Should you start a sentence with 'hopefully'? Why we might not recognize alien language.

About this episode

The episode discusses the controversy surrounding the use of 'hopefully' as a sentence adverb and explores the study of alien languages.

1178. Do you cringe when someone says "Hopefully, he'll pass the test"? This week, we look at why "hopefully" as a sentence adverb has been controversial for decades, even though the Associated Press accepted it in 2012, and it's been common since the 1930s. Then, we look at xenolinguistics — the study of alien languages — asking what human languages have in common and why (and how) alien languages might be completely different. The xenolinguistics segment was by Natalie Schilling . 🔗  Join the Grammar Girl Patreon. 🔗  Share your familect recording in   Speakpipe  or by leaving a voicemail at 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475) 🔗  Watch my   LinkedIn Learning writing courses . 🔗  Subscribe to the   newsletter . 🔗  Find an edited   transcript . 🔗  Get   Grammar Girl books . | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | Grammar Girl is part of  the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network . Audio Engineer:  Castria Communications Director of Podcast: Holly Hutchings Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes, Rebekah Sebastian Podcast Associate: Maram Elnagheeb | Theme music by  Catherine…

People in this episode

Host: Mignon Fogarty

Guest: Natalie Schilling

Topics covered

• sentence adverbs
• xenolinguistics
• alien languages
• language controversy
• human languages

Keywords

• hopefully
• sentence adverb
• xenolinguistics
• alien language
• language study
• Associated Press
• language controversy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Associated Press, Grammar Girl, Quick and Dirty Tips, Castria Communications, LinkedIn Learning

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