Dennis Baron
@drgrammar.bsky.social
I write about language and … language and law (free speech and regulation); gender (pronouns!); tech (how tech affects readers and writers); language reform; and language policing. All from a historical perspective.
"An Eurasian..."?
November 29, 2025 at 7:19 PM
"An Eurasian..."?
Snow day means snow globe back yard.
November 29, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Snow day means snow globe back yard.
To lose the crown jewels may be regarded as a misfortune. But to lose a year's worth of snails ...
November 28, 2025 at 4:27 AM
To lose the crown jewels may be regarded as a misfortune. But to lose a year's worth of snails ...
Revised and re-upping this post on "The second-oldest neopronoun, coined in 1849: ne, nis, and nim" bit.ly/475S3Cr
The second-oldest neopronoun, coined in 1849: ne, nis, and nim
bit.ly
November 22, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Revised and re-upping this post on "The second-oldest neopronoun, coined in 1849: ne, nis, and nim" bit.ly/475S3Cr
Celebrating the publication of Merriam-Webster's 12th Collegiate, I am reminded of this important First Amendment hypothetiical:
Can a baker refuse to bake a dictionary cake on religious grounds if they have a deeply-held belief that dictionaries are woke tools of the devil?
Can a baker refuse to bake a dictionary cake on religious grounds if they have a deeply-held belief that dictionaries are woke tools of the devil?
November 18, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Celebrating the publication of Merriam-Webster's 12th Collegiate, I am reminded of this important First Amendment hypothetiical:
Can a baker refuse to bake a dictionary cake on religious grounds if they have a deeply-held belief that dictionaries are woke tools of the devil?
Can a baker refuse to bake a dictionary cake on religious grounds if they have a deeply-held belief that dictionaries are woke tools of the devil?
So bankbooks are obsolete, 🐝?
November 14, 2025 at 7:00 PM
So bankbooks are obsolete, 🐝?
With the assault-by-sub-sandwich trial in progress here's a re-up of my post, "Is a sandwich a weapon? And if so, does it enjoy constitutional protection?" blogs.illinois.edu/view/25
Is a sandwich a weapon? And if so, does it enjoy constitutional protection?
blogs.illinois.edu
November 6, 2025 at 1:27 AM
With the assault-by-sub-sandwich trial in progress here's a re-up of my post, "Is a sandwich a weapon? And if so, does it enjoy constitutional protection?" blogs.illinois.edu/view/25
Cry the spilt milk. Le Figaro quiz testing the equivalence of English and French idioms, great but maybe first get the English right?
November 5, 2025 at 12:25 AM
Cry the spilt milk. Le Figaro quiz testing the equivalence of English and French idioms, great but maybe first get the English right?
Two views of the University of Chicago . . .
November 4, 2025 at 3:40 AM
Two views of the University of Chicago . . .
It's the stuff concrete poems are made from.
November 2, 2025 at 3:49 PM
It's the stuff concrete poems are made from.
The Böcker Agilo is the perfect gift for the jewel thieves on your list.
October 22, 2025 at 7:40 PM
The Böcker Agilo is the perfect gift for the jewel thieves on your list.
The euro sausage strikes again...
October 7, 2025 at 9:47 PM
The euro sausage strikes again...
5 across No visa for you, Paul.
October 1, 2025 at 2:30 AM
5 across No visa for you, Paul.
Waiting to see if last night's rain means fish might be back ....
September 24, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Waiting to see if last night's rain means fish might be back ....
That's ok, 🐝, I can wait.
September 22, 2025 at 1:52 PM
That's ok, 🐝, I can wait.
Pronouns in the news, 1955 edition: The clue for 27 across, "proposed third-person genderless pronoun," assumes that at least some solvers will be familiar with "thon."
September 17, 2025 at 4:29 PM
Pronouns in the news, 1955 edition: The clue for 27 across, "proposed third-person genderless pronoun," assumes that at least some solvers will be familiar with "thon."
