Never wrack your brain again
Grammar Girl
Your friendly guide to the English language | 650K+ monthly podcast downloads | Hosted by Mignon Fogarty
In this week's podcast, we untangled the often confusing web of writing styles. We explored the benefits of loose writing in fiction, creative writing, and academic writing, and how you can vary your sentence length to create a rhythm that resonates with your readers. Plus, we used the difference between "behead" and "decapitate" as a sneaky way to talk about the "be-" and "de-" prefixes in a way every word nerd will love.
From the Archives: Rack Your Brain
We have racks for storing spices and drying clothes, but in the Middle Ages, the rack was an instrument for torture. The “mental torment” meaning of "rack" in "rack your brain" and "nerve-racking" comes from the idea of physical torment of bodies on the rack.?
On the other hand, the word "wrack" is related to the word "wreck." Since "rack" and "wrack" sound similar and have similar meanings, people can get them confused, but "rack your brain" and "nerve-racking" are set phrases, as is "wrack and ruin."
When you rack your brain, think of yourself as being tortured on the rack in the Middle Ages.
Back. To. School.
Now that we're past Labor Day in the U.S., there's no denying it's back-to-school season.
If you're looking for a way to make learning the tricky ins and outs of English easier — for yourself or your children or your students — look no further than my LinkedIn Learning courses. I cover each useful topic in one short video. In just two to five minutes, you'll be using commas or semicolons like a pro and never mixing up "affect" and "effect" again.
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Grab your favorite pumpkin-spiced something and get to work!
Completely Unrelated: Irish folklore tells of 12 different winds — each associated with a different color. For example, north is black, and east is purple. (See Stan Carey's post for the full compass.)?
Thanks for reading.
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?? I'm Mignon Fogarty, host of the?Grammar Girl podcast, founder of the?Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network, and author of?ten books about language. Thanks for joining me.
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1 年I'll think of my brain and my nerves as being on the rack from now on. Thanks, Mignon.
Editor, writer, transcriptionist, researcher
1 年"However,?wrack?has long been used as a variant of?rack, and numerous fine writers have avowedly wracked their brains or found something nerve-wracking." ?? https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wrack
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1 年The Iniative is Encouraging and will help Younger Generation and School going Youngsters to focus and write correctly Across the World.!!!!!!!!
writer and editor at New York Times bestselling author Mira/HarperCollins, Random House, Simon and Schuster, Viking Penguin
1 年Mignon, you are amazing, fantastic, erudite and a superstar! Even I, the author of more than 20 published books (and also one who ended up writing but majored in science) learn from you all the time; and I insist that my MFA student and other students keep one of your books under their pillows!
In the community and keeping it R.E.A.L. (Relationship, Encourage, Authentic and Loving)
1 年I'm Super Dyslexic And ADD I Sure Wish Language Was Simple And Easy! Grammer And Spelling Has Been And Will Always Be A Bear For Me!