( CNN ) -- Hast thou been patterning thy parlance to evoke the vernacular of William Shakespeare ? William Shakespeare is being honored in Chicago and on the Web on the 445th anniversary of his birth . Well , get thee to an Internet machine hastily , sirrah or mistress , for thou hast but two days from Tuesday to unleash thy inner bard . Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago , Illinois , has declared Thursday as `` Talk Like Shakespeare Day '' to celebrate the 445th birthday of the man many consider the greatest playwright in the English language . While the bard 's actual birth date is not known for sure , many scholars think it was April 23 , 1564 . In a proclamation issued last week , Daley encouraged city residents to `` screw their courage to the sticking place and celebrate Shakespeare by vocal acclamation of his words . '' There 's no reason why the rest of the country can not play along , peppering our conversation with -- as the mayor suggested -- phrases such as `` prithee '' and `` fie ! '' or , if you 're at work , `` pass yonder stapler . '' It is n't as difficult as it sounds . After all , Shakespeare single-handedly contributed more than 1,700 words and phrases to the English language -- everything from `` foul play '' to `` monumental '' to , of course , `` all 's well that ends well . '' But should you need some help , head over to talklikeshakespeare.org -- a Web site that the Chicago Shakespeare Theater unveiled Monday . Here , visitors can share their `` Shakespeariences '' -- their first memory of Shakespeare or their favorite quotes ; subscribe to a Twitter feed where the Bard of Avon will generously translate your 21st-century English into its 16th-century equivalent ; or listen to the Q Brothers singing about the finer points of speaking Shakespearean . Did we mention it 's a rap song ? The Web site also offers 10 quick pointers on how to talk like Bill . A sampling : . Finally , if you 're inclined to yell at the driver who cuts you off as you head to work , why settle for `` idiot , '' when `` thou rank white-livered canker-blossom '' is so much more satisfying . For more ammunition , you can consult the random Shakespearean insult generator on the British site william-shakespeare.org.uk . `` Thou vain fly-bitten moldwarp ! '' and `` Thou gorbellied clapper-clawed scurvy-knave ! '' are just a sample of the offerings .
` ` Talk Like Shakespeare Day '' celebrates the bard 's 445th birthday on Thursday . Chicago mayor urges citizens to ` ` screw their heads to the sticking place '' Theater group promotes more use of ` ` ' , '' ` ` prithee , '' ` ` fie , '' and ` ` in sooth '' One web site gives tips on how to talk like Shakespeare ; another offers Shakespearean readings .