Jesse Sheidlower
@jessesword.com
Lexicographer. The F-Word (new edition Nov. ’24!), sfdictionary.com, ex-OED, coder (mainly Perl and Python), Threesome Tollbooth #cocktail bar manager, adjunct @ Columbia. "Appealingly obsessive" — NYT
Pinned
Jesse Sheidlower
@jessesword.com
· Oct 22
News: the 4th edition of The F-Word is coming out in two weeks from Oxford UP! Everything you could want to know about the word _fuck_.
This is a major revision: 500 pages with 150 new entries, 150 antedatings, & 2,500 new quotations. See link below for more info!
jessesword.com/fword.html
This is a major revision: 500 pages with 150 new entries, 150 antedatings, & 2,500 new quotations. See link below for more info!
jessesword.com/fword.html
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
Happily, I'm quoted in the NYT today about words cyclically coming back into use, like earworms from forgotten songs. English has a rich trove of vocab to pull from, and any song, book, or movie can bring those words back in rotation. Thanks @samcorbin.bsky.social! www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/c...
Why Kids Are Starting to Sound Like Their Grandparents
www.nytimes.com
February 9, 2026 at 8:08 PM
Happily, I'm quoted in the NYT today about words cyclically coming back into use, like earworms from forgotten songs. English has a rich trove of vocab to pull from, and any song, book, or movie can bring those words back in rotation. Thanks @samcorbin.bsky.social! www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/c...
Antedating o'the day for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: "actifan", fr 1941 to 1940 (ref to Forrest J. Ackerman).
Delighted to announce that this was sent in by Jeff Prucher, editor of the Hugo-winning Brave New Words, who is contributing once again!
sfdictionary.com/view/1687/ac...
Delighted to announce that this was sent in by Jeff Prucher, editor of the Hugo-winning Brave New Words, who is contributing once again!
sfdictionary.com/view/1687/ac...
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction: actifan
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
sfdictionary.com
February 9, 2026 at 2:14 PM
Antedating o'the day for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: "actifan", fr 1941 to 1940 (ref to Forrest J. Ackerman).
Delighted to announce that this was sent in by Jeff Prucher, editor of the Hugo-winning Brave New Words, who is contributing once again!
sfdictionary.com/view/1687/ac...
Delighted to announce that this was sent in by Jeff Prucher, editor of the Hugo-winning Brave New Words, who is contributing once again!
sfdictionary.com/view/1687/ac...
Brains Are Weird, episode 3592:
Had an extended dream about hot girls trading commodities. Woke up & realized I was conflating plot of Trading Places (focused on frozen OJ futures), which I haven't seen in decades, w/ the recent news that Minute Maid was discontinuing sales of frozen OJ cylinders.
Had an extended dream about hot girls trading commodities. Woke up & realized I was conflating plot of Trading Places (focused on frozen OJ futures), which I haven't seen in decades, w/ the recent news that Minute Maid was discontinuing sales of frozen OJ cylinders.
February 7, 2026 at 1:20 PM
Brains Are Weird, episode 3592:
Had an extended dream about hot girls trading commodities. Woke up & realized I was conflating plot of Trading Places (focused on frozen OJ futures), which I haven't seen in decades, w/ the recent news that Minute Maid was discontinuing sales of frozen OJ cylinders.
Had an extended dream about hot girls trading commodities. Woke up & realized I was conflating plot of Trading Places (focused on frozen OJ futures), which I haven't seen in decades, w/ the recent news that Minute Maid was discontinuing sales of frozen OJ cylinders.
IAW I am using cringe slang at my daughter and she is making fun of me and I am proud of her
February 6, 2026 at 1:45 AM
IAW I am using cringe slang at my daughter and she is making fun of me and I am proud of her
Prounouns in the #crossword in *1930*!
