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English is dead! Long live English!

You may have seen the alarm go up: the word “literally” can now mean, by some official sanction, “not actually literally at all.” I know, it’s horrible, but unscrunch your undergarments for a sec. Rumors of the demise of our lovely language have been greatly exaggerated, and “literally” is not to blame.

In fact, we use plenty of common words in ways that are antithetical to the, yes, literal meaning. Hyperbole is irresistible: we’re only human, and humans love to exaggerate. Think you’re innocent? Rally your armchair etymologists around this hit list of misused words.

A Teth B’omarr monastery. How’s that for hokey, Han?

Despite Vader’s “sad devotion to that ancient Jedi religion,” casual Star Wars fans might think that the Evil Empire crushed all religions from existence throughout that galaxy far, far away. But we find your lack of faith disturbing. There are many races, many worlds and many orders, cults and ways found throughout the official Star Wars cannon. Here’s an intro to a handful of those who follow the Ways-of-the-Not-Jedi.

Humans are interesting animals. Creativity seeps through our veins. I’m not entirely sure who came up with the following creatures, but it must have taken some incredibly unique (and perhaps problematic) imagination to bring these things into being.

A horse with a horn. A woman’s body with a fish tail. A bird that turns to ash, but never dies.

Mythical creatures are fascinating, so its no wonder they inhabit the many fantasy stories we all love and cherish. Here are five of our favorites.

Labor Day is approaching. And, while many are planning their end-of-summer BBQ, millions of people are preparing for their fantasy football seasons. And, the first dilemma they face will be the creative challenge of naming their team. Tons of web sites exist just to help owners come up with witty names like The Mallers, Trophy Wife, Somewhere over Dwayne Bowe, and Forgetting Brandon Marshall.

I typically rely on some pop culture references from my favorite movies and TV shows (Code Red, Flux Capacitor, and The Peach Pit). This year, I thought it might be fun to draw inspiration from books. So, here I share some of my ideas for bookish FFL team names:

Labor Day is approaching. And, while many are planning their end-of-summer BBQ, millions of people are preparing for their fantasy football seasons. And, the first dilemma they face will be the creative challenge of naming their team. Tons of web sites exist just to help owners come up with witty names like The Mallers, Trophy Wife, Somewhere over Dwayne Bowe, and Forgetting Brandon Marshall.

I typically rely on some pop culture references from my favorite movies and TV shows (Code Red, Flux Capacitor, and The Peach Pit). This year, I thought it might be fun to draw inspiration from books. So, here I share some of my ideas for bookish FFL team names:

(Image via flickr)

If Newton had written the rules of grammar, things would be a lot simpler: For every adjective, there exists an equal and opposite antonym. Alas, our gem of a language was not carved by any kind of linguistic intelligent design, but rather kind of rock-tumbled into a reasonably workable lexicon by years and years of regular dopes talking and writing.

Sadly, in the dance of English parlance, some words don’t have a partner (the technical term for this is unpaired words). But don’t despair: the power is in your hands (and mouth) to bring back (or invent) a mirror-perfect companion for every sad lexical singleton. Here are six excellent opposites to start throwing around.