William Shakespeare didn’t just write plays - he rewrote the English language. Over 400 years after his death, his influence lingers in everyday speech, from casual conversation to high literature. Whether you’re ‘in a pickle’ or ‘breaking the ice’, chances are you’re quoting the Bard without even realising it.
Words Shakespeare (Probably) Invented
Shakespeare’s plays introduced hundreds of words to English, many of which stuck. Some were adaptations of existing terms, while others seem entirely his own. Here are a few that survive today:
- Eyeball (The Tempest)
- Gossip (The Comedy of Errors)
- Lonely (Coriolanus)
- Swagger (A Midsummer Night’s Dream)
Assassination
/əˌsæsɪˈneɪʃən/Phrases We Owe to Shakespeare
Beyond single words, Shakespeare’s plays birthed entire phrases that remain in use. Some are so common their origins are forgotten:
- ‘All that glitters is not gold’ (The Merchant of Venice)
- ‘Wear one’s heart on one’s sleeve’ (Othello)
- ‘Wild-goose chase’ (Romeo and Juliet)
Grammar and Syntax Innovations
Shakespeare didn’t just expand vocabulary - he played with grammar. He turned nouns into verbs (‘to ghost’), added prefixes to invent new words (‘uncomfortable’), and bent sentence structures to fit iambic pentameter. His flexibility set precedents for modern English’s adaptability.
Shakespeare’s Global Legacy
The Bard’s influence isn’t confined to English. His works have been translated into every major language, often introducing loanwords. For example, German borrowed ‘Schauplatz’ (showplace) from ‘Hamlet’. Meanwhile, Latin’s impact on English parallels how Shakespeare’s phrases spread globally.
Even constructed languages like Klingon borrow storytelling techniques from his plays.
Why It Matters Today
Shakespeare’s linguistic creativity mirrors how languages evolve. Just as Finnish loanwords or Ukrainian youth slang reshape their tongues, Shakespeare’s experiments remind us that language is alive - and always up for reinvention.
