MED Magazine - Issue 37 - April 2006

MED Web Watch
by Mairi MacDonald

World Wide Words
www.worldwidewords.org

A site dedicated to English words old and new, forgotten or just plain weird. Written by Michael Quinion, World Wide Words gives a comprehensive and entertaining etymology of well-known words and phrases as well as an overview of the very latest additions to the English language. Obscure words are not forgotten – often cropping up in the Questions and Answers and Weird Words sections.

There is an impressive amount of information available and the navigation menu on the left ensures that you are only two clicks away from any article. It's a great site for just browsing, but if you're after something specific, the index and search facility also makes it easy to find things. The site is regularly updated and you can subscribe to a weekly newsletter.

Each word is given a single webpage – ideal for classroom handouts. The evidence behind each word is clearly presented. So even if fustilugs will never be the most useful word you teach your class, the background stories of these words give a valuable insight into the fluid nature of English.

Score
current and archived content
up-to-dateness/topicality
graphic design and navigation
speed and technical performance
features and functionality
overall score	23 out of 25