Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

Why we say 'near miss.' How dogs got their names. Stupid dog Jackie.


Listen Later

1111. This week, we look at the phrase "near miss" and why this seemingly illogical term actually makes sense. Then, in honor of National Dog Day, we look at how 16 different dog breeds got their names, including why a dachshund is a "badger dog," a poodle is a "puddle dog," and a mastiff is a "tame dog."

The "near miss" segment was by Natalie Schilling, a professor emerita of linguistics at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and who runs a forensic linguistics consulting firm. You can find her on LinkedIn.

🔗 Share your familect recording in a WhatsApp chat.

🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.

🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.

🔗 Take our advertising survey. 

🔗 Get the edited transcript.

🔗 Get Grammar Girl books. 

🔗 Join Grammarpalooza. Get ad-free and bonus episodes at Apple Podcasts or Subtext. Learn more about the difference. 

| HOST: Mignon Fogarty

| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).

| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.

  • Audio Engineer: Dan Feierabend
  • Director of Podcast: Holly Hutchings
  • Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
  • Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes

| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.

| Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook. Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better WritingBy QuickAndDirtyTips.com

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

2,816 ratings


More shows like Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

View all
TED Radio Hour by NPR

TED Radio Hour

22,038 Listeners

Freakonomics Radio by Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher

Freakonomics Radio

32,139 Listeners

Planet Money by NPR

Planet Money

30,648 Listeners

Hidden Brain by Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam

Hidden Brain

43,704 Listeners

The Moth by The Moth

The Moth

27,211 Listeners

TED Talks Daily by TED

TED Talks Daily

11,183 Listeners

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day by Merriam-Webster

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

1,250 Listeners

Science Vs by Spotify Studios

Science Vs

12,200 Listeners

Science Friday by Science Friday and WNYC Studios

Science Friday

6,341 Listeners

Savvy Psychologist by QuickAndDirtyTips.com

Savvy Psychologist

1,376 Listeners

A Way with Words - language, linguistics, and callers from all over by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.

A Way with Words - language, linguistics, and callers from all over

2,287 Listeners

Something You Should Know by Mike Carruthers | OmniCast Media

Something You Should Know

4,184 Listeners

Life Kit by NPR

Life Kit

4,483 Listeners

Short Wave by NPR

Short Wave

6,411 Listeners

No Stupid Questions by Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher

No Stupid Questions

3,651 Listeners