A young listener wonders: Why do the words icing and frosting both refer to the idea of being cold? The names for this sweet cover on a cake refer to its appearance, not its temperature. Something similar occurs with the glaze in glazed doughnut, which refers to its glazed or “glassy” appearance. Some people in the Southern United States call that covering filling, even when it’s on top of a cake, and in the U.S. Midlands, it’s jokingly referred to as calf slobber. This is part of a complete episode.
U.S. President Thomas Jefferson has been credited with the first use of belittled in print. The word appears in his 1785 Notes on the State of Virginia. This is part of a complete episode.
Arthur in New Bern, North Carolina, wonders why we say something that isn’t difficult is as easy as pie when making a pie is a whole lot of work. This phrase most likely refers to the ease of eating a pie, not making one. This is part of a...
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