Pronouns in the news, 1930 ed: antedating and author identified. Richard Tingley, prolific crossword setter, put three common-gender pronoun clues in a puzzle that ran in late 1930; this one appeared in the Rockford (IL) Star, Dec. 28, p. 23. The puzzle ran the next day in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.
February 5, 2026 at 7:21 PM
Prounouns in the #crossword in *1930*!
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
There's no easy way to say this: isthmus
February 5, 2026 at 5:55 PM
There's no easy way to say this: isthmus
More new entries for interstellar-travel fans, in the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: Today's batch: "Arcturan" + vars., with 2 nouns +1 adj. From 1920 onwards, still in broad use.
sfdictionary.com/view/3061/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3066/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3068/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3061/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3066/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3068/ar...
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction: Arcturan
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
sfdictionary.com
February 5, 2026 at 3:06 PM
More new entries for interstellar-travel fans, in the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: Today's batch: "Arcturan" + vars., with 2 nouns +1 adj. From 1920 onwards, still in broad use.
sfdictionary.com/view/3061/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3066/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3068/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3061/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3066/ar...
sfdictionary.com/view/3068/ar...
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
Hello, looks like independent publishers should beef up our books coverage.
If you're into the idea of joining the @flaminghydra.com collective and writing a book review each month (800-2000 word range), please send us your ideas and some clips to hello@flamingydra.com
If you're into the idea of joining the @flaminghydra.com collective and writing a book review each month (800-2000 word range), please send us your ideas and some clips to hello@flamingydra.com
February 4, 2026 at 5:45 PM
Hello, looks like independent publishers should beef up our books coverage.
If you're into the idea of joining the @flaminghydra.com collective and writing a book review each month (800-2000 word range), please send us your ideas and some clips to hello@flamingydra.com
If you're into the idea of joining the @flaminghydra.com collective and writing a book review each month (800-2000 word range), please send us your ideas and some clips to hello@flamingydra.com
Speaking of books (please, can we speak of books, instead of their death?), I'd vaguely heard of the poet / polymath Weldon Kees, but didn't know anything about him. It was thus a great pleasure to watch this bio by Dana Gioa. Will be seeking his work out now.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9GP...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9GP...
Weldon Kees: The Disappearing Poet
YouTube video by Dana Gioia
www.youtube.com
February 4, 2026 at 5:31 PM
Speaking of books (please, can we speak of books, instead of their death?), I'd vaguely heard of the poet / polymath Weldon Kees, but didn't know anything about him. It was thus a great pleasure to watch this bio by Dana Gioa. Will be seeking his work out now.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9GP...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9GP...
Nothing against the lads from Wolverhampton, but as a UK-knowledgeable American I'm still astonished to learn just how massive a band Slade was. Six #1 singles! _17_ consecutive top-20 singles! First band to have three singles debut at #1!
February 2, 2026 at 2:10 PM
Nothing against the lads from Wolverhampton, but as a UK-knowledgeable American I'm still astonished to learn just how massive a band Slade was. Six #1 singles! _17_ consecutive top-20 singles! First band to have three singles debut at #1!
OK today I read the news, listened to a Smog album, and watched Kurosawa's _Ran_, and there isn't enough MDMA in the world to get me into a good mood. Is it too early to go to sleep and hope for a reset in the morning?
February 2, 2026 at 1:34 AM
OK today I read the news, listened to a Smog album, and watched Kurosawa's _Ran_, and there isn't enough MDMA in the world to get me into a good mood. Is it too early to go to sleep and hope for a reset in the morning?
