Elmo effect
n.— «People were referring to it as the “Elmo effect” because it got people into the stores way ahead of what is normally seen as the kickoff to the holiday shopping season.» —“Hot-selling US toy Elmo was well-kept secret before debut” in East Aurora, New York International Herald Tribune (Paris, France) Dec. 19, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
The word filibuster has a long and colorful history, going back to the days when pirates roamed the high seas. Today it refers to hijacking a piece of legislation. Plus, the language of yoga teachers: When doing a guided meditation, you may hear...
After our conversation about towns with extremely short names, many listeners wrote to tell us about Why, Arizona. Others pointed out that there are towns called Ely in Iowa, Minnesota, and Nevada. Other super-short appellations include Rye, New...