Depending on where you live, there may be restrictions on what types of baby names are permitted. Let’s examine some of these rules and the reasons for them.
Some parents name their newborns after family members, for TV characters, or based on how pleasant the moniker sounds. But there are rare occasions when a name is frowned upon, and some countries have gone so far as to ban certain names.
Frequently, name bans are instituted to protect the child from being called something offensive or embarrassing. Some places also ban symbols and characters, as they’re unpronounceable and make it difficult to fill out government forms.
In the United States, rules vary state to state. For example, in New York, a judge can deny a name change request if the name is offensive, misleading (such as Officer or Doctor), the name of a famous person (Chance the Rapper), or the name of a company (such as Google). Some states have character limits for practical purposes, as names that are too long cause issues with official recordkeeping. Other states, including California and New Jersey, are among those that ban any obscene monikers (e.g., curses, sexual content, etc.). While obscenity is relative, this ban exists, in part, to protect children from enduring ridicule down the line.
Elsewhere around the world, Australia bans names such as Admiral, Bishop, President, and Dame to avoid confusion with formal titles. Portugal maintains a list of government-approved names that adhere to Portuguese language traditions and abide by local customs. In 2025, Japan unveiled new restrictions to discourage creativity in the naming process, claiming that less traditional names were causing confusion in places such as hospitals or schools. In Germany, surnames are banned as first names, so you won’t find a “Schmidt” or “Merkel” as a first name.
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Once-Incorrect Grammar That’s Now in the Dictionary
The dictionary is a living document, changed by the ways people use language. Nowadays, the pages feature grammar that was once considered “incorrect” — that is, words and rules that have staunch opponents, yet entered modern English because they’re so popular.
Language doesn’t stand still. In fact, most dictionaries are updated regularly to reflect the latest developments. (The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 12th Edition, was released in late 2025.) Words we were once told never to use and rules we were warned not to break have worked their way into everyday speech and eventually into the pages of official dictionaries. Let’s review some of the words and rules that many traditional grammar sticklers balk at, but that have been deemed acceptable on the pages of the dictionary.
"Literally," Figuratively
A sore spot for many, the term “literally” has taken on a life of its own, especially among younger users. When the term first entered English during the 15th century, it meant “in a literal sense or manner,” emphasizing truth or accuracy, as in, “The dictionary literally contains hundreds of thousands of definitions.”
But another (and some would argue more popular) usage has emerged: “an exaggerated way to emphasize a statement or description that is not literally true or possible.” For instance, “I literally have five dollars in my bank account” might not be an accurate statement, but it’s more dramatic and creative than telling your friends, “I’m broke.”
Merriam-Webster and other language authorities have added this figurative definition to their pages because enough people are using it to warrant an explanation. But surprisingly, this definition isn’t that new. Evidence of “literally” as an exaggeration dates to the mid-18th century; millennials simply resurrected the usage.
"Data" as a Singular Term
When it first entered English in the mid-17th century, “data” was strictly plural, as in, “The data are limited.” It comes from the Latin datum, meaning “something given,” and it follows the Latin plural rules, turning one piece of datum into many sets of data. Because it was plural, it called for plural modifiers and verb tenses. In technical and academic writing, this is still the appropriate usage. The singular “datum” is formally used to denote a piece of data, as in, “We are missing a crucial unit of datum.”
However, in the dictionary, there is a modern update to this rule of thumb. In informal contexts, “data” is used in the same way “information” is, as a singular mass noun to describe collections of figures, details, or statistics. In this way, the term takes a singular verb, as in, “The data is accurate.” Both the plural and singular uses are now standard, but the latter is increasingly common.
"Like" as an Interjection
Most grammar sticklers would cringe at hearing someone say, “I’m like, ‘Sure, I’ll meet you there after work,'” but using “like” interjectionally to introduce a thought or a statement has become accepted in a conversational setting. Another casual usage is to introduce commonly held beliefs, such as “It’s like, who cares what he thinks.” Merriam-Webster documents this usage: “used interjectionally in informal speech often with the verb be to introduce a quotation, paraphrase, or thought expressed by or imputed to the subject of the verb, or with it’s to report a generally held opinion.” While it’s still frowned upon in formal and technical writing, it seems that “like” is here to stay.
