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The Podcast

In Tuesday’s podcast, we look at "toe the line" and "tow the line," both the interesting history and a way to remember the right spelling. Then, we look at metonymy and synecdoche — powerful literary devices that can make your writing more compelling.  

On Thursday, I chat with Lex Friedman, creator of Lex.games. He shares his journey from puzzle lover to puzzle maker, how he keeps his games fresh, and why some puzzles stump even the best players. Plus, we talk typos, accessibility, and the psychology of great wordplay. If you enjoy Wordle, crosswords, or Connections-style puzzles, this episode is for you!

TUESDAY SHOW: Listen. Read. Watch. 

THURSDAY SHOW: Listen. Read. Watch.

From the Archives: 'Allude' Versus 'Elude'

"Allude" and "elude" sound alike, and they come from the same Latin root meaning "to play"; but other than that, they don't have much in common.

"Allude" means to refer to something indirectly. 

Hoping for an invitation, Squiggly alluded to his availability for the Valentine's Day dance. 

The butler had alluded to a secret exit.

"Elude" means to avoid capture.

Aardvark eluded the girls who wanted to ask him to dance.

We hoped we could find the exit and elude the police.

Remember that "elude" and "escape" both start with the letter E.

📚 Get more tips like this in my book "The Grammar Daily: 365 Quick Tips for Successful Writing"

What I'm Reading:  A Digital Influence on Language Learning

A recent study in Norway found changes in how well boys and girls are learning English as a second language. Researchers at the University of Oslo found that unlike in the past, 10- and 13-year-old boys are now outperforming girls. The study of more than a million students revealed that although boys are not showing improved language skills across the board, they are doing better with English in particular. The researchers suspect that the boys’ engagement with digital content like video games and YouTube is giving them the edge. For example, two-thirds of boys but only a minority of girls report gaming several times a week — an activity that usually takes place in English. — Phys.org

Free Video: Clear Up the Comma Confusion

Not sure when to use a comma early in a sentence, especially with prepositional or conditional phrases? You're not alone — many writers stumble over this common punctuation pitfall because it can be confusing! I recently shared a free video on LinkedIn with clear examples that you can test and apply right away. 

I hope you find it useful, and if so, there are many more tips in the full "Writing with Proper Punctuation" course.

Completely Unrelated: Pocket elevators in Milan

Thanks for reading (and listening!),

Mignon Fogarty, Grammar Girl

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Tell Me Your Familect Story

Does your family have a word or phrase that only you use, like saying you "Yosemite'd" dinner when you burned it because of a funny experience you had while camping?

We call that a familect — a family dialect — and I play these stories at the end of the podcast every week. Share your familect by calling the voicemail line at 833-214-4475 or leaving a voice memo using the chat function on WhatsApp. You could hear your story in a future podcast!