• Skip to main content
  • Skip to after header navigation
  • Skip to site footer

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Interview with Steve Laube
    • Statement of Faith
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Guidelines
  • Authors
    • Who We Represent
    • Awards and Recognition
  • Resources
    • Recommended Reading
    • Christian Writers Market Guide Online
    • Christian Writers Institute
    • Writers Conferences
    • Freelance Editorial Services
    • Copyright Resources
    • Research Tools
    • Selling What You Write
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Twitter
  • FaceBook
  • RSS Feed
  • Get Published
  • Book Proposals
  • Book Business
  • Writing Craft
    • Conferences
    • Copyright
    • Craft
    • Creativity
    • Grammar
  • Fun Fridays
Home » Language

Language

Mysteries of the English Language

By Bob Hostetleron August 3, 2022
Share70
Tweet
18

I love the English language. It’s been very good to me. But it can be a booger too. For example, you know that a slim chance and a fat chance are the same, right? And a wise man and a wise guy don’t mean the same thing?

It’s a crazy language. And those who must learn it as a second language face many strange twists and turns—as do those of us who try to speak and write with something resembling clarity and erudition. So, in the service of all humanity, I offer the following quick list of some of the mysteries of my native language:

10. If oranges are orange, why isn’t the color yellow called “banana?” Or bananas called “yellows?”

9. If writers write and painters paint, why don’t fingers fing? If teachers have taught, why haven’t preachers praught? Why don’t grocers groce?

8. If you throw out some odds and ends, but keep one item, is it an odd or an end?

7. Why is there no other word for “synonym?”

6. How can it be possible that the Oxford English Dictionary has 192 definitions for the word “set?”

5. How is it that your nose can run and your feet can smell?

4. How odd that is it the letters “ough” can be pronounced in eight different ways? (e.g., “A rough-coated, dough-faced ploughman strode through the streets of Scarborough, coughing and hiccoughing thoughtfully.”)

3. How can your house burn up while it’s burning down, forms are filled out by being filled in, and an alarm that’s gone off is still going on?

2. Why is “you’re a peach” a compliment but “you’re bananas” is an insult?

And, perhaps my favorite mystery of the English language:

1.  Why is the word “abbreviation” so long?

 

Leave a Comment
Category: Humor, Language

Edgy Christian Fiction

By Steve Laubeon January 31, 2022
Share181
Tweet
64

A number of years ago the question of what is appropriate to include in Christian fiction was asked, and I wrote much of what is below as a reply. Recently, this issue jumped back into conversations with the release of the film Redeeming Love, based on the bestselling novel of the same title by Francine Rivers. (Some reviews of the movie, not the book, that wrestle with the debate can be found …

Read moreEdgy Christian Fiction
Category: Craft, Creativity, Language, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Creativity, Edgy, Language

21st-Century Writing

By Bob Hostetleron October 13, 2021
Share40
Tweet
24

I’ve been writing and publishing for a long time. Just look at me: a lonnnnng time. During those many years of experience, I’ve learned a thing or two. Maybe three. And among the things I’ve learned about writing for publication is that writers in the twenty-first century must do things differently than writers in previous centuries. Sure, generally speaking, the rules of fiction and nonfiction …

Read more21st-Century Writing
Category: Grammar, Language, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life, Trends, Writing Craft

Fun Fridays – September 24, 2021

By Steve Laubeon September 24, 2021
Share72
Tweet
13

Today is National Punctuation Day! In celebration, take out a comma.

Or at least visit the official site: www.nationalpunctuationday.com.

Recently I walked into a church classroom to find a list of the 10 Commandments on the board. The first line read "No other God's."
Sigh.

If you want to read a fun book on grammar and punctuation I can recommend Mignon Fogarty's Grammar Girl's Quick …

Read moreFun Fridays – September 24, 2021
Category: Grammar, Language, SteveTag: Grammar, Language, punctuation

To Comma or Not to Comma?