"Irregardless" Is a Real Word
While the new usage is documented by Merriam-Webster, it’s with the caveat that “irregardless” is nonstandard and widely disliked. That’s because it’s seen as a double negative, and grammar standards say that “regardless” does the same job without the prefix. However, in the dictionary, “irregardless” is listed as a synonym of “regardless,” both meaning “despite everything.” Both options are valid: “Our flight left on time, regardless/irregardless of the storm.”
“Irregardless” came into use during the mid-19th century. While usually the prefix “ir-” employs negation, in the case of “irregardless,” it acts as an intensifier. For this reason, it has slipped through the cracks of strict grammar protocol and landed in a gray area where it’s defined in the dictionary, yet scoffed at by grammar officials.
"Impact" as a Verb
Although increasingly popular in modern English, traditional grammar rules state that “impact” shouldn’t be used as a verb, especially in the meaning “to directly affect.” According to this line of thought, “The book positively impacted my life” is technically a faux pas. Instead, traditional grammarists would rather “impact” remain a noun, as in, “The book had a positive impact on my life.” Here, “had” is the main verb.
However, especially in casual conversation, using “impact” as a verb can feel more natural. In fact, one verb form of “impact” (meaning “to strike forcefully”) is nearly 200 years older than the noun form; the former emerged in 1601 and the latter in 1781. The verb usage of “to have a direct effect upon” came about in the 20th century, and that’s what some object to. However, Merriam-Webster considers this verbal use perfectly acceptable, though you should omit it if your audience finds it problematic.
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Sometimes a story is too good to be believed. Such is the case with folk etymologies. They are enticing stories about a word’s origin, but ultimately false.
Etymology is a fascinating field — it’s a branch of linguistics concerned with tracing the development of a word from the earliest recorded instance and following a word’s transmission from one language to another. For example, the etymology of the word “magazine” is that it comes from the Arabic “makhazin,” meaning “storehouse,” and it entered into English in the 15th century. Today, the word is used both for ammunition storage and for your glossy periodicals, as a storehouse of information.
An etymologist is a person who conducts the research and documentation of etymology. They use historical records and other reference materials to accurately trace the origin and evolution of words and phrases. Sometimes, however, a story about the origin of a word spreads without the careful research of an etymologist. If a story sounds plausible, it can circulate and gain traction, even if it’s somewhat fanciful. These made-up — yet still widely distributed — stories about the origins of certain words and idioms are called folk etymologies, akin to folklore. Here are some examples.
Posh
The folk etymology of “posh” is that it’s an acronym for “port out, starboard home,” denoting the cooler (in terms of temperature) side of ships traveling from England to India and back in the 1800s. Those cabins were more expensive, so “POSH” was supposedly stamped on the tickets of first-class passengers. From there, “posh” came to mean “elegant.”
It’s a great story, but no known evidence supports it. The more likely origin story, which is not nearly as enticing, is that “posh” was a 19th-century British slang word meaning “money,” and referring more specifically to a halfpenny. The source of the slang is Romani, the language of people who had migrated to England from South Asia. That Romani word, posh-hórri, means “halfpenny.” In British slang of the same period, “posh” also referred to a dandy, a man unduly devoted to fashion. This usage may have reinforced the sophisticated meaning of “posh,” but it has nothing to do with an acronym.
Marmalade
Mary, Queen of Scots, reportedly suffered from seasickness. After one sea voyage crossing the English Channel, she arrived in Dundee, where French was spoken, and was served a tasty quince dessert to make her feel better. Accordingly, this dessert was dubbed Marie est malade, meaning “Mary is sick.”
Don’t believe that story. The word “marmalade,” for a sweetened jelly containing fruit and fruit rind, joined the lexicon in the 1500s with reference to a preserve made from quince purée. The Portuguese marmelada is a derivative of marmelo, meaning “quince.” The real story has nothing to do with Mary, Queen of Scots.
During Napoleon’s German campaigns, he disliked the local dark rye bread so much that he declared it “pain pour Nicol,” bread only suitable for his horse, Nicol.
Again, a good story, but a folk etymology. “Pumpernickel” actually derives from the German pumpern, meaning “to break wind,” and Nickel, meaning “goblin.” Centuries ago, this bread was made from very coarsely ground rye berries and could cause flatulence. (Perhaps the sounds were blamed on a goblin.) The issue has since been resolved as today’s pumpernickel bread is made with more refined flour.
