Tony Thorne
@tonythorne007.bsky.social
1.6K followers 1.2K following 1.9K posts
Slang, new language, etymology, cultural history. Language Consultant at King's College London.
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Reposted by Tony Thorne
On #WorldDictionaryDay we should also celebrate the many online sites providing (often the most up-to-date) examples and explanations of language as it is used...
language-and-innovation.com
It’s #WorldDictionaryDay. Time to celebrate print dictionaries - and online reference sources too…
Reposted by Tony Thorne
We are looking for new committee members! If you would like to join the BAAL Corpus SIG as Meetings Secretary or as an Ordinary Member, please get in touch! You can learn more about the SIG at our website:
BAAL Corpus Linguistics SIG
BAAL Corpus Linguistics SIG
baal-clsig.weebly.com
It’s phonaesthetically as well as socially unappealing
Reposted by Tony Thorne
We will soon be announcing a new Fellowship through the British Association for Romantic Studies which supportsthe work of independent researchers. It's a tight deadline but if you fall into this category or know anyone who does, watch this space @bars.bsky.social
Several of these allow for more than one correct answer although I’m guessing whoever set it didn’t realise that. Absurd. Embarrassing.
I always think it’s a typo. Police notice.
Reposted by Tony Thorne
New Spanish Royal Decree! Attention!Attention!

"British Citizens residing in Spain are required by His Majesty Felipe VI and the Constitutional Government to pass the DELE C2 Spanish language examination. Non-compliant citizens will face deportation."
Reposted by Tony Thorne
The first book-length analysis of memes from a linguistic perspective, proposing a new approach to the study of multimodal genres.

The Language of Memes by Barbara Dancygier & @lieven.bsky.social, Out Now

#LangSky #Linguistics 🐦🐦 #BookSky

https://cup.org/3IDqYNf
Meme of Bernie Sanders
Reposted by Tony Thorne
Language contact leaves traces in writing.
This study shows how multilingual print culture records the social and political life of communities — tracing encounters, boundaries, and belonging across historic publications.
doi.org/10.25189/267...
A social media card from Cadernos de Linguística with a mint-green background. At the top, the text reads “READ IN CADERNOS DE LINGUÍSTICA.” Below, there is a black-and-white image of a vintage German advertisement for wicker baby carriages from 1906. Under the image, the title says “LANGUAGE, ADS & IDENTITY.” The caption explains that this ad, published in a German-language newspaper in Georgia in 1906, shows how German settlers lived between two worlds, mixing German and Russian to build a shared culture in a multilingual empire.
Reposted by Tony Thorne
If you make content on TikTok, even if it's just talking into the camera, and you find you have to alter your words, hold up signs, use emoji, etc. to get your video seen, I want to hear from you! Survey: bit.ly/myttsurvey #AcademicSky #PhDSky #PhDChatter #Blackademia #Psychology
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It’s absurdly flawed. Several of the gaps allow for more than one option. Do those marking it know that??
This is the cloze test - part of the C2 Proficiency exam required of some foreign language learners who want to work/study here.

It's TOUGH. You have to put one word in the gaps.

Link to test itself
www.flo-joe.co.uk/cpe/students...
Reposted by Tony Thorne
The word 'word' is etymologically related to the word 'verb'.

'Word' was inherited from Proto-Germanic.

'Verb', on the other hand, was borrowed from Latin 'verbum', which also simply meant "word".

They have a common Proto-Indo-European ancestor.

Zoom in on my new infographic to learn more:
Reposted by Tony Thorne
📖 Happy World Novel Week 2025!

👀 Butteries and wagger-pagger-baggers - read Katie Wales on Charles Dickens and university cant: babelzine.co.uk/wp-content/u...
Babel article: Charley Dickens and university slang
Reposted by Tony Thorne
Court judgments aren’t crafted by one voice. Rodrigues & Azevedo show how a judge weaves in words from the prosecution, defense, accused, witnesses, and police — and how verbs of saying and quoted testimony guide the reasoning toward acquittal for lack of intent. doi.org/10.25189/267... #linguistics
Graphic announcing a new article in Cadernos de Linguística. The title reads: “In View of the Foregoing, I Rule: An Analysis of Polyphony in a First-Instance Criminal Judgment through Ducrot’s Framework.”
Below the title, the authors are listed: Simone Ramos Silveira and Gioconda Maria Medeiros Azevedo, both affiliated with Universidade Federal da Paraíba. The layout is minimalist, with light beige background, dark gray text, and small green circular markers next to each author’s name.