Main content

Language Games

Chris Ledgard visits the International Linguistics Olympiad to look at the language and peculiarity of puzzles.

From Ancient Greece, to Saturday nights watching TV, word puzzles have fascinated people for thousands of years. Chris Ledgard takes us on a journey through the language of puzzles, from anagrams to Call My Bluff, and visits the International Linguistics Olympiad to meet to some of the sharpest puzzle-solving minds in the business.

Puzzle setter for The Guardian, Chris Maslanka, explains the secrets of puzzle setting; Marcel Danesi from the University of Toronto explains the Riddle of the Sphinx; and scientist Katherine Friedlander explains how you can improve your puzzle solving.

Producer: Melvin Rickarby.

Available now

28 minutes

Last on

Mon 26 Aug 2013 23:00
麻豆社 Radio 4

More episodes

Previous

Fashion

Next

Language Laws

See all episodes from Word of Mouth

The Language of Puzzles

Can you come up with a better anagram for Word of Mouth than Chris Ledgard鈥檚:聽 Worm Food Hut?聽 Contact the programme via

Broadcasts

  • Tue 20 Aug 2013 16:00
    麻豆社 Radio 4
  • Mon 26 Aug 2013 23:00
    麻豆社 Radio 4

From blunk to brickfielder: our wonderful words for weather

From blunk to brickfielder: our wonderful words for weather

Exploring creative descriptions for wind, rainfall and sunny spells from around the world

Digital body language 鈥� how to communicate better online

Digital body language 鈥� how to communicate better online

We need to find new ways of talking to each other 鈥渧irtually鈥�.

Coinages that changed the world 鈥� and some that tried to...

Coinages that changed the world 鈥� and some that tried to...

Exploring the hidden histories of obscure words, and common buzz phrases.

Ittibitium, borborygmus, and Ba humbugi 鈥� 14 wonderful science words you鈥檝e never heard of

Ittibitium, borborygmus, and Ba humbugi 鈥� 14 wonderful science words you鈥檝e never heard of

Michael Rosen puts the language of science under the microscope.

Download this programme

Subscribe to this programme or download individual episodes.

Keywords for Our Time

Series of programmes examining key phrases in public debate.

Smiley face: Seven things you didn't know about emoji

Some facts about emoji - possibly the world's first truly global form of communication.

The funny words that kids invent

Have a look at some of the fantastic words that children invent and reimagine.

Podcast

  • Word of Mouth

    Series exploring the world of words and the ways in which we use them