By Steve Laubeon June 28, 2021
Share33
Tweet
23

by Steve Laube

I came across this entry in the Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynn Truss. The book is a classic on punctuation (although based on British English usage it is still a great book). Read the story below and then answer the questions in the comment section.
On his deathbed in April 1991, Graham Green corrected and signed a typed document which restricts access to his papers at …

Read moreTo Comma or Not to Comma?
Category: Book Business, Contracts, Grammar, Language, SteveTag: commas, Grammar, Language, punctuation

In Praise of Memorable Sentences

By Bob Hostetleron June 27, 2018
Share58
Tweet
35

In her book, The Writing Life, Annie Dillard tells the story of a well-known writer who was collared by a university student, who asked, “Do you think I could be a writer?” “Well,” the writer said, “I don’t know…. Do you like sentences?” Dillard continues: The writer could see the student’s amazement. Sentences? Do I like sentences? I am twenty years old and do I like sentences? If he had liked …

Read moreIn Praise of Memorable Sentences
Category: Language, Reading, The Writing Life, Writing CraftTag: Language, Reading, Writing Craft

I Feel This Post May Hurt Your Thinkings

By Bob Hostetleron June 6, 2018
Share94
Tweet
41

Everyone has pet peeves. I have a menagerie of them. One of my favorites is the common (and fairly recent) tendency of English speakers and writers to confuse and conflate the words, “feel” and “think.” But feelings are not thoughts and thoughts are not feelings. That might seem obvious and elementary, but it drives me nuts how often people miss or ignore the distinction. Consider headlines and …

Read moreI Feel This Post May Hurt Your Thinkings
Category: Craft, Creativity, Language, Writing CraftTag: Language, Vocabulary, Writing Craft

Forgotten Words We Ought to Revive

By Bob Hostetleron May 9, 2018
Share57
Tweet
31

A few weeks ago I asked my friends on social media if they had a favorite word that no one seems to use anymore—and the response was fast and furious (I should make a dozen or so movies about it, right?). While there were far too many replies to list them all, here is a list of some of my favorites (and the person(s) who mentioned each), followed by the one word that got the most mentions and …

Read moreForgotten Words We Ought to Revive
Category: Creativity, LanguageTag: Creativity, Language, words

A Few Little Letters Can Make All the Difference

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon August 17, 2017
Share28
Tweet
52

Recently I heard a great anecdote about one little letter. Seems our pastor did a Google search as he researched the parable of the weeds. He typed in “weed” and, well, let’s just say the topic of dandelions didn’t sprout. He had to add an “s” to find the right type of weed. Don’t try this at home and definitely not on a corporate computer. I assure you I didn’t! A couple of weeks ago my husband …

Read moreA Few Little Letters Can Make All the Difference
Category: Craft, Language, Writing CraftTag: Language, Writing Craft

Littered with Errors: Can Typos Kill You?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 20, 2016
Share1
Tweet
47

We’ve all done it – typed “here” for “hear” or “you’re” for “your” – especially when we’re dashing off a quick email or meeting a deadline. I don’t know of an agent or editor who’ll reject a submission based on one or even a few typos, particularly if the material is so compelling the reader can’t resist losing the afternoon in your book. However, not all errors are typos. This becomes apparent as …

Read moreLittered with Errors: Can Typos Kill You?
Category: Craft, Editing, Grammar, LanguageTag: Editing, Grammar, Language
  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Next
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Interview with Steve Laube
    • Statement of Faith
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Guidelines
  • Authors
    • Who We Represent
    • Awards and Recognition
  • Resources
    • Recommended Reading
    • Christian Writers Market Guide Online
    • Christian Writers Institute
    • Writers Conferences
    • Freelance Editorial Services
    • Copyright Resources
    • Research Tools
    • Selling What You Write
  • Blog
  • Contact

Copyright © 2023 · The Steve Laube Agency · All Rights Reserved · Website by Stormhill Media