Language Commentator Geoffrey Nunberg examines the idioms of Berkeley, California, one of the most liberal and tolerant communities in America.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg examines the term "911."

Language Commentator Geoffrey Nunberg discusses the logic behind the dictionary and thesaurus.

Linguist Geoffrey Nunberg reviews "Cultural Misunderstandings: The French-American Experience" by Raymonde Carroll. It's a look at the different ways different cultures behave and think.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg considers the efforts to make talking robots.

Linguist Geoffrey Nunberg comments on the history and grammatical use of split infinitives.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg talks about how the French are trying to keep their language pure.

These days, there’s a lot of public concern about objectionable content on the Web. Fresh Air’s Linguist Geoff Nunberg discusses the problems with so-called “censorware”, the software programs that claim to screen out pornography and other offensive material.

Language Commentator Geoffrey Nunberg discusses the way the language of the drug culture has worked through the language of the mainstream.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg talks about the phrase "curling up with a good book," and what it says about the way we read.

Linguist Geoffrey Nunberg reviews a new book called "Doublespeak" by William Lutz, chairman of the Committee on Public Doublespeak of the National Council of Teachers of English. Lutz has been keeping files with examples of doublespeak used in politics and advertising and has compiled some of them in his book.

Language commentator Geoffrey Nunberg looks back on the long nights he spent in a private club in Rome where the only requirement for membership was that you be a native-English speaker. He reflects on how the language brought together people who otherwise had nothing in common.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg considers the way politicians and journalists are pronouncing place names associated with the war on Iraq.

Early in January, the American Dialect Society will meet in San Francisco to vote for 2008's Word of the Year. Several dictionaries have already made their own selections. After looking over the field, Fresh Air's resident linguist has a candidate, too.

Language Commentator Geoffrey Nunberg discusses the overuse of the superlatives "world-class" and "serious."

Chess master Garry Kasparov may have lost to Deep Blue, but linguist Geoff Nunberg says there are some areas where humans will beat computers -- at least for now.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg on distinctions in grammar.

Linguist Geoffrey Nunberg has completed a computer-generated summary of a large number of Republican convention speeches delivered this week. The software analyzed the frequency of key words and recurring themes and produced a five sentence platform for the party.

How do you draw the line between dramatic license and historical accuracy? That was the essence of the controversy over the recent ABC docudrama The Path to 9/11, just as it was a few years ago with the CBS miniseries that put words in Ronald Reagan's mouth that he never uttered. Docudrama may be a new word, but it raises old questions about truth and fiction.

Language commentator Geoff Nunberg says that Americans who incorporate British English into their speech and writing often use words and expressions incorrectly. For instance, most people don't understand that "shall" and "will" aren't interchangeable.