very little.
Sometimes Al even had to accept hand-outs, gifts from his family and friends. But do not get me wrong. My friend was not a deadbeat. He was not the kind of person who never paid the money he owed. He simply pinched pennies. He was always very careful with the money he spent. In fact, he was often a cheapskate. He did not like to spend money. The worst times were when he was flat broke and had no money at all.
One day, Al scraped together a few dollars for a lottery ticket. He thought he would never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly. But his combination of numbers was chosen and he won the lottery. He hit the jackpot. He won a great deal of money.
Al was so excited. The first thing he did was buy a costly new car. He splurged on the one thing that he normally would not buy. Then he started spending money on unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn. He had more money than he needed and it was burning a hole in his pocket so he spent it quickly.
When we got together for a meal at a restaurant, Al paid every time. He would always foot the bill, and pick up the tab. He told me the money made him feel like a million dollars. He was very happy.
But, Al spent too much money. Soon my friend was down and out again. He had no money left. He was back to being strapped for cash. He had spent his bottom dollar, his very last amount. He did not even build up a nest egg. He had not saved any of the money.
I admit I do feel sorry for my friend. He had enough money to live like a king. Instead, he is back to living on a shoestring -- a very low budget. Some might say he is penny wise and pound foolish. He was wise about small things, but not about important things.

Diccionario de colocaciones del Español

¿Qué es una colocación?

Un hablante de español podrá reconocer la extrañeza del siguiente texto:

     A Juan le introdujeron ganas de salir. Cuando llegó a la calle, albergó un chasco porque vio que llovía.

La combinación *introducir ganas no existe en español, pero sí entrar ganas. Lo mismo ocurre con *albergar un chasco. En español, albergamos esperanzas e incluso odios, pero no chascos. Estos, los tenemos o nos los llevamos. Todas estas combinaciones de verbo y nombre o nombre y adjetivo son colocaciones del español.

Aquí podrá encontrar las colocaciones más frecuentes de los nombres de sentimiento, así como sus derivados semánticos. En el DiCE no encontrará la definición de abatimiento, alegría ni vergüenza, pero sí con qué otras palabras se combinan estos nombres. Por ejemplo, podrá comprobar que en español decimos una alegría loca para expresar que la alegría es muy grande, pero no decimos una vergüenza loca sino una vergüenza terrible.

Had enough anglicisms? | Macmillan

To give you an idea of how heterogeneous the English lexicon is, take a look at these facts:
Did you know that: there are more than 120 languages that make up the English lexicon? This means that English is one of the least pure languages you’ll find on Earth.
What if I told you that: the percentage of English words that comes from the French is estimated at around 40? This helps explain why English may have more words than any other language, and why there are so many cognates between English and Spanish.
There’s more! According to Bill Bryson, thanks to early Spanish settlers in the United States, 500 words entered English from Spanish. And, according to the Oxford English Dictionary,1,650 words have entered English directly from the Spanish. Interestingly, many foreign words in Spanish have also reached the English language.

No es la vista, es la mirada - Columnistas - Perfil.com

No es la vista, es la mirada - Columnistas - Perfil.com

Días atrás, alguien envió a una lista de correo un texto, antes publicado en un diario, según el cual la forma presidenta, que usa la Presidenta, era incorrecta.

Words and their stories: HEART

Click here to listen to this text.

We will try to get to the heart of the matter to better understand the most important things about words and their stories. So take heart. Have no fear about learning new expressions. Besides, popular English words can be fun. There is no need for a heavy heart. Such feelings of sadness would only break my heart, or make me feel unhappy and hopeless.
Now, let us suppose you and I were speaking freely about something private. We would be having a heart to heart discussion. I might speak from the bottom of my heart, or say things honestly and truthfully. I might even open up my heart to you and tell a secret. I would speak with all my heart, or with great feeling.
When a person shares her feelings freely and openly like this, you might say she wears her heart on her sleeve, or on her clothing. Her emotions are not protected.
If we had an honest discussion, both of us would know that the other person’s heart is in the right place. For example, I would know that you are a kind-hearted and well-meaning person. And, if you are a very good person, I would even say that you have a heart of gold. However, you might have a change of heart based on what I tell you. Our discussion might cause you to change the way you feel about something.
But, let us suppose you get angry over what I tell you. Or worse, you feel no sympathy or understanding for me or my situation. If this happens, I might think that you have a heart of stone. And, if you say something to make me frightened or worried, my heart might stand still or skip a beat.
Yet, even though you may be angry, I would know that at heart, you are a kind person. In reality, you do care. And any argument between us would not cause me to lose heart or feel a sense of loss.
My heart goes out to anyone who loses a friend over an argument. It really is a sad situation, and I feel sympathy for the people involved.
I promise that what I have told you today is true – cross my heart.
I really wanted to play some music at the end of this feature. In fact, I had my heart set on it. So here it is, “Don’t Go Breaking my Heart” by Elton John.
(MUSIC)

Words and Their Stories: Mouth Expressions

Click here to listen to this text.

People use their mouths for many things.  They eat, talk, shout and sing.  They smile and they kiss.  In the English language, there are many expressions using the word mouth.  But some of them are not so nice.

For example, if you say bad things about a person, the person might protest and say “Do not bad mouth me.”

Sometimes, people say something to a friend or family member that they later regret because it hurts that person’s feelings.  Or they tell the person something they were not supposed to tell.

