The Vocabula Review

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I admire how you're putting together all these informative articles. As the former editor of a law journal (for more than a decade), I know how much work goes into assembling and editing all the pieces. Congratulations. — Bryan A. Garner
I am pleased to be a contributor to The Vocabula Review, which is an important undertaking and one, by my reckoning, squarely on the side of the angels. — Joseph Epstein
I learned about your publication from a friend at Dartmouth. I'm very impressed with it and the tone you set for it. — David Grambs
I am exceedingly impressed with the job you are doing with The Vocabula Review. — Richard Lederer

Dear Friend of the English Language,

Along with the evolution of language — the thousands of neologisms that new technologies and new thinking have brought about, for instance — there has been a concurrent, if perhaps less recognizable, devolution of language. The English language has become more precise for some users of it while becoming more plodding for others. Not a small part of this new cumbrousness is due to the loss of distinctions between words, the misuse of words, and other abuses of language.

Language Guardian

That a U.S. presidential candidate can cry Is our children learning, an admired basketball star can use the word conversate, a well-known college professor can say vociferous when he means voracious, and another can scold a student for using the word juggernaut because she believes it means jigaboo is disturbing. The Vocabula Review strives to combat the degradation of our language.

Equally important, we celebrate its opulence and its elegance. The English language is wonderfully expressive and infinitely flexible. There are many thousands of words and many hundreds of ways in which to use them. The Vocabula Review seeks to promote the richness of our language.

In sum, The Vocabula Review battles nonstandard, careless English and embraces clear, expressive English. We hope we can encourage our readers to do as much.

Read more about TVR here.

Here are some views on Vocabula.

There's nothing else like Vocabula, certainly not on the web — nothing as apt takes such lovely turns. I don't know what I'd do without it. — Scot Zarela

This is my fifth or sixth renewal. What a bargain! TVR is a wonderful teaching magazine. My only gripe is that it wasn't around earlier in my life. When I think of all those blunders .... — Richard Northrup

The Vocabula Review is probably not more important than food but it bumps up there as a pretty close second. — Doug Bartlett

I delight in TVR. One of my daily treats is to play the Definition a Day Quiz. Thanks for this feature and keep the words coming! — Mary Ruth Holthaus

I continue to enjoy your journal. Thanks for all the hard work that makes it happen. — Mark Shadle

Please renew my soul. — John Maybury

I have stolen a Vocabula subscription. How 'bout that? I just renewed. ... You gotta admit it's a steal, and bound to be the best value I'll get for my hard-earned in '05. — David Murray-Smith

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Vocabula is like nothing I've seen on the Internet. ... I am overwhelmed by the wealth of resources available with this subscription, and all the helpful functionality of the site. — Tom McGlinn

I have renewed my subscription. I can't imagine being without it. — Jenell Larson

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I wanted to let you know that since mid-September I've been teaching at a college in Poland (about 50 km SE of Gdansk). If you could send the TVR numbers remaining on my subscription this way, life in Poland, which ain't bad, would be even better. — Mark Zimmermann

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I have just discovered your site. What a relief. I have spent nearly all my life trying to teach people to write clear, well-formed sentences in a country where there is little acknowledgement of the need for such things. In the past, under apartheid, there was every reason to use language to distort and confuse reality. Now there is a rejection of standards in the name of democracy and freedom. "A society is generally as lax as its language" strikes a real chord. If you have a mailing list please put me on it. Otherwise, a carrier pigeon or smoke signals will do. — Michael Rice