Notes that using words effectively and creatively make for interesting reading. Explains 19 oxymorons scholastic journalists might use. Proposes that some students may use oxymorons to try to make sense out of the strange world of words that are used for communication. (PM)

Proposes that because student journalists and professional mass communicators put their words on public display, they cannot afford to take risks with being misunderstood. Argues for making word distinctions that are as precise as possible. Explains 10 commonly interchanged word pairs. (PM)

Contends that though words evolve in their usage and meaning over time, few words in the business language have changed as much as the term "win-win." Explains that once confined to literature on conflict management, the term has been co-opted in the trade press and used incorrectly in place of the term "compromise." Describes…

Presents a biographical sketch of S. I. Hayakawa and the results of a recent interview with him over the impact of his writing. (KEH)

Evaluates two hypotheses that argue that the Spanish demonstrative verbs "aqui" and "aca" can alternate in some contexts. The results of a quantitative study of Venezuelan Spanish show that the delimination hypothesis, which states that the place denoted by "aqui" is less limited and defined than the place denoted by "aca," is valid. (29…

Reflecting on the important works of Alma Sabatini in the area of sexism, her work and those of other Italians is compared with researchers in other countries, particularly the United States, France, and Germany. The Italian language is analyzed, pointing out instances of sexism. (CFM)

If it is immediate, definite anaphoric reference of an indefinite syntagm "'un'+noun" in French (e.g., "un chien...l'animal") seems appropriate for an "unfaithful anaphor" (e.g., "un chien...l'animal") but not a "faithful" anaphor (e.g., "un chien...le chien"). This rule helps to identify…

Shows that children (mean age 4 years and 4 months) not only know the meaning and use of complex reciprocal anaphors like "each other," but that they also have knowledge of subtle differences in the possible interpretations of such anaphors depending on the type of predicates involved. (Author/VWL)

A total of 271 items--words, phrases and affixes--were added to the common Spanish dictionary in the period between October and December 1974. This article lists the principal additions, each organized within a larger semantic category. (Text is in Spanish.) (TL)

A bilingual dictionary must be more accurate in definitions than a monolingual. This paper touches on problems of transference between languages, linguistic "cannibalism," and lexical versus connotative meaning. (CK)

Examines the ways in which the meanings of words are changed through usage. (RB)

An essay on the Spanish word "vaina," which originally meant "sheath,""scabbard,""pod" or "husk," but which in several Latin American countries now translates as "nuisance," or "bother." (Text is in Spanish.) (CK)

Ambiguity can be enjoyed in statements without context, in unclear comparisons, in words often confused, and in casual disorders. In spite of the grammarians' efforts to "disambiguate," it is doubtful that any willful act or combination of acts can eliminate ambiguity, since language is a system of symbols which can stand for one thing or another.…

While the prenominal or postnominal position of descriptive adjectives in Spanish has been widely discussed, there is a partial aspect of this topic which is either ignored or dealt with in a perfunctory manner, namely, the possible existence of a semantic principle determining the sequence of descriptive adjectives in coordinate series of two or…

Discusses the use of the most frequently used Spanish preposition, the "a." Examples of the various instances of use are given. (Text is in Spanish.) (TL)