Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

QuickAndDirtyTips.com

Five-time winner of Best Education Podcast in the Podcast Awards. Grammar Girl provides short, friendly tips to improve your writing and feed your love of the English language. Whether English is your first language or your second language, these grammar, punctuation, style, and business tips will make you a better and more successful writer. Grammar Girl is a Quick and Dirty Tips podcast.

24 minutes 51 seconds

'Rebel with a Clause,' the movie, with Ellen Jovin and Brandt Johnson
1048. Ellen Jovin set up a folding table on the street in all 50 U.S. states to talk with people about grammar, which led to the book "Rebel with a Clause." Now, her story, and the story of people who talked with her, is a movie by the same name. Mignon talked with Ellen and her documentarian husband, Brandt Johnson, about what they learned about both filmmaking and humanity.
Find them at RebelWithAClause.com.
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| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
16 January 2025, 11:55 am
15 minutes 50 seconds

From "august" to "August." Why the union is always "strong." Nee nee
1047. This week, we look at word pairs like "august/August" that change their meaning when capitalized and how you can make your meaning clear. Then, we look at how we got to the point where U.S. presidents always seem to say, "The state of the union is STRONG," in their State of the Union addresses.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media
| Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
14 January 2025, 10:00 am
23 minutes 3 seconds

The psychology of fandom, with Jennifer Lynn Barnes
1046. Jennifer Lynn Barnes, author of the "Inheritance Games" books, discusses how writing from different points of view can help readers connect with characters in different ways. We also talked about her book recommendations, and how the "Grey's Anatomy" pilot surprised her by having almost all the elements she had identified as important for the success of novels.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
9 January 2025, 10:00 am
14 minutes 41 seconds

Does 'Wicked' have a grammar error? What is the 'neck of the woods'? To be Frances
1045. A listener asked if the song "The Wizard and I" should actually be "The Wizard and Me," so we look at how you can tell. And then we look at interesting idioms about familiar places: "neck of the woods," "stomping grounds," and "haunts."
The "neck of the woods" segment was written by Karen Lunde, a former Quick and Dirty Tips editor who has crafted hundreds of articles on the art of writing well. She was an online education pioneer, founding one of the first online writing workshops. These days, she provides writing tips and writing coach services at HelpMeWriteBetter.com.
Find the "Wicked" grammar quiz at the bottom of this page: https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/articles/wicked-movie-grammar-wizard-and-i/
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
7 January 2025, 12:44 pm
20 minutes

The case of the mystery dialect, with Natalie Schilling
1044. Today, I'm talking about a strange disappearance that forensic linguist Natalie Schilling worked on that she calls "the case of the mystery dialect." This is the original bonus segment from our conversation back in October. Grammarpaloozians who support the show get these segments right when they come out, and maybe more importantly, give us the help we need to keep going and produce the bonus segments. So many thanks to all you wonderful Grammarpaloozians!
Natalie Schilling is a professor emerita of linguistics at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and runs a forensic linguistics consulting firm. You can find her on LinkedIn.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
2 January 2025, 10:00 am
44 minutes 8 seconds

2024 words of the year, with John Kelly
1043. "Skibidi," "polarization," "brat," "demure," "enshittification," and more. You might get whiplash from the vacillating vibes of all the words the dictionaries chose this year. I joined John Kelly, former vice president of editorial at Dictionary.com, to romp through all the choices and contenders.
Find John at https://mashedradish.com
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
30 December 2024, 10:00 am
14 minutes 40 seconds

Twee pop, bumbershoot, amongst, and more, with Ben Yagoda
1042. Today, I have the bonus segment from my interview with Ben Yagoda back in September. Ben is the author of the book "Gobsmacked: The British Invasion of American English," and we talked about the words "twee," "vet," the two spellings of "gray," the surprising origins of "football" and "soccer," and more. Grammarpaloozians who support the show get these segments right when they come out, and in today's really tough podcasting environment, they help us keep going and produce these bonus segments. Many thanks to all of our wonderful Grammarpaloozians!
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
🔗 Find Ben Yagoda at Not One-Off Britishisms.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.

| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
26 December 2024, 10:00 am
14 minutes 17 seconds

'Home' for the holidays. False friends. Hello, Dentist.
1041. Today, we talk about the word "home" and its meaning beyond just a structure, and then we talk about false friends — words in different languages that don't mean what you think they mean.
The "home" segment was written by Valerie Fridland, a professor of linguistics at the University of Nevada in Reno and the author of "Like, Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English." You can find her at valeriefridland.com.
The "false friends" segment was written by Karen Lunde, a former Quick and Dirty Tips editor who has crafted hundreds of articles on the art of writing well. She was an online education pioneer, founding one of the first online writing workshops. These days, she provides writing tips and writing coach services at HelpMeWriteBetter.com.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
23 December 2024, 10:00 am
22 minutes 55 seconds

Struggling with AI: Job loss, energy use, and more, with Christopher Penn
1040. The downsides of AI bother me a lot — job loss, energy use, and the content tsunami. But I also think it's critically important to understand what this technology can do and how it's likely to change the way we work and live. In this Grammarpalooza bonus segment, I talked with Christopher Penn about how he thinks about these problems.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/penn-bonus/transcript
19 December 2024, 10:00 am
16 minutes 34 seconds

Why people say 'I mean ...' Missing pronouns. Cat-tracted.
1039. People are saying "I mean" more lately, and we explain what it ... means! Plus, we look at why people leave out pronouns at the beginning of sentences such as "Ordering pizza!"
The "I mean" segment was written by Valerie Fridland, a professor of linguistics at the University of Nevada in Reno and the author of "Like, Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English." You can find her at valeriefridland.com.
The "pronoun deletion" segment was written by Karen Lunde, a former Quick and Dirty Tips editor who has crafted hundreds of articles on the art of writing well. She was an online education pioneer, founding one of the first online writing workshops. These days, she provides writing tips and writing coach services at HelpMeWriteBetter.com.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
17 December 2024, 10:00 am
16 minutes 48 seconds

Why the new CMOS is yellow. Pandemic collectors editions. And more
1038. Chicago Manual of Style editors Mary Laur and Russell Harper dish on the changes they wanted in CMOS that didn't make it in, why the stylebook is bright yellow, and how a printing problem during the pandemic led to some rare editions of the manual. Plus, Mary shares her book recommendations just in time for holiday book buying.
Original full interview: https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/chicago-18
🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference.
🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.
🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.
🔗 Take our advertising survey.
🔗 Get the edited transcript.
🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.
| HOST: Mignon Fogarty
| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).
| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.
- Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
- Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
- Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
- Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
- Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
- Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes
| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.
| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook.Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.
12 December 2024, 10:00 am
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