EngLangBlog
@englangblog.bsky.social
English Language & Linguistics for A-Level students and teachers.
One of the Lexis podcast team https://tinyurl.com/yckh3vy5
EngLangBlog: https://englishlangsfx.blogspot.com/
English & Media Centre: https://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/
He/him
One of the Lexis podcast team https://tinyurl.com/yckh3vy5
EngLangBlog: https://englishlangsfx.blogspot.com/
English & Media Centre: https://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/
He/him
Reposted by EngLangBlog
It's all happening in #WOTY2025 world. Here's a piece about Macquarie Dictionary's choice (a good choice, I think) 'AI slop': theconversation.com/ai-slop-is-m...
AI slop is Macquarie’s 2025 Word of the Year. I applaud the choice – but was bored by the shortlist
AI slop was the clear winner of Macquarie’s Word of the Year – it also won the People’s Choice Award. Honourable mentions included another AI-related word: clanker.
theconversation.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:52 PM
It's all happening in #WOTY2025 world. Here's a piece about Macquarie Dictionary's choice (a good choice, I think) 'AI slop': theconversation.com/ai-slop-is-m...
Lovely bit of rage bait in the Oxford WOTY graphics for the term.
One for @emhumps.bsky.social I think :-)
One for @emhumps.bsky.social I think :-)
November 25, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Lovely bit of rage bait in the Oxford WOTY graphics for the term.
One for @emhumps.bsky.social I think :-)
One for @emhumps.bsky.social I think :-)
Reposted by EngLangBlog
I know a lot of people like this sort of thing, so for those who like this sort of thing, here it is. corp.oup.com/word-of-the-...
Oxford Word of the Year 2025 - Oxford University Press
Voting is now open for Oxford Word of the Year 2025! Discover our shortlist and have your say by Thursday 27 November.
corp.oup.com
November 25, 2025 at 8:48 AM
I know a lot of people like this sort of thing, so for those who like this sort of thing, here it is. corp.oup.com/word-of-the-...
One that should be very useful if you're looking at Language Discourses for Paper 2 (AQA) or Topical Language Issues (OCR).
November 25, 2025 at 7:55 AM
One that should be very useful if you're looking at Language Discourses for Paper 2 (AQA) or Topical Language Issues (OCR).
We've just recorded an interview with @lynneguist.bsky.social for the @lexispodcast.bsky.social and then this absolute whopper of a piece gets published. It's jam-packed with clichéd complaints, hoary hyperbole & xenophobic waffle.
archive.ph/2025.11.24-0...
archive.ph/2025.11.24-0...
November 24, 2025 at 5:52 PM
We've just recorded an interview with @lynneguist.bsky.social for the @lexispodcast.bsky.social and then this absolute whopper of a piece gets published. It's jam-packed with clichéd complaints, hoary hyperbole & xenophobic waffle.
archive.ph/2025.11.24-0...
archive.ph/2025.11.24-0...
Reposted by EngLangBlog
EMC CPD Face-to-Face: Language Diversity and Discourses for AQA
"The quality of the materials and delivery were outstanding. I couldn't have wished for a more informative, inspiring course!"
Book by: 8am on 28th November
buff.ly/pv943CH
"The quality of the materials and delivery were outstanding. I couldn't have wished for a more informative, inspiring course!"
Book by: 8am on 28th November
buff.ly/pv943CH
November 24, 2025 at 3:30 PM
EMC CPD Face-to-Face: Language Diversity and Discourses for AQA
"The quality of the materials and delivery were outstanding. I couldn't have wished for a more informative, inspiring course!"
Book by: 8am on 28th November
buff.ly/pv943CH
"The quality of the materials and delivery were outstanding. I couldn't have wished for a more informative, inspiring course!"
Book by: 8am on 28th November
buff.ly/pv943CH
Lots here including a good webinar on occupational & social groups for A level Eng Lang.
1. Imagine if there was a way for you and your English department to get a whole term’s worth of refreshed subject knowledge and classroom-ready approaches. All evidence-informed. 🧵
buff.ly/i2eSUbK
buff.ly/i2eSUbK
EMC Termly Webinar Package Spring 2026
EMC Webinar Package Spring 2026 – live and on-demand access for the whole department to all our Spring 2026 term webinars for just £195. On sale until 5pm Tuesday 20th January 2026.
tinyurl.com
November 24, 2025 at 8:02 AM
Lots here including a good webinar on occupational & social groups for A level Eng Lang.