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“Mardi Gras” translates literally from French as “Fat Tuesday,” a fitting name that captures both the colorful indulgence and the timing of this famous celebration. “Fat” refers to the rich, indulgent foods traditionally consumed on the day, while “Tuesday” marks its place on the calendar. Mardi Gras always falls on the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent and the start of the 40-day Lenten season in the Christian calendar.
The culinary traditions of the holiday originated in medieval Europe, where Christians developed a custom of using up the butter, eggs, red meat, and other decadent foods forbidden during Lent’s fasting period. This was a practical necessity, but it also happened to be great fun, so the day evolved into one of celebration and excess.
French Catholics brought these traditions to North America, with the first American Mardi Gras taking place near present-day New Orleans, Louisiana, on March 3, 1699. In New Orleans, French colonial influences slowly combined with Spanish, African, Caribbean, and Native American cultures to create the distinctive celebration we recognize today, with its parades, elaborate costumes, king cakes, and famous bead throwing. The name, however, remained decidedly French.
The wider period of celebration leading up to Mardi Gras is known as Carnival — a title that might also refer to consumption. The precise origin of “Carnival” is uncertain, but etymologists believe it might come from the medieval Latin carnem levare or carnelevarium, meaning “to take away or remove meat.” As with Mardi Gras, this coincides with Carnival being the period of feasting and festivity before entering the austere 40 days of Lent.
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Why Is It Called a ‘Restroom’ When You Don’t Rest There?
If you’ve ever used the restroom in a crowded concert venue or stadium, you know that it’s anything but a restful experience. To better understand why the term exists, let’s go back to the 19th century.
Unless you’re dealing with a bout of the flu, the odds of falling asleep in the bathroom are slim to none. The activities in a restroom are usually accomplished with efficiency. So why do we refer to these spaces as “restrooms” when people rarely rest inside them? The origins of this term can be traced back to the 19th century, a time when these rooms were used for more than just bodily functions and ablutions (washing).
Originally, restrooms were quiet spaces in public buildings or workplaces where people could relax away from the hustle and bustle. The Oxford English Dictionary traces this meaning back to 1856, when there was no guarantee that resting rooms would even have toilet facilities. But as the century progressed, these literal rooms for rest began to incorporate attached lavatories in order to make the spaces more comfortable. The inclusion of toilets was even mandated in some jurisdictions.
By the end of the 19th century, a new definition for “restroom” — as in a place to use the toilet, specifically — slowly began to supersede its original meaning. The Online Etymology Dictionary notes that by the 1930s, “restroom” had become a widely understood synonym for “lavatory”; today that’s virtually the only usage.
Similar logic explains the origins of the term “bathroom,” which has been in use since 1670. Many early toilet rooms also included bathing facilities, so the word evolved to describe any lavatory, whether there’s a bathtub or not. As for the word “lavatory,” it’s derived from the Latin lavatorium, meaning “a place for washing.”
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Some English words behave like linguistic multitools, flexing to fit dozens—or even hundreds—of related meanings. Take a closer look at how everyday words manage to do so much work.
Have you ever used a Swiss Army knife, the multifunctional device with as many as 87 tools and 141 functions? The linguistic equivalent is polysemy, the phenomenon by which one word has multiple related meanings, depending on context.
Take the word “set” — it can function as a noun, an adjective, or a verb with dozens of usages for each part of speech.These multiple meanings have utility in a variety of circumstances. You can set the table, set down an object, set your sights, and set a date. You might buy a set of colored pencils, straighten the set of your shirt cuffs, or find a set of people you want to get to know. Someone might be set in their ways, set on going to a party, or say “I’m set” to a request.
Over time, English speakers have thought of new uses for existing words. After all, why coin a new word if one that already exists is serviceable? For example, “bug,” “virus,” “cookies,” “mouse,” “web,” “tweet,” “tablet,” “swipe,” “spam,” “desktop,” “cloud,” “block,” and “firewall” all existed before the advent of computers. Because computer users readily understand the meanings of those words outside of the tech world, repurposing them in a new context is effective.
A student may be bright, radiating intelligence, and the sun can be bright, emitting plenty of light. A foot can be what you walk with, or a unit of measure, as in the height of a 6-foot-tall athlete. A crane is a type of bird and also a machine to hoist heavy objects.
