'Y' plurals. Bill Labov's linguistic legacy. Choo-choo

'Y' plurals. Bill Labov's linguistic legacy. Choo-choo

1101. Do you know when to change a "y" to an "ies" for a plural, and when to just add an "s"? Today, we look at the rules. Then, we look at linguist Bill Labov's famous department store study, which shows how social class relates to speech patterns.

The 'y' segment was written by Samantha Enslen, who runs Dragonfly Editorial. You can find her at dragonflyeditorial.com.

The segment about Bill Labov was written by Valerie Friedland, a professor of linguistics at the University of Nevada in Reno and the author of "Like Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English." You can find her at valeriefridland.com.

🔗 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.

Episoder(965)

178 Do Rhetorical Questions Need a Question Mark?

178 Do Rhetorical Questions Need a Question Mark?

Do Rhetorical Questions Need a Question Mark? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

10 Jul 20094min

174 "Myself"

174 "Myself"

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

12 Jun 20095min

172 "All Right" Versus "Alright"

172 "All Right" Versus "Alright"

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

29 Mai 20094min

170 Swear Words in Text

170 Swear Words in Text

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

15 Mai 20096min

169 Using “For” to Mean “Because”

169 Using “For” to Mean “Because”

Using “For” to Mean “Because” Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

9 Mai 20095min

168 Troublesome Contractions (e.g., I'd've)

168 Troublesome Contractions (e.g., I'd've)

Troublesome Contractions (e.g., I'd've) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

1 Mai 20095min

167 Dashes Versus Colons

167 Dashes Versus Colons

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

23 Apr 20094min

166 Strunk and White

166 Strunk and White

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

17 Apr 20095min

Populært innen Fakta

fastlegen
dine-penger-pengeradet
hanna-de-heldige
fryktlos
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
treningspodden
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
foreldreradet
jakt-og-fiskepodden
dypdykk
sinnsyn
rss-sunn-okonomi
rss-mann-i-krise-med-sagen
hverdagspsyken
rss-kunsten-a-leve
mikkels-paskenotter
tomprat-med-gunnar-tjomlid
gravid-uke-for-uke
takk-og-lov-med-anine-kierulf
doktor-fives-podcast