Frederick from Valdosta, Georgia, wonders about the term galley-west. To knock something galley-west means to “knock it into confusion” “send everything in all directions.” In Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Aunt Sally angrily throws a basket across the room, which “knocked the cat galley-west.” Galley-west, meaning “crooked,” “awry,” or “wobbly” goes back to an older word meaning the same thing, collywest or collyweston. Although the precise origin of galley-west is unclear, the village of Collyweston in England was once known for having roofs covered with irregular pieces of slate, and their disordered appearance may have influenced this word’s development. This is part of a complete episode.
An 1875 dictionary of the Sussex dialect from southeastern England gives a colorful glimpse of life there in those days. A beever is “an 11 o’clock luncheon.” In parts of Sussex, a ladybug is variously known as a Bishop Barnaby, a fly-golding, or...
A Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, listener says when he was growing up, his family used the word schmutz as a verb. For example, when one parent reminded the other to apply sunscreen to the youngsters, they might say Make sure you schmutz the kids...
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