The speaker might say: “I really put my foot in my mouth this time.”  If this should happen, the speaker might feel down in the mouth.  In other words, he might feel sad for saying the wrong thing.

Another situation is when someone falsely claims another person said something.  The other person might protest: “I did not say that.  Do not put words in my mouth.”

Information is often spread through word of mouth.  This is general communication between people, like friends talking to each other.  “How did you hear about that new movie?” someone might ask. “Oh, by word of mouth.”   A more official way of getting information is through a company or government mouthpiece.  This is an official spokesperson.  Government-run media could also be called a mouthpiece.

Sometimes when one person is speaking, he says the same thing that his friend was going to say. When this happens, the friend might say: “You took the words right out of my mouth!”  Sometimes a person has a bad or unpleasant experience with another person.  He might say that experience “left a bad taste in my mouth.”  Or the person might have had a very frightening experience, like being chased by an angry dog.  He might say: “I had my heart in my mouth.”

Some people have lots of money because they were born into a very rich family.  There is an expression for this, too. You might say such a person, “was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.”

This rich person is the opposite of a person who lives from hand to mouth.  This person is very poor and only has enough money for the most important things in life, like food.

Parents might sometimes withhold sweet food from a child as a form of punishment for saying bad things.  For example, if a child says things she should not say to her parents, she might be described as a mouthy child.  The parents might even tell the child to stop mouthing off. 

But enough of all this talk.  I have been running my mouth long enough.

Words and Their Stories: Bird Words

As usual, click here to listen to it.

Today we explain some expressions about birds.  For example, if something is for the birds, it is worthless or not very interesting.  Someone who eats like a bird eats very little.  And a birds-eye view is a general look at an area from above.
Did you know that if you tell a young person about the birds and the bees you are explaining about sex and birth?   Have you ever observed that birds of a feather flock together?  In other words, people who are similar become friends or do things together.  Here is some good advice: a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.  This means you should not risk losing something you have by trying to get more of something you do not have.
Sometimes I can do two things by performing only one action.  This is called killing two birds with one stone.  But I would never really kill any birds. I love all kinds of animals. This is a real feather in my cap.  It is something to be proud of.
Most of the people I work with are early birds. They believe that the early bird catches the worm.  They think that a person who gets up early in the morning for work has the best chance of success.  Everyone in my office works hard, but some people have had their wings clipped.  Their jobs have been limited.  This is because the office is organized by pecking order.  People with more years and experience are given more responsibility.
Some bird expressions are about crows, chickens and ducks. For example, when I am driving, I always travel as the crow flies.  I go the most direct way.  Anyone who eats crow has to admit a mistake or defeat.
Now let’s talk about my sister. She is not very young.  She is no spring chicken. She will work any job for chicken feed -- a small amount of money.  She is easily frightened. For example, she is too chicken-livered to walk down a dark street alone at night.  Often she will chicken out – she will not go out alone at night.
My sister was an ugly duckling.  She looked strange when she was a child, but she grew up to be a beautiful woman.  Sometimes she thinks too much about having something in the future before she really has it.  She counts her chickens before they are hatched. Sometimes her chickens come home to roost.  That means her actions or words cause trouble for her.  However, my sister does not worry about what people say about her.  Criticism falls off her like water off a duck’s back.

Politicians are sometimes considered lame ducks after losing an election. They have little time left in office and not much power. Congress holds a lame duck session after an election.  Important laws are not passed during this period.

Words and Their Stories: Golden Rules and Golden Oldies

As usual, click here to listen to this text.

Throughout history, gold has been a sign of purity, beauty and power.  Calling something golden means it has great quality and value.
For example, the golden rule is possibly the world’s most widespread moral rule.
It says people should treat others the way they themselves would like to be treated.  Every major religion has its own version of this idea.
The golden ratio is found in art, architecture and nature.  It describes a rectangle with a length about one and one-half times its width. Objects using this ratio in their design seem to please the eye more than others.
Philosophers have their own golden idea.  The golden mean says moderation in all things is the best way to live one’s life.  It is an idea linked to the Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle.  Similar thoughts exist in Buddhism and Confucianism.
Ancient Greek myths told of a time long ago when people lived in peace and happiness.  Poets called it the Golden Age.  A golden age now describes a historical period of great artistic, scientific or economic progress.  It can even recall a time of success and popularity for an industry. For example, the nineteen thirties and forties were called the Golden Age of Radio.
You may have heard the proverb silence is golden. This means silence is of great value.  It is sometimes better to say nothing than to speak.
You might say your child was good as gold when he behaved well at school.  British writer Charles Dickens used this expression in eighteen forty-three. He was describing the child Tiny Tim in the book “A Christmas Carol.”
In nineteen thirty-seven, American playwright Clifford Odets wrote a play called “The Golden Boy.” This expression describes a young man who has many good qualities and a bright future.
You might tell someone you are golden when that person does something very well.
Gold digger is another description. But this does not say something nice about a person.  A gold digger is someone who seeks to marry a rich person because he or she is only interested in that person’s money.
Maybe you like old songs from the nineteen fifties or sixties that are still well known and popular today. These are called golden oldies.
In the nineteen eighties and nineties, an American television comedy series told about four older women living in Miami, Florida.  The Golden Girls often dealt with social issues in a funny way.
Today, most older people look forward to reaching their golden years.  This is when hard-working people can retire to a life of ease and fulfillment.