English Language FAQ

Free printable "A Visit from St. Nicholas", also known as "The Night Before Christmas" and "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" from its first line, is a poem first published anonymously in 1823. It is generally attributed to Clement Clarke Moore. What is "arguably the best-known verses ever written by an American" has  helped to fix the figure of Santa Claus in the popular imagination. In one of his last recordings, Louis Armstrong beautifully evokes the childhood he never experienced. Take it away, Sachmo.

A Christmas Carol  (1843) has been one of the most influential novels every written. It introduced many memorable words, phrases and idioms into the English language .  Many of these are used in Stave One Bah Humbug!   interjection . An exclamation of irritation or disgust.  Dead as doornail  - obviously/conclusively dead. Ghost of Christmas Past :   noun.   A person or thing from a past you might choose to forget  Gruel  - a thin liquid food of oatmeal - used to refer to cheap/poor food.  Scrooge:   noun . Someone with cold/mean/miserly attitude. Also someone who transforms from bad to good. Tight fisted  - ungenerous  Famous quotations A Christmas Carol is also one of the most widely quoted texts in literature. Here are some widely used examples from the opening description of Scrooge: Marley was dead, to begin with … Old Marley was as dead as a doornail. Oh! but he was …tight -fisted The cold within him froze his old features. He carried his own low temperature alwa

Nativity derives from the Latin 'natal' meaning birth. 

We want some figgy pudding So bring it right here! Figgy or fig pudding is a generic term covering a number of medieval dishes served at Christmas. These could be sweet or savory and usually included figs,  honey seasonal fruits and nuts. Later, figs were often omitted while large measures of rum or other distilled alcohol became obligatory We Wish You a Merry Christmas Figgy pudding has entered popular culture via the carol. This originated in the west of England and was revived in the Edwardian period by composer, conductor and organist Arthur Warrell (1883-1939).  We Wish You a Merry Christmas is from the wassailing tradition, where villagers visit the gentry demanding ale to celebrate the season.  This combines jollity with a  barely concealed menace hinted at in the words: We won’t go until we get some So bring it out here! Doubtless Mr Warrell played down the drunken rudeness in his five part madrigal version for the University of Bistol.  If your guests 'won't go u

‘The arrival of a notable person or thing’ Oxford English Dictionary. Photo by  Grant Whitty  on  Unsplash Advent  derives from the Latin root, adventus. This approximates as ‘arrival’ through advenire , with ad meaning ‘to’ and venire ‘come’. When used in general English, advent describes a 'starting point' as in the advent of  mobile phones.  The word itself is not biblical - the first reference to it in Christian teaching is in the late sixth century. By around the year 800 CE mid winter festivals were adapted to the Christian calendar. Advent became an umbrella term to describe the immediate period leading up to the celebration of the birth of Christ on Christmas Day.  An extend version of the post is available here   (3 minut Medium free read) Where does the world Nativity come from?

‘Bah!’ said Scrooge. ‘Humbug! What’s Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money?  For finding yourself a year older, but not an hour richer?' Photo by  Annie Spratt  on  Unsplash For Scrooge (and Scrooge McDuck!)  Christmas is 'humbug'. In the modern sense of the term, 'humbug' is roughly synonymous with the more recent 'virtue signalling'. In other words, insincere or hypocritical speech aimed at gaining social acceptance. Was Scrooge an early opponent of virtue signalling? Not exactly. Scrooge's complaint is more against the idea of charity itself. He sees this as a fraudulent commercial trick aimed at 'picking a man's pocket'.  The poor, he argues, are the responsibility of the prisons and workhouses. This view contrasts with that of Scrooge's nephew, Fred: 'Christmas is a good time - a kind, forgiving, charitable time' But what is a humbug?   In British English, a striped candy/sweet.  It's boil

Frankincense is a gum resin with a strong smell. It comes from the Boswellia tree.

The word Emmanuel is the Hebrew for 'God is with us'.  For Christians the birth of Jesus is the physical incarnation of this:   Mt:1:23: Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. Luke:1:26-39: 26: This is made explicit in  Hark the Herald Angel Sing: Glory to God in the ... Jesus our Emmanuel . ...  It is also the the theme of the most beautiful carols: