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The Engine Room

The Engine Room

http://engineroomblog.blogspot.com

A blog about English language use, publishing and the media in general – brought to you by a sub-editor (copy editor) on a weekly UK magazine and his former chief sub.

If you have a question about vocabulary, grammar or punctuation, why not ask us?

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  • Scraper + scoop + ladle = scrudle

    Posted on Sunday November 22nd, 2009 at 14:16 in metro, daily mail, portmanteau

    On Friday, Metro ran a story about the Scrudle, a plastic device which is "said to allow cooks to seamlessly scoop up equal amounts of ingredients without any spillages".It added:Scrudle, which rhymes with strudel and is a mixture of the words scrape...

  • Why is the TV show \'SMart\' called \'SMart\'?

    Posted on Friday November 20th, 2009 at 11:04 in television, names

    There's a long-running BBC TV show called SMart. It's about art and it's aimed at children. So why the name 'SMart'?Well, obviously, the word 'smart' contains within it the word 'art'. So far, so good. It's just that capital 'M' that bugs me.I would ...

  • The city of Derby, Iowa: population 131

    Posted on Thursday November 19th, 2009 at 15:08 in wikipedia, statistics and numbers

    The Wikipedia page on Derby, Iowa begins:Derby is a city in Lucas County, Iowa, United States. The population was 131 at the 2000 census.A city with 131 inhabitants! That made me laugh. Even St David's, the UK's smallest city, has a population of 1,8...

  • \'No More Big Gaps\'

    Posted on Wednesday November 18th, 2009 at 14:56 in brand name

    The company behind the adhesive 'No More Nails', UniBond, also makes a foam filler called 'No More Big Gaps'. What a great name.However while 'No More Nails' is a substitute for nails (in certain circumstances), 'No More Big Gaps' is not a substitute...

  • Eastenders and the \'Beale-L-T\'

    Posted on Monday November 16th, 2009 at 17:36 in television, puns

    It looks like the Eastenders crew has been having some fun with language.The cafe in the BBC soap opera is owned by a character called Ian Beale. And instead of the traditional BLT, Ian's cafe offers a 'Beale-L-T'.I've even managed to get a screengra...

  • Art criticism from Metro

    Posted on Friday November 13th, 2009 at 11:49 in metro, hyperbole

    According to Metro, a paper not renowned for its understatement, this portrait of Gordon Brown's wife Sarah "would struggle to make it on to the fridge door if it was painted by a three-year old".I'm fairly confident that any three-year-old producing...

Comments & Reviews

This blog is currently rated a 5.00 out of a possible 5 based on 4 comments.

Phidelm

5 stars Minnie

Excellent blog - and one I shall refer to, er, regularly ...!
Thanks to the blogging pair who run the site.

Posted: August 28th, 2009 | More Reviews From Phidelm | Report This Comment

riverScrap

5 stars Martin

Anyone who includes the Online Etymology Dictionary in links section wins my immediate, unconditional approval. Grammar nerds will love this blog

Posted: January 22nd, 2009 | More Reviews From riverScrap | Report This Comment

Enn

5 stars Enncrave

Your site is great for writers searching for tools and resources located in the sidebar. More power to you..

Posted: October 28th, 2008 | More Reviews From Enn | Report This Comment

Penguin

5 stars Anne Hickley

What a great blog! To think I've been married nearly a year and never realised my husband was a pogonotrophist!

Posted: August 11th, 2007 | More Reviews From Penguin | Report This Comment

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