🐝 the speardanes would like a word...
September 15, 2025 at 10:24 PM
🐝 the speardanes would like a word...
Pronouns in the news, 1869 edition: San Francisco Woman Suffrage Society votes on use of generic "she" to refer to men who join. When that proposal failed, the group settled on "he or she." SF Chronicle, Dec. 26, p. 1.
September 11, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Pronouns in the news, 1869 edition: San Francisco Woman Suffrage Society votes on use of generic "she" to refer to men who join. When that proposal failed, the group settled on "he or she." SF Chronicle, Dec. 26, p. 1.
A particularly photogenic coffee at Plein Air Café
September 10, 2025 at 10:53 PM
A particularly photogenic coffee at Plein Air Café
Me, on free speech, the flag burning ban, and, oh, did sombody say pronouns? scholarscircle.org
The Scholars' Circle
Insight into Today's Most Pressing Issues
scholarscircle.org
September 10, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Me, on free speech, the flag burning ban, and, oh, did sombody say pronouns? scholarscircle.org
Reposted by Dennis Baron
"Uses a variety of research methods to demonstrate how policies that concern language status are inseparable from economics, race, and identity politics."
Making English Official by Katherine S. Flowers | Out Now & #OpenAcccess
https://cup.org/4m0J21C
#LangSky 🐦🐦 🗺️ #Linguistics
Making English Official by Katherine S. Flowers | Out Now & #OpenAcccess
https://cup.org/4m0J21C
#LangSky 🐦🐦 🗺️ #Linguistics
September 8, 2025 at 7:05 PM
"Uses a variety of research methods to demonstrate how policies that concern language status are inseparable from economics, race, and identity politics."
Making English Official by Katherine S. Flowers | Out Now & #OpenAcccess
https://cup.org/4m0J21C
#LangSky 🐦🐦 🗺️ #Linguistics
Making English Official by Katherine S. Flowers | Out Now & #OpenAcccess
https://cup.org/4m0J21C
#LangSky 🐦🐦 🗺️ #Linguistics
My review of King & Conqueror: Wait for the tapestry.
September 4, 2025 at 6:18 PM
My review of King & Conqueror: Wait for the tapestry.
I get better hate mail than you do.
September 2, 2025 at 4:03 PM
I get better hate mail than you do.
Donald Trump doesn’t want non-English-speakers to assimilate. He just wants them gone. First he declared English official. Then his Dept. of Ed dropped support for English language learners. What's next for them? A ticket to Rwanda?
read about it here:
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/donald-tru...
read about it here:
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/donald-tru...
Donald Trump doesn’t want non-English-speakers to assimilate.
He just wants them gone.
weboflanguage.substack.com
August 31, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Donald Trump doesn’t want non-English-speakers to assimilate. He just wants them gone. First he declared English official. Then his Dept. of Ed dropped support for English language learners. What's next for them? A ticket to Rwanda?
read about it here:
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/donald-tru...
read about it here:
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/donald-tru...
Trying a substack to see if gets more traffic than a blog:
We, as Concerned Legal Lexicographers, submit this declaration in an attempt to answer the question, Is a sandwich a weapon? And if so, is it protected by the Constitution?
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/is-a-sandw...
We, as Concerned Legal Lexicographers, submit this declaration in an attempt to answer the question, Is a sandwich a weapon? And if so, is it protected by the Constitution?
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/is-a-sandw...
Is a sandwich a weapon?
If so, is it protected by the Constitution?
weboflanguage.substack.com
August 27, 2025 at 6:25 PM
Trying a substack to see if gets more traffic than a blog:
We, as Concerned Legal Lexicographers, submit this declaration in an attempt to answer the question, Is a sandwich a weapon? And if so, is it protected by the Constitution?
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/is-a-sandw...
We, as Concerned Legal Lexicographers, submit this declaration in an attempt to answer the question, Is a sandwich a weapon? And if so, is it protected by the Constitution?
weboflanguage.substack.com/p/is-a-sandw...