cupcake
v.— «Once teams start to double-team Duran on the line, you’ll get a glimpse—a fleeting glimpse—of Pojoaque’s two stand-out middle linebackers, Steve Garcia and Ruben “Cupcake” Sisneros. Don’t let the nickname fool you. This cupcake is not of the frosted variety. At 6-2, 205, he can stick a ball carrier. The nickname was just something that the seniors gave him during his freshman season as motivation. “They told me, ‘damnit, quit cup-caking it out there. Hit somebody!,’” Sisneros said. “And it just stuck from there.”» —“Getting defensive” by Lee Yobbi in Pojoaque Santa Fe New Mexican Aug. 18, 2001. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
The words tough, through, and dough all end in O-U-G-H. So why don’t they rhyme? A lively new book addresses the many quirks of English by explaining the history of words and phrases. And: have you ever been in a situation where a group makes...
Understanding the varieties of conversational styles can mean the difference between feeling you’re understood and being insulted. “High-involvement” speakers interrupt or talk along with someone else to signal their enthusiasm...