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The increased acceptance of the word "hopefully" to modify an entire sentence symbolizes a battle over the evolving English language: prescriptivism vs. descriptivism again.

When it comes to language, many people distinguish between "prescriptivism" (the idea that correct usage should be defined by authorities) and "descriptivism" (the idea that any way a lot of people use the language is correct).

Baltimore Sun editor John E. McIntyre tells you why you should forget everything your teacher taught you when it comes to gender-neutral pronouns.

National Public Radio interviewed linguist John McWhorter on words and semantic change. The interview provides several contemporary examples showing how words and language are constantly changing. Mc Whorter asserts, "I think that we should learn not to listen to people using natural language as committing errors because there's no such thing as making a mistake in your language if a critical mass of other people speaking your language are doing the same thing."

Wallace's erudite essay explores the conflict between prescriptivists and descriptivists. Lengthy, but a worthy read!.

Prescriptivist vs. descriptivist views of language. Grammatical rules are akin to dress codes: They were once dogma, but now are in a constant flux.

In his new book, _Bad English_, author Ammon Shea examines the evolution of English, documenting the changing usage and social acceptability of 200+ English words.

Konglish is the term used to describe the variety of English unique to Korea. It is just one of many varieties of the English language that exists far beyond the borders of so-called "inner circle" Englishes - those spoken in countries such as Britain and the US, for example. The author takes umbrage against those who argue that Konglish is incorrect. From a linguistic standpoint, deeming only one variety of grammar and vocabulary usage as correct is, nonsensical. Rather, Konglish reflects cultural identity, connects with linguistic diversity and above all, is already used to communicate in Korea, which is the ultimate purpose of language.