Misheard Through a Wall Word Quiz

You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it.

I’m Grant Barrett.

And I’m Martha Barnette.

And making his way across the room doing a very silly walk, it’s John Chaneski.

That was a very silly name for a very silly walk, so I’m going to keep it going.

I got my Johns mixed up.

That’s right.

Now, people ask me all the time, where do you come up with the ideas for these puzzles?

This one actually really did come from real life, something that happened to me.

You guys know I have two college-age boys living at home with me.

And the first day of the new semester, they were snowed out.

So they had remote classes.

I was listening in to some of their classes from the next room,

and I did not understand what they were studying.

Maybe it’s because they were in the other room.

Maybe it’s because I’m old and I can’t hear too.

They mystified me.

For example, I heard, in this course, we’ll be studying strife and all its adversity.

I later learned I was listening to a biology course.

Strife turned out to be life, and adversity turned out to be diversity.

Okay.

I see where you’re going with this.

I just couldn’t hear too well.

So this is about your old man ears and the actual classes your kids are actually taking.

Yes.

Okay.

And some classes they’re not actually taking.

Okay.

I see.

They’re only taking three or four courses.

So that’s where you’ve extended the truth a little bit.

We get it.

Yes.

The quiz idea is you can have a little fun.

In quiz world, this is what’s happening.

Yeah.

Let’s listen in on a few other classes and see what the kids are studying these days.

Now, you don’t have to know what every word stands for in these descriptions to get a general sense.

And you don’t have to tell me what each word represents.

Let’s try this one.

Got it.

Okay.

In this course, we will look at many forms of chart across vultures and my myriads.

Okay.

So the last part is time period and vultures is cultures?

What was that first word?

Char?

Chart.

Chart.

Is it art?

It’s art history, yes.

Many forms of chart across vultures and my myriads.

Art history.

I’m writing that book.

There you go.

That’s a pitch right there for the sci-fi of the century.

I love it.

In this course, we’ll examine groovy mystery.

Movie history.

It’s a room full of film buffs.

Film studies.

We’ll also study its query.

We’ll study film Britishism and maybe some boutiques.

Theory, criticism, and…

That’s right, techniques.

Techniques, gotcha.

In this course, we’ll look at human sea saviors and creation ships.

Human sea saviors and creation ships.

Behaviors and relationships?

Yes.

Okay, so it’s psychology.

Or sociology?

It’s sociology, yes.

It’s sociology.

Well done.

Very good.

Cation chips. That’s what you have with the person in your pottery class.

That’s good.

Once you get that thing and it’s not the way you want it, you just throw it in the ground and you’ve created chips.

There you go.

Finally, in this course, we’ll study Truman Gangbridge.

Human language.

Yeah, we’ll study its pluxler, its junction, its envelopment.

Ploxler?

Pluxler.

It’s structure.

Oh.

There’s no rhyme for structure.

I think my hearing’s going.

Yeah, I’m like, this is all too real.

What’s funny about this?

On that note, I got to get back to school and study up my whatever English is when you can’t hear it too well.

It’s called a visit to the hearing aid.

Costco’s got them on sale.

Yeah.

I’ll do it.

Well done, guys.

Thanks so much, John.

That was amazing.

Thank you.

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