Lesson after lesson, school day after school day, I am utterly humbled by just *how hard* it is to teach writing. And so I am in a state of constant awe of the miracle and wonder of written expression that surrounds me.
John Kelly
@mashedradish.bsky.social
Middle-school English teacher. Former dictionary editor and spokesperson. I write about etymology at mashedradish.com.
Sometimes it’s enough for a name just to be the name. On "tilcayo," the newly identified cat species: mashedradish.com/2026/10/01/t...
What is the Origin of "Tilcayo," the Newly Discovered Cat Species?
Where does the name of the newly identified tilcayo, a unique cat species from Bolivia that resembles a leopard in a miniature form, come from?
mashedradish.com
FTA: @mashedradish.bsky.social with more abusive language from the Bard stronglang.wordpress.com/2016/07/10/m...
“More man? Plague, plague!”: How to curse like a misanthrope
Shakespeare’s The Life of Timon of Athens is an overlooked gem in his corpus. Though less accomplished than many of his other tragedies, this moral drama is distinctive – and timely – in its focus …
stronglang.wordpress.com
Just finished Tarjei Vesaas's 'The Birds' for the first time. Damn. I need a minute to catch my breath.
Cue one of my lessons this very week, where I literally put on a slide: "We don't read for IXL and standardized tests. We read to make meaning in our lives."
John Downes-Angus@johndownesangus.bsky.social · 4w agoThis would be a difficult story to report, because nobody would want to go on the record about it, but the actually important story about American schools is the persistence of thousands of teachers who give their kids what we know they need despite the barrage of mandates, standards, tests, etc—
FTA: How can Shakespeare be rude? Let @mashedradish.bsky.social count the ways stronglang.wordpress.com/2016/04/23/f...
Four hundred years later, the Bard’s “pizzle” is still nice and stiff
Four hundred years ago today, Shakespeare shuffled off this mortal coil. Across the globe, bardolators are observing the date – if not the whole month, nay, year – with various celebrations of his …
stronglang.wordpress.com
“Dolly” is pet form of an Ancient Greek-derived name later repurposed for toys and film cameras. A belated etymological tribute: mashedradish.com/2026/09/04/d...
The divine gift of “Dolly”
“Dolly” is pet form of an Ancient Greek-derived name later repurposed for toys and film cameras.
mashedradish.com
It really says something about this moment when my sixth-graders, in response to a prompt on "If you could change one rule in your life...," were responding about food and gas being free because prices are so high for their families.
I teach Grade 6 English. EVERY parent/guardian I met at our recent family night was RELIEVED and HEARTENED when I told them, verbatim: "In reading class, we read. In writing class, we write. I minimize time on screens and computers. Goodness knows they get enough of that everywhere else in life."
Marcus Luther@marcusluther.bsky.social · 2mo agoDo not forget: this vision of education—students with headphones on staring at screens—is VERY unpopular, especially right now. The vast majority of students don't want it. The vast majority of teachers don't want it. The vast majority of families don't want it. That's the story.
The origin of the word STUDENT seems like something a teacher would have cooked up. mashedradish.com/2026/08/22/t...
“Teacher” and “student”: an etymological show-and-tell
Students need a “push” in more ways than one.
mashedradish.com
First day of school for the middle schoolers. During independent reading (yeah, we read books right away in my classes), not one but two—TWO—students in separate classes chose the big, beautiful American Heritage Dictionary in my classroom library's reference section. Gonna be a good year.
FTA: @mashedradish.bsky.social find a connection between bunnies and pussies stronglang.wordpress.com/2016/03/26/g...
Going down the coney hole
Easter: It’s a fuckable feast. For its Christian observers, of course, Easter marks the salvific resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. A cornerstone of the faith, the holiday teems with symbo…
stronglang.wordpress.com
I wrote about the diarrhea. OK, I wrote about lettuce, which means I wrote about how the word is literally "milk." mashedradish.com/2026/08/03/l...
The word “lettuce” is made of “milk”
The etymology of “lettuce” takes us from tiny seeds to the entire galaxy.
mashedradish.com
Accidentally deleted my newsletter announcement post—once more with feeling, thanks @byagoda.bsky.social @ebrenner.bsky.social @michaelerard.bsky.social @mashedradish.bsky.social @wordorigins.bsky.social Nick Cave and Fernando Pessoa! lynneguist.substack.com/p/soccer-it-...
