Still from MTV's Catfish depicting Nev Schulman and Max Joseph investigating

Gone (Cat)Fishing: How Language Detectives Tackle Online Anonymity

Linguistic clues might be the solution to identifying anonymous online users.
Sign with characters indicating an expletive crossed out

All About That Taboo: When Good Words Go Bad

The phenomenon of sacres, or taboo words that start from fairly innocuous beginnings.
Facebook landing page on a tablet

How to Disappear Completely: Linguistic Anonymity on the Internet

Is anonymity on the Internet linguistically possible?
Two children talking together

The Super Secret World of Ludlings – You Know, For Kids!

secret language games or ludlings, have been serious business for young people across the ages.
Homer Simpson

Fanf–kingtastic and Edumacational: The Case of English Infixation

From shiznit to wel-diddly-elcome, the evolution of infixation in English language.
A group of friends laughing happily as they spend time outdoors in the sun

All the Young Dudes: Generic Gender Terms Among Young Women

The linguistics behind gender neutral terms among young women.
Willie Robertson

Rednecks: A Brief History

What is a "redneck" exactly? Kelli Marshall explores a brief history of the word.
Stick figure drawing on an irate office worker

More on Internet Neologisms: Rage Quitting is a Thing

More on internet neologisms: pairing together a (negative) mood word with a verb to produce a semi-productive compound.
Ghostbusters (1984)
 Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis
Credit: Columbia/Courtesy Neal Peters Collection

How “Ghostbusters” Changed the Way We Speak

A controversial and little-known aspect of Ghostbusters cultural influence can be found in a seemingly simple suffix, “-busters.”