Motown sweep
n.— «That move you wrote about today where drivers exit from the left lane has a name. It’s called “the Motown Sweep.” I’m not sure who coined the phrase, but I originally heard about it from one of my professors at Wayne State University in the 1980s. He explained that it was most prevalent on I-94 for whatever reason. I think it’s been an epidemic for a long time. By any name it’s pure idiocy.» —“Readers rage about idiocy on freeways” by Matt Helms Detroie Free Press (Michigan) Sept. 7, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
What’s up with ketchup? The shifting history and spelling of the name of this condiment. For centuries, ketchup was a fishy sauce originating in Asia—the tomatoes came only later! Plus, a new book shows what’s lost when a language dies: when there...
Amid a 1796 heat wave, Jane Austen wrote to her sister, “What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Jane Austen’s Continual State of Inelegance in a...