You have probably all heard of Shakespeare. He wrote a bunch of old books in a weird form of English with thees and thous and doths. But did you know his writings are the first known use of over one thousand seven hundred words? In fact, Shakespeare made up 8.5 percent of his written vocabulary. Some of these are still in use today, like bedroom, laughable, and reclusive. Shakespeare also invented many compounds. Some are cold comfort, a foregone conclusion, and tongue-tied.

He also invented many phrases that are still commonplace today. Some of these are, “It’s all Greek to me,” “Wear your heart on your sleeve,” “break the ice” and “play it fast and loose.” The play Macbeth is even the source of the first knock-knock joke. The great vowel shift also affected Shakespeare’s words or, more accurately, how they were pronounced. For example, the letter o was always pronounced like “oh” turning your house into a hos, and tea and sea rhymed with say. All in all, Shakespeare changed the English language in many important ways.