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
"Caouissin ... would like to think the language will follow a similar path to Welsh, which has enjoyed a revival over the past half-century and is spoken by 538,000 people"
People keep getting this wrong about Welsh! There has not been a "revival". Let me explain. 1/
People keep getting this wrong about Welsh! There has not been a "revival". Let me explain. 1/
“After centuries of suppression, speakers of ancient regional languages in France are staging a comeback — but it may be too late to save them”
<Gestures forlornly from the direction of Australia>
<Gestures forlornly from the direction of Australia>
In ‘the land of King Arthur’, Bretons revive their once and future tongue
After centuries of suppression, speakers of ancient regional languages in France are staging a comeback — but it may be too late to save them
www.thetimes.com
February 1, 2026 at 4:42 PM
"Caouissin ... would like to think the language will follow a similar path to Welsh, which has enjoyed a revival over the past half-century and is spoken by 538,000 people"
People keep getting this wrong about Welsh! There has not been a "revival". Let me explain. 1/
People keep getting this wrong about Welsh! There has not been a "revival". Let me explain. 1/
In another venue, @petermgilliver.bsky.social has called my attention to this outstanding event—a performance of the complete choral music of Thomas Tallis in one (long) day, and I think I have to plan a trip to Oxford to attend it.
www.justgiving.com/campaign/tal...
www.justgiving.com/campaign/tal...
Tallis in Wonderland
The Complete Choral works of Thomas Tallis, all performed live on Saturday April 25th 2026 in aid of the Church and Musicians of St Mary Magdalen, Oxford
www.justgiving.com
January 30, 2026 at 7:54 PM
In another venue, @petermgilliver.bsky.social has called my attention to this outstanding event—a performance of the complete choral music of Thomas Tallis in one (long) day, and I think I have to plan a trip to Oxford to attend it.
www.justgiving.com/campaign/tal...
www.justgiving.com/campaign/tal...
New entry for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: "bemmy", a hypocoristic form of everyone's favorite alien-related term "BEM" (bug-eyed monster). From the late '40s; popularized in Andre Norton's Star Rangers; still in use.
sfdictionary.com/view/3054/be...
sfdictionary.com/view/3054/be...
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction: bemmy
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
sfdictionary.com
January 30, 2026 at 3:26 PM
New entry for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: "bemmy", a hypocoristic form of everyone's favorite alien-related term "BEM" (bug-eyed monster). From the late '40s; popularized in Andre Norton's Star Rangers; still in use.
sfdictionary.com/view/3054/be...
sfdictionary.com/view/3054/be...
Not too many things make me happy nowadays, but a spectacular @robynw414.bsky.social Friday #crossword puzzle is one of them. _So good_ today! And in such a fun way; my brain slowly plodded through it and felt better and better as I filled it in.
January 30, 2026 at 2:09 PM
Not too many things make me happy nowadays, but a spectacular @robynw414.bsky.social Friday #crossword puzzle is one of them. _So good_ today! And in such a fun way; my brain slowly plodded through it and felt better and better as I filled it in.
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
Looking urgently for a #reviewer for a corpus-based analysis of N most frequent words
- in #NLP / #NLProc / #linguistics applications
- Even better if you care about Semitic languages but not a requirement
Please Emil / DM me if you can review!
Please boost otherwise 🙂
Thanks!
- in #NLP / #NLProc / #linguistics applications
- Even better if you care about Semitic languages but not a requirement
Please Emil / DM me if you can review!
Please boost otherwise 🙂
Thanks!
January 29, 2026 at 9:18 PM
Looking urgently for a #reviewer for a corpus-based analysis of N most frequent words
- in #NLP / #NLProc / #linguistics applications
- Even better if you care about Semitic languages but not a requirement
Please Emil / DM me if you can review!
Please boost otherwise 🙂
Thanks!
- in #NLP / #NLProc / #linguistics applications
- Even better if you care about Semitic languages but not a requirement
Please Emil / DM me if you can review!
Please boost otherwise 🙂
Thanks!
Fans of early #comics & the history of slang might be interested to know of the _free_ availability of the 1993 book _A TAD Lexicon_, by #Dictionary of American Regional English editor Leonard Zwilling, about the linguistic contributions of T.A. "TAD" Dorgan.
scholarsmine.mst.edu/artlan_phil_...
scholarsmine.mst.edu/artlan_phil_...