Reposted by EngLangBlog
A little preview of what our next episode, with @lynneguist.bsky.social, will be covering.
share.descript.com/view/xo1Zcqo...
share.descript.com/view/xo1Zcqo...
Lynne Murphy interview clip - Descript
In Britain, people tend to assume it's an Americanism if it's something new that they don't like. So when you read those articles in The Telegraph for The Times, or other newspapers with lists of, yo
share.descript.com
November 23, 2025 at 9:05 AM
A little preview of what our next episode, with @lynneguist.bsky.social, will be covering.
share.descript.com/view/xo1Zcqo...
share.descript.com/view/xo1Zcqo...
Reposted by EngLangBlog
Wednesday's fabulous Harold Rosen Lecture by Carol Atherton reminded us of the transformative power of authentic, dialogic teaching, says NATE chair Mick Connell. The lecture can be viewed after reading Mick's article: t.co/bP8n58Jntp
https://www.nate.org.uk/2025/11/20/carol-athertons-harold-rosen-lecture-advocates-for-the-transformative-power-of-authentic-dialogic-teaching/
t.co
November 22, 2025 at 5:40 PM
Wednesday's fabulous Harold Rosen Lecture by Carol Atherton reminded us of the transformative power of authentic, dialogic teaching, says NATE chair Mick Connell. The lecture can be viewed after reading Mick's article: t.co/bP8n58Jntp
Reposted by EngLangBlog
We've just recorded a new episode with @lynneguist.bsky.social on the recent flurry of articles about young people and the supposed Americanisation of their language. And how we've been here before. Coming soon!
November 21, 2025 at 5:03 PM
We've just recorded a new episode with @lynneguist.bsky.social on the recent flurry of articles about young people and the supposed Americanisation of their language. And how we've been here before. Coming soon!
Reposted by EngLangBlog
Relying on ChatGPT to teach you about a topic leaves you with shallower knowledge than Googling and reading about it, according to new research that compared what more than 10,000 people knew after using one method or the other.
Shared by @gizmodo.com: buff.ly/yAAHtHq
Shared by @gizmodo.com: buff.ly/yAAHtHq
November 21, 2025 at 11:48 AM
Relying on ChatGPT to teach you about a topic leaves you with shallower knowledge than Googling and reading about it, according to new research that compared what more than 10,000 people knew after using one method or the other.
Shared by @gizmodo.com: buff.ly/yAAHtHq
Shared by @gizmodo.com: buff.ly/yAAHtHq
Two articles written by people who have moved abroad and how they feel about their accents. The first one is about the writer's (not very Limerick) accent, her relationship to her mother and her mother's relationship to Ireland: archive.today/2025.11.19-0...
archive.today
November 21, 2025 at 10:18 AM
Two articles written by people who have moved abroad and how they feel about their accents. The first one is about the writer's (not very Limerick) accent, her relationship to her mother and her mother's relationship to Ireland: archive.today/2025.11.19-0...
One for Saussurians everywhere... well maybe not everywhere, maybe just Ingerland.
More than half of ethnic minority Brits say the England flag has now become a racist symbol, with Brits of all colours now tending to say the raising of the flag is mostly about expressing anti-migrant, or anti ethnic-minority sentiment
November 21, 2025 at 10:12 AM
One for Saussurians everywhere... well maybe not everywhere, maybe just Ingerland.
This is worth a read...
www.bbc.co.uk/future/artic...
www.bbc.co.uk/future/artic...
The words you can't say on the internet
There's a secret list of words you can't say on social media – at least, that's what everyone seems to think.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 20, 2025 at 2:23 PM
This is worth a read...
www.bbc.co.uk/future/artic...
www.bbc.co.uk/future/artic...
So often too it's men feeling that they have the right to judge (not always but very often) women's speech.
"…caught out using such a nefarious neologism as the quotative 'like'"
1. It's not a neologism: it's a half-century old.
2. Calling a useful linguistic innovation "nefarious" says nothing about the word in question but quite a lot about the letter-writer. The only embarrassment is his ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
1. It's not a neologism: it's a half-century old.
2. Calling a useful linguistic innovation "nefarious" says nothing about the word in question but quite a lot about the letter-writer. The only embarrassment is his ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
A reminder that there are still a lot of people on this planet who could probably better use the large amount of time they have on their hands.
November 20, 2025 at 1:44 PM
So often too it's men feeling that they have the right to judge (not always but very often) women's speech.
