An amazing study shows that tool use and language are connected in the brain and shows how using one can make you better at the other, and vice versa. Plus we look at some tricky possessives. Can you say "a friend of mine's car"?Transcript:  https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/how-using-pliers-improves-your-languageThe tools and language segment is by Claudio Brozzoli a researcher at INSERM Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, and the Impact team at the Karolinska Institute, and Simon Thibault, a Postdoctoral Researcher at Lyon Neuroscience Research Center. It originally appeared on The Conversation and appears here through a Creative Commons license. Read the original (without my interjections).| Subscribe to the newsletter for regular updates.| Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing course.| Peeve Wars card game. | Grammar Girl books. | HOST: Mignon Fogarty| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475)| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.| Theme music by Catherine Rannus at beautifulmusic.co.uk.| Grammar Girl Social Media Links:https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/podcastshttps://www.tiktok.com/@therealgrammargirlhttp://twitter.com/grammargirlhttp://facebook.com/grammargirlhttp://instagram.com/thegrammargirlhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/grammar-girl

The delightful Ellen Jovin of the Grammar Table (you may have seen her sitting on the street answering grammar questions in your city) joined me to talk about her new book, "Rebel with a Clause," what possessed her to set up the Grammar Table in the first place, why Twitter is vastly better than Facebook for doing language polls, and more.

It's time for our quarterly listener question extravaganza! I answer your questions about the words "ripe," "lede," "prevent," "awesome," and "fulsome" and share some knowledge about MacGuffins and the drink known as a daisy.

People often ask why people say "no worries" or "no problem" instead of "you're welcome," and we actually found an answer! Also, we look at whether it's OK to use "whose" for inanimate objects in a sentence such as "The chair whose legs are broken."Transcript:  https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/why-nobody-says-youre-welcome-anymore-whose-chimichanga| Subscribe to the newsletter for regular updates.| Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing course.| Peeve Wars card game. | Grammar Girl books. | HOST: Mignon Fogarty| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475)| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.| Theme music by Catherine Rannus at beautifulmusic.co.uk.| Grammar Girl Social Media Links:https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/podcastshttps://www.tiktok.com/@therealgrammargirlhttp://twitter.com/grammargirlhttp://facebook.com/grammargirlhttp://instagram.com/thegrammargirlhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/grammar-girlReferences for the "you're welcome" segment by Valerie Fridland:Aijmer, Karin. 1996. Conversational routines in English: Convention and creativity. London et al.: Longman.Dinkin, Aaron. J. 2018. It's no problem to be polite: Apparent‐time change in responses to thanks. Journal of Sociolinguistics  22(2): 190-215. Jacobsson, M. 2002. Thank you and thanks in Early Modern English. ICAME Journal 26: 63-80.Rüegg, Larssyn. 2014. Thanks responses in three socio-economic settings: A variational pragmatics approach. Journal of Pragmatics 71. pp. 17–30.Schneider, Klaus P. 2005. ‘No problem, you’re welcome, anytime’: Responding to thanks in Ireland, England, and the U.S.A. In Anne Barron & Klaus P. Schneider (eds.), The pragmatics of Irish English,  Berlin & New York: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 101–139.References for the "whose" segment by Bonnie Mills:American Heritage Guide to Contemporary Usage and Style. 2005. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company,  pp. 505-6.American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Fourth edition. 2006. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, p. 1965.Burchfield, R. W, ed. 1996. The New Fowler’s Modern English Usage. Third edition. New York: Oxford, p. 563.

The numbers sections of style books finally pushed me over the edge, and I have some stories you won't believe! We also talk about how cool code-switching is.

For Independence Day, we look at the word "freedom" and the surprising words that came from the same roots. Plus, we look at odd sentences with double subjects and when you should (and shouldn't) use them.

What's up with the fancy-schmancy "ahnt" pronunciation of the word "aunt"? And why are the rules about capitalizing cocktail names so wonky? We have all the answers today!

"Father" as a word shows how we humans love to extend our metaphors. Did you know it was only relatively recently that priests were referred to as "father," for example? And then, for the 50th anniversary of the Watergate scandal, we look at the "-gate" suffix and what made it so successful that it has spread all over the world (even to non-English-speaking countries).

Are people from Liverpool really called "Liverpudlians"? Where does the name "Tar Heel" come from? We have the answers to some of the most interesting questions about demonyms: the names for people from specific places. Also, has anyone ever criticized you for using the word "healthy" instead of "healthful"? We explain why that happens. And finally, we've solved the mystery of "sussies."

This week, we look at what makes wisdom teeth so smart, how to properly write the name of your degree, and what's up with the "sussies" familect?