loanwords

Loanwords vs. Calques

Ever wondered why your French friend says "email" but calls a skyscraper a "gratte-ciel"? Languages borrow from each other in…

3 weeks ago

The Failed Phoneme: When a Sound Dies at Birth

Ever wonder why you can say 'cheese' with ease but stumble over the 'ch' in the Scottish 'loch'? This isn't…

3 weeks ago

Hawaiian and the Phonemic Principle

With only eight consonants and five vowels, the Hawaiian alphabet is a perfect example of the phonemic principle, where each…

4 weeks ago

The Hyperforeignism Trap

Ever wondered why some people say "mojito" with a French 'zh' sound or put on a fake accent for "foyer"?…

4 weeks ago

The Echo Vowel: Parasitic Vowels in Irish and Japanese

Have you ever heard a vowel that wasn't spelled, like the "a" in the Irish word *uisce* (ish-ka)? This phenomenon,…

4 weeks ago

The Surprising Slavic Words in English

Did you know that when you talk about 'vampires' or 'robots', you're actually speaking Slavic? English is full of surprising…

4 weeks ago

The Surprising Story Behind Katakana

To the budding Japanese learner, the existence of three separate writing systems can feel like a cruel joke. While Hiragana…

4 weeks ago

Silent Letters: English’s Most Annoying Feature

Ever wondered why there's a 'k' in 'knife' or a 'b' in 'doubt'? These aren't mistakes; they're echoes of linguistic…

4 weeks ago

You’re Already Speaking Japanese! 15 Loanwords

** Did you know that when you talk about a business 'tycoon' or ask for 'just a skosh' more, you're…

4 weeks ago

The Great Tea Divide: Cha vs. Te

Ever wonder why it's 'chai' in Moscow but 'tea' in London? The answer lies not in a dictionary, but on…

4 months ago

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