In these instances, the two uses of the same word are related and depend on context for meaning. Words that are particularly specific, such as “alligator,” “pencil,” and “rectangle,” don’t lend themselves to multiple meanings. On the other hand, consider such versatile words as “hand,” “turn,” “set,” and “run.” So, what words have many correlated meanings?
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Hand
Our hands are so versatile, it’s no surprise that we have so many phrases based on such a handy word.
A sampling: lend a hand, wash your hands of, hands down, on the one hand, on the other hand, know like the back of your hand, get your hands on, live from hand to mouth, at hand, in good hands, by hand, hand in glove with, hands are tied, all hands on deck, hand it to you, tip your hand, out of hand, secondhand, change hands, have your hands full, try your hand at, lend a hand, give a hand, hand-me-down, have a hand in, and take matters into your own hands.
Turn
Our bodies are made to turn, with the aid of our backbones — technically called “vertebrae,” a word derived from the Latin vertere, meaning “to turn.”
Here’s a selection of “turn” turns of phrase: turn of events, as it turned out, a 180-degree turn, do a U-turn, hairpin turn, speak out of turn, make someone turn over in their grave, turn on, turn off, do someone a bad turn, take a turn for the worse, take turns, turn the tables, the turn of the century, toss and turn, turn a blind eye, turn a deaf ear, turn a profit, turn against someone, turn down, turn in, turn one’s back on, turn out in force, turn out to be true, turn over a new leaf, turn to one’s advantage, turn up, turn one’s nose up, can’t turn back time, turn of mind, do a good turn, at every turn, out of turn, not know where to turn, turn on its ear, turn the corner, turn someone’s stomach, and accomplish a turnaround.
Set
The Unabridged Merriam-Webster Dictionary lists about 200 meanings of this word.
Here are some uses of “set”: set an example, set out, all set, dead set against, set your sights on, get set, set the record straight, set in your ways, not set in stone, set about, set forth, set off, set the stage for, set up, set apart, set aside, set the table, set a fire, set an alarm, set sail, set a record, set a good example, set a precedent, set a trap, set foot, and setback.
The winner of the polysemy contest is “run.” The Oxford English Dictionary lists almost 650 distinct but related uses of that word — just as a verb, not for multiple parts of speech.
A sampling: run for office, run on electricity, a contract with a year to run, these colors won’t run, my nose is running, the boundary runs west, chills run up my spine, she runs the bases well, don’t run a red light, run the wires through the wall, run your car off the road, don’t run the risk, big ears run in the family, how to run a machine or run a store, run a tab at a bar, run a story, and run a hot bath.
For more candidates as contenders in the polysemy contest, consider “put,” “go,” “take,” “stand,” “get,” “fall,” and “strike.” How many uses of each of those words can you think of?
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Both em dashes and semicolons are punctuation marks that create a pause for effect. But one isolates while the other unites. Do you know which is which?
Punctuation choices matter. The right mark can sharpen your tone, drive home a point, and improve readability. But choose the wrong punctuation, and your sentence becomes disjointed or difficult to understand. Two of the most commonly confused punctuation marks are em dashes and semicolons, which serve distinct purposes.
An em dash is expressive and flexible, often used in creative writing to create a dramatic pause. In some cases, a pair of em dashes can be used together to interrupt a thought, as seen in this example from P.L. Travers’ Mary Poppins (1934): “The same substance composes us — the tree overhead, the stone beneath us, the bird, the beast, the star — we are all one, all moving to the same end.” These em dashes create a conversational tone, drawing the reader deeper into the idea.
Alternatively, in recording everyday conversation, you might use an em dash as a way to set off a thought that needs emphasis: “I can’t believe I forgot my book on the train again — ugh!” Em dashes are a great creative tool, but it’s best not to overuse them in formal writing, as they do lose their impact.
Sometimes, writers use an em dash when they actually need a semicolon. Here’s an example of an em dash incorrectly replacing a semicolon: “It rained heavily this morning — we managed to go to the park anyway.” A semicolon is a better choice for this sentence because the clauses are meant to be linked, not separated.
Semicolons are precise and formal, forming a bridge between two closely related, yet independent, clauses. Think of them as a soft transition between ideas without dramatizing them. A Tale of Two Cities(1859) by Charles Dickens provides an example of semicolon use: “There were a king with a large jaw and a queen with a plain face, on the throne of England; there were a king with a large jaw and a queen with a fair face, on the throne of France.” Here, the semicolon joins two connected, complete thoughts.
