Rebecca Hector
All Things Considered HostRebecca Hector is the host of All Things Considered at Michigan Public. She also co-hosts Michigan Public's weekly language podcast That’s What They Say with English professor Anne Curzan.
After earning degrees in English and American Studies from Michigan State University, Hector began her radio career as a newsroom intern at WKAR in East Lansing. She completed additional news internships at WBEZ Chicago and KAJX Aspen.
Hector first came to Michigan Public in 2014 as a producer for Morning Edition. She served as a general assignment reporter and fill-in host before becoming the station’s full-time Weekend Edition host in 2016. She became the All Things Considered host in 2023.
When she’s not on the airwaves, Hector enjoys hiking, Korean food and hunting for vinyl records. She’s also Bruce Springsteen’s number one fan.
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Only some English speakers have grammars that allow them to say “We might could make that better” or “We might should eat before the movie.” -
When you have a language podcast, you come across a lot of usages that make you think, “I would never say that.” A little research and a few contextual examples later, you might just change your mind.
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Mountains may be peaked, collars may be peaked, but when we’re sick, we’re not “peaked” but “peak-ed.”
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This is a bespoke segment of That’s What They Say that focuses on “bespoke.”
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Listeners write to us regularly with their language peeves, which we love. Sometimes they call these peeves their "pet peeves." -
When we inquire about something, it doesn’t really matter if we "inquire" or "enquire." However, with the verb "insure," it matters if we "insure" or "ensure."
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With the words "disinterested" and "uninterested," it’s not that a distinction has been lost, but rather that a distinction has been intentionally created.
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If something is crummy, then we could also call it lousy, which gives us a clue about how crummy came to mean what it means.
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When we’re talking about a small book for teaching children to read, or really any short book that introduces a topic, there are two competing pronunciations of the word for that book.
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The word "kid" is already informal, and now we have the word "kiddo" living alongside it.