Reposted by EngLangBlog
We've got a new episode out! It features an interview with Dani Yin and Cheryl Wakslak about their recent paper on gendered use of exclamation marks in digital communication and it's a really good conversation: open.spotify.com/episode/5KzP...
#linguistics
#linguistics
Spotify – Web Player
open.spotify.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:45 AM
We've got a new episode out! It features an interview with Dani Yin and Cheryl Wakslak about their recent paper on gendered use of exclamation marks in digital communication and it's a really good conversation: open.spotify.com/episode/5KzP...
#linguistics
#linguistics
We still have places on this course which also features @robdrummond.bsky.social
EMC CPD Face-to-Face: Language Diversity and Discourses for AQA
"The quality of the materials and delivery were outstanding. I couldn't have wished for a more informative, inspiring course!"
Book by: 8am on 28th November
buff.ly/wwmalmz
"The quality of the materials and delivery were outstanding. I couldn't have wished for a more informative, inspiring course!"
Book by: 8am on 28th November
buff.ly/wwmalmz
November 18, 2025 at 3:31 PM
We still have places on this course which also features @robdrummond.bsky.social
Some more on the Cambridge #WOTY2025 here along with some commentary on their shortlist and ones they've been watching. Not glazing* when I say there are some snazzy graphics.
dictionary.cambridge.org/editorial/wo...
dictionary.cambridge.org/editorial/wo...
The Cambridge Dictionary Word of the Year 2025
Cambridge Dictionary has announced parasocial as its Word of the Year 2025. Learn what parasocial relationships mean in social media, AI companions, fandom culture and celebrity obsession.
dictionary.cambridge.org
November 18, 2025 at 8:24 AM
Some more on the Cambridge #WOTY2025 here along with some commentary on their shortlist and ones they've been watching. Not glazing* when I say there are some snazzy graphics.
dictionary.cambridge.org/editorial/wo...
dictionary.cambridge.org/editorial/wo...
Translanguaging in action - a powerful illustration.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
My kids start sentences in one language and end in another. I hope school doesn’t shrink their joyous, noisy worlds | Shadi Khan Saif
Maybe there’s room for something gentler: letting children know they don’t need to change any part of themselves to belong
www.theguardian.com
November 18, 2025 at 7:28 AM
Translanguaging in action - a powerful illustration.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by EngLangBlog
A new study finds that jargon makes false information seem more credible. It boosts perceived expertise, especially among people with higher conspiracy mentality, even though it simultaneously reduces readability.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
#MisinfoResearch
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
#MisinfoResearch
The Power of Technical Language: Does Jargon Use Influence the Credibility of Misinformation?
Across two studies, we examined the impact of different levels of jargon on the perceived credibility of texts containing reliable or unreliable information. Study 1 found that higher levels of jargo...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 17, 2025 at 8:28 PM
A new study finds that jargon makes false information seem more credible. It boosts perceived expertise, especially among people with higher conspiracy mentality, even though it simultaneously reduces readability.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
#MisinfoResearch
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
#MisinfoResearch
Reposted by EngLangBlog
Seems like a good time (again) to share the guide I developed with @freedomfromtorture.bsky.social, which tells you how to talk about refugees and asylum in a way that actually convinces the undecided - based on testing 🧵 www.freedomfromtorture.org/changing-the...
Changing the Conversation on Asylum: A Messaging Guide
Our new messaging guide looks at the methodology and messages that can help us carve out a new approach that will be successful in persuading the public that seeking safety is a fundamental human righ...
www.freedomfromtorture.org
November 17, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Seems like a good time (again) to share the guide I developed with @freedomfromtorture.bsky.social, which tells you how to talk about refugees and asylum in a way that actually convinces the undecided - based on testing 🧵 www.freedomfromtorture.org/changing-the...
Reposted by EngLangBlog
One for World Englishes.
BBC News - Nigeria cancels mother-tongue teaching in primary schools and reverts to English
www.bbc.com/news/article...
BBC News - Nigeria cancels mother-tongue teaching in primary schools and reverts to English
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Nigeria cancels mother-tongue teaching in primary schools and reverts to English
Exam results from areas which dropped English have declined, the education minister says, announcing the U-turn.
www.bbc.com
November 14, 2025 at 7:31 AM
One for World Englishes.
BBC News - Nigeria cancels mother-tongue teaching in primary schools and reverts to English
www.bbc.com/news/article...
BBC News - Nigeria cancels mother-tongue teaching in primary schools and reverts to English
www.bbc.com/news/article...