If you’re ever unsure which to use, remember that em dashes isolate or interrupt, while semicolons join together.
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The English language has memorable stand-ins for “fairness” and “forgettability”: “even Steven” and “plain Jane.” Thanks to rhythm and familiarity, these phrases have endured for several centuries.
There’s a long-standing practice in English of incorporating proper names into everyday expressions — think “lazy Susan” or “Roger that.” Among the most familiar of these are “even Steven” and “plain Jane,” two phrases that, despite their different meanings, appear to have emerged in similar ways.
“Plain Jane” functions as both a noun, referring to a person who is unadorned or unremarkable, and an adjective, usually hyphenated as “plain-Jane,” to characterize someone or something that is not fancy or glamorous. While the phrase is rarely meant as praise, it’s not necessarily harsh. For example, in the context of the Anne Hathaway film The Princess Diaries, you might say, “Mia Thermopolis was a plain-Jane student until discovering she was a princess.”
This phrase was documented early in its usage in a 1912 novel: “She sha’n’t be a Plain Jane and No Nonsense, with her hair screwed back like a broom…” Unlike many English turns of phrase, “plain Jane” doesn’t have a deeper meaning; it emerged as a simple rhyming construction built around the common name “Jane.”
A similar story likely explains the origin of “even Steven” (or “even Stephen”): It’s another rhyming expression. It can be used as an adjective meaning “equal, fair, or tied,” so one might say, for instance, “We split the dinner bill even Steven.” An early recorded use dates to 1837, when a writer described balancing in a canoe: “I either sets right in the middle, or puts one leg one side and t’other t’other; which is sorter ‘even Stephen’-like.” Here, the sense of physical balance mirrors the figurative meaning of the modern phrase.
But unlike “plain Jane,” “even Steven” may have another explanation. In 19th-century British English, “steven” was briefly used as slang for money. The Oxford English Dictionary notes that it remains unclear whether this monetary sense influenced the saying, given its frequent association with splitting sums of money equally. Either way, the endurance of “even Steven” and “plain Jane” exemplifies how sound alone — in this case a singsong rhyme — can be enough to secure an expression’s longevity.
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The dime was first minted in America in 1796, but it wasn’t until the 1930s that the idiom “a dime a dozen” come into use. In the early 20th century, “a dime a dozen” was a sales pitch for a good deal. When eggs were sold for 10 cents per dozen, the customer paid less than a penny an egg. What a bargain! By the 1920s, variety stores were known as “dime stores” and “5 & 10s” because they sold an assortment of inexpensive household goods for a nickel or dime. They were the equivalent of today’s dollar stores, and we can safely assume the phrase “dime a dozen” came out of these stores.
Today, a dozen eggs costs over $2.50 on average (except when they peaked at $6.22 in March 2025). A dime in the 1930s was worth as much as about $2.36 today, but “two-thirty-six a dozen” doesn’t have the alliterative allure of “a dime a dozen.”
The meaning of “a dime a dozen” evolved from signifying a bargain to refer figuratively to anything cheap, commonplace, or easy to come by. Instead of referring to the benefit of a great deal, the phrase transitioned to being used with a tone of dismissiveness or criticism — if something is so cheap, there must be a surplus. It was even used to describe people. For example, in 1931, The NorthernMiner newspaper published an article about mediocre pugilists (boxers) as “nothing but dime a dozen fighters.”
“A dime a dozen” has been a handy idiom in pop culture, too. In the 1942 film Casablanca, Humphrey Bogart’s jaded character, Rick Blaine, says, “Beautiful women are a dime a dozen,” as he is fighting becoming emotionally involved with Ingrid Bergman’s Ilsa. More recently, in 2005, Margaret Atwood published the novella The Penelopiad, in which she describes the Daughters of Naiads as “a dime a dozen … the place was crawling with them.”
“A dime a dozen” remains a useful idiom in conversations today. For example, to promote individuality, you’ll find “#NotADimeADozen” in social media hashtags. Someone describing Instagram influencers? “A dime a dozen.” A review might state, “New coffee shops are a dime a dozen in Seattle.” A commenter could complain, “These inspirational posts are a dime a dozen.”
