Brian Litter on W.N.C. and let's end the show with some language fun with Ann Kurzan, a professor of English

language and literature, linguistics and education at the University of Michigan.

She has a new book just out today called Says Who, A Kinder Funer

Usage Guide for everyone who cares about words.

Yes, she wrote Funner, and we'll explain why that sounds wrong,

and who decides these things anyway.

Welcome, Professor Curzan, welcome to WNYC.

Thanks for joining us.

Oh, Brian, I'm delighted to be here.

Thank you for the invitation.

And before we get to Funer and open up the phones for listener participation here,

let's talk about your overall approach to what's right and wrong with language

usage instead of telling us what's right and wrong like no double negatives, no

irregardless, no ain't, you describe what you call a struggle between

gromandos and wordies. So explain who those two groups are.

Sure. The word gromando, which I think is a great one, I want to credit Lizzy Skernick, who

publicized this word in the New York Times magazine in the section, that should be a word word and it's used to describe someone who is

constantly correcting other people's grammar. In writing the book I came to realize that I think every single one of us has a little

inner gromando in our head. That inner gromando may have a really big loud

microphone or a smaller microphone but but it's there.

And when we hear new bits of language or unfamiliar language that surprises us,

that inner gromando may perk up and say,

...