Soc(cer) it to me!
This time: football/soccer, the US's 250th, lotsa links, and Nick Cave distraction
lynneguist.substack.com
"... a lot of just want to see the Cyclops already!" Me, riffing in a fun interview with CNN about the origin and evolution of the word 'odyssey.' www.cnn.com/2026/07/23/e...
What makes a journey an ‘odyssey’ anyway? | CNN
The word “odyssey” today often evokes a long, spirited adventure that doesn’t reflect the misery Odysseus endured in Homer’s epic poem.
cnn.com
Today in staring at words too closely like their the sun: KEEP. What even are you, KEEP? I shield my eyes.
Mythic origin of ODYSSEUS given in Odyssey is HATED (BY GODS & MEN). Folk etymology, though heavy with valences. Actual origin? Obscure. Could be Pre-Greek *OD/LUKYEU-, probably referring to some Bronze Age dude who did a thing, hero worship ballooning from there. mashedradish.com/2026/07/18/o...
The etymological odyssey of “Odysseus”
Tell me, O Muse, of the origin of the name of the man of many devices. And why Latin calls him “Ulysses,” if you don’t mind.
mashedradish.com
RESCIND < Latin RESCINDERE, meaning TEAR OFF and by extension REPEAL. Its past participle is RESCISSUS. That form ultimately sets up the English RESCISSION. Oh, the -SCIND-/-SCISS- (TO CUT, SPLIT) part of this all is ultimately related to the English SHIT. You can put the rest together.
Not sure what this says about me, but the more I explore the capacities of generative AI the less it interests me. I'm not denying its potential power, just that how it does what it does is not nearly as interesting as the thoughts and expressions of some other, any other, human being.
America celebrated a SESQUICENTENNIAL (150 years) in 1926. It was a world's fair in Philadelphia—and it was also a bust, though nowhere nearly as bad as whatever is (or isn't) happening on the National Mall. philadelphiaencyclopedia.org/essays/sesqu...
Sesquicentennial International Exposition (1926) - Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia
In 1926, Philadelphia hosted the Sesquicentennial, a world’s fair, to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
philadelphiaencyclopedia.org
John Kelly@mashedradish.bsky.social · 3mo agoI mean, we could have gone with DUCENTIQUINQUAGINTENNIAL... mashedradish.com/2026/07/04/s...
I mean, we could have gone with DUCENTIQUINQUAGINTENNIAL... mashedradish.com/2026/07/04/s...
Semiquincentennial: the origins of an America-sized word
This big word for a big milestone is made up of lots of little Latin roots.
mashedradish.com
Everyone now and again, apropos of literally nothing, I like to remember that the word "crisp" comes from the Latin for "curled." How 'bout that?
There were more people at Bloomsday that actually read Ulysses.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 3mo agothere were more people in my garage watching the World Cup last weekend
It was great talking to CNN's Harmeet Kaur on why we call a DRAW, as in TIE, a DRAW: www.cnn.com/2026/06/24/s...
Why does a ‘draw’ sometimes feel like a win? | CNN
Some of the most thrilling matches in this World Cup have resulted in a 0-0 score. Thanks, Cape Verde!
cnn.com
Very interesting: - OED first attests DREADLOCKS in 1960 - DREAD + LOCKS (of hair) - DREAD part may refer to Rastafarians' DREAD (fear, awe) of God (Jah) Also: - DREAD is from Old English ONDRÆDAN, "to advise against" - O/AND- (against) + RÆDAN (advise), source of READ (!!!)
Not a ton to say about the etymology of ALGAE as such. From the Latin ALGA, "seaweed," whose deeper roots are obscure. The plural of ALGA in Latin is ALGAE. Borrowed in early 1500s, used in singular early until, as now, the plural form took over.
This prompted me to look up its etymology. Neat! USHER comes from French "doorkeeper" (cf. huissier), ultimately from Latin OSTIUM (door), related to OS (mouth).
Benjamin Dreyer@bcdreyer.social · 4mo agoI would've guessed that "usher" was a verb before it was a noun, but I would've guessed wrong. 🤷🏻♂️