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Beards are serious business. Just ask Shakespeare, who wrote in Much Ado About Nothing, “He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man.” Facial hair can be more than a simple matter of fashion. It can say a lot about a person, whether it’s the serious whiskers of a stern general, the flamboyant flourishes of a jazz musician, or the hefty growth of a lumberjack.
When it comes to the etymology of facial hair styles, sometimes the origins are clear. Handlebar, horseshoe, and pencil mustaches, for example, are all self-explanatory — they’re named after what they resemble. Other styles, however, have names that might leave you scratching your dappled chin in curious contemplation. Here we take a look at the fascinating world of pogonotrophy (the fancy word for beard growing) and the etymological origins of some of the most popular facial hair styles.
Van Dyke
The Van Dyke beard is a sophisticated combination of a mustache and a chin beard. This moustache can be of varying sizes and styles, and the chin typically incorporates a goatee (see below), but with one important characteristic — the mustache and the hair on the chin are not connected (and the cheeks remain clean-shaven). The style is rumored to take its name from the 17th-century Flemish painter Anthony van Dyck, who wore the distinct style in a self-portrait. His subjects included King Charles I of England, who also sported the stylish look.
The Van Dyke beard became enormously popular across Europe in the 1600s, faded away at the end of the century, and later had a resurgence in the 1800s. It has remained in fashion ever since, adorning many famous faces from General Custer to Colonel Sanders to Johnny Depp. The spelling has varied over the years — Van Dyck, Van Dyke, Vandyke — due to shifting English spelling conventions.
Goatee
The goatee could easily fall into the category of “self-explanatory beard names.” The style is named after the tuft of hair on a billy goat’s chin. But the suffix “-ee” in “goatee” is somewhat unusual — it could end with “-y” or “-ie,” but for some unknown reason, the diminutive variant “-ee” was chosen and has been used since at least 1841, according to written citations.
In more recent years, “goatee” has become an umbrella term for any facial hair incorporating the chin but not the cheeks. But some purists argue that once you add a mustache, it’s technically a Van Dyke, not a goatee. Either way, it’s been an enduring look, sported by everyone from beatniks to ’90s rock stars to depictions of Satan.
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Soul Patch
Limiting your facial hair to just a small tuft below the lower lip is a bold move, and one that requires a certain je ne sais quoi to pull off successfully. The exact origins of the soul patch are difficult to trace, but the style was popularized by jazz musicians in the 1940s and 1950s. These included the legendary jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, who called it his “jazz dab.” The term “soul patch” didn’t appear in print until the late 1970s — one early reference comes from a 1979 issue of Rolling Stone, which describes the facial hair of the Blues Brothers. The “soul” connection likely stems from the style’s association with various types of soul music, but the exact origin remains a mystery.
Sideburns
The term “sideburns” is a classic example of linguistic reversal. The style, which today refers to the hair that grows on the side of the face in front of the ears, was originally called “burnsides.” It was named after General Ambrose Burnside, a Union general during the American Civil War who sported magnificently bushy facial hair consisting of abundant sideburns connected to his mustache, while keeping his chin clean-shaven.
By most accounts, Burnside was quite a mediocre general — but his facial hair was legendary. In the 1870s, people began calling this distinctive style “burnsides” in his honor. But within just a few years, the syllables had flipped to create “sideburns,” likely because the hair was literally on the sides of the face. Burnside’s actual style, complete with bushy mustache, soon fell out of favor, but people carried on wearing the side whiskers — and with “sideburns” being a more descriptive name than “burnsides,” the linguistic reversal stuck and remains common today.
If you haven’t heard of the yeard, you should probably hang out with the cool kids more often — or at least the ones old enough to have massive amounts of facial hair. The yeard represents not just a style but a commitment. It’s a portmanteau of “year” and “beard,” referring to a full year of beard growth. Unlike most facial hair terms that describe a specific shape or technique, a yeard is purely temporal: It’s whatever your natural beard growth produces over 365 days, with no shaving or excessive trimming.
“Yeard” has yet to make it into most dictionaries, at least in reference to beards, but the unrelated Old English word “yeard” means a small, uncultivated area attached to a house (rather than a large uncultivated area attached to a face). But “yeard” does have an entry in the Urban Dictionary: “A beard grown out over a year, or that looks scraggly and icky enough to have been grown for an entire year.”
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