Tuesday's Tool: Word Detective

This post is to introduce you to (or remind you of) a site that is partly a reference tool and partly a fun thing if you happen to love words and etymology, The Word Detective, subtitled Words and Language in a Humorous Vein on the Web Since 1995, a collection of newspaper columns (and more) on word and phrase origins.

An example of a partial entry (from a column on "blurbs") is this gem:

Incidentally, while Burgess was justly proud of his invention of "blurb," he grew so sick of hearing his "Purple Cow" recited that he eventually penned a sequel: "Ah yes, I wrote The Purple Cow/I'm sorry now I wrote it/But I can tell you anyhow/I'll kill you if you quote it."

SUBJECTS: REFERENCE RICHES