A TAD Lexicon
By Leonard Zwilling, Published on 01/01/93
scholarsmine.mst.edu
January 29, 2026 at 9:27 PM
Fans of early #comics & the history of slang might be interested to know of the _free_ availability of the 1993 book _A TAD Lexicon_, by #Dictionary of American Regional English editor Leonard Zwilling, about the linguistic contributions of T.A. "TAD" Dorgan.
scholarsmine.mst.edu/artlan_phil_...
scholarsmine.mst.edu/artlan_phil_...
Today's update for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: "Galactic", for a language spoken throughout a galaxy. Was 1954; added several early-1950s quotes in different nuances. Other cleanup and linking as well.
sfdictionary.com/view/1633/ga...
sfdictionary.com/view/1633/ga...
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction: Galactic
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
sfdictionary.com
January 28, 2026 at 2:01 PM
Today's update for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction: "Galactic", for a language spoken throughout a galaxy. Was 1954; added several early-1950s quotes in different nuances. Other cleanup and linking as well.
sfdictionary.com/view/1633/ga...
sfdictionary.com/view/1633/ga...
Fuckin' NYT robbin' me of my royalties
"Its acronym, F.A.F.O., references a slang term for negative consequences." www.nytimes.com/2026/01/27/u...
January 28, 2026 at 2:25 AM
Fuckin' NYT robbin' me of my royalties
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
"Its acronym, F.A.F.O., references a slang term for negative consequences." www.nytimes.com/2026/01/27/u...
January 28, 2026 at 2:11 AM
That think where I'm ravenous and trying to rush making a late dinner, and I grab a red tube from the fridge and squeeze two tablespoons of harissa into my pasta.
Whoops.
Whoops.
January 28, 2026 at 1:56 AM
That think where I'm ravenous and trying to rush making a late dinner, and I grab a red tube from the fridge and squeeze two tablespoons of harissa into my pasta.
Whoops.
Whoops.
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
Early Modernists: I've encountered a symbol in a page signature and don't know how to represent it in a citation. The closest I can find in MS Word is unicode 0260, "Latin small letter g with hook." How would you represent this? Does it have a name?
January 27, 2026 at 4:37 PM
Early Modernists: I've encountered a symbol in a page signature and don't know how to represent it in a citation. The closest I can find in MS Word is unicode 0260, "Latin small letter g with hook." How would you represent this? Does it have a name?
New entries for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction! The group of "Capellan" entries, referring to those from the Capella system (the star in Auriga). From the 1920s, still in use.
sfdictionary.com/view/3063/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3064/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3059/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3063/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3064/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3059/ca...
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction: Capellan
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
sfdictionary.com
January 27, 2026 at 3:21 PM
New entries for the Historical #Dictionary of #ScienceFiction! The group of "Capellan" entries, referring to those from the Capella system (the star in Auriga). From the 1920s, still in use.
sfdictionary.com/view/3063/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3064/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3059/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3063/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3064/ca...
sfdictionary.com/view/3059/ca...
Americans will do anything to avoid the metric system, part eleventy-billion.
January 22, 2026 at 9:30 PM
Americans will do anything to avoid the metric system, part eleventy-billion.
Reposted by Jesse Sheidlower
Another freaking f-word. New post for @stronglang.bsky.social about "freaking" as a euphemistic intensifier: stronglang.wordpress.com/2026/01/22/a... 🐦🐦
Another freaking f-word
I never fully adopted freaking as an intensifier, euphemistic for fucking, partly because I swear fairly freely, and maybe also because fecking was available in my Irish English dialect. But I like…
stronglang.wordpress.com
January 22, 2026 at 8:05 PM
Another freaking f-word. New post for @stronglang.bsky.social about "freaking" as a euphemistic intensifier: stronglang.wordpress.com/2026/01/22/a... 🐦🐦