Saltigrade and Avahi

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.

Grant, do you know what an avahi is?

A bahi?

It sounds like a fancy sparkling water.

It sounds like an all-inclusive resort in a faraway, wonderful place.

Club avahi.

It sounds like an airline that I can’t afford.

Let me tell you what an avahi is. It’s spelled A-V-A-H-I. And an avahi is a woolly lemur of Madagascar. They’re very cute.

Oh, so big tusks. They roam the plains.

No, no. No, they’re a little bitty, but they have real big eyes.

Oh, I see.

They’re just adorable. And I think, you know, we could market a sparkling water with an avahi on it, you know, just as the trademark.

Absolutely. A little cute critter. Everybody loves those.

Avagi.

Yes. I just learned that word this week.

Let me give you one other word that I learned this week.

Saltigrade.

Saltigrade. Is this like tardigrade?

The little critters, the tiny microscopic critters that can survive in space and just about anything?

It is related to that word.

Tardigrade means walking slowly, moving slowly.

And saltigrade means having the feet or legs adapted to leaping, usually used of spiders.

I hear it.

So the salt apart is related to all the Romance languages that have salt root for jumping.

That’s exactly right.

And the English word somersault as well, saltigrade.

So where did you learn these words?

Well, Grant, I have spent a few weeks now luxuriating in words like these because I recently served as the pronouncer for the 2025 San Diego County Scripps Regional Spelling Bee.

And I got to tell you, it was quite the experience.

A room full of brilliant people.

Yes, yes.

These young people are so bright and they work so very hard to get there.

You know, it’s a cliche to say that every one of them is a winner, but really they are because they learn so much and then they get up there and they perform in these incredibly nerve-wracking circumstances.

Oh, I can only imagine.

Well, the students were great, and I learned a lot of great words in the process.

But I got to tell you that in the process, I also learned some things about myself, including a couple of hard lessons that I will share later in the show.

Martha, I’m really looking forward to hearing more about it.

And I know that we’d both love to hear from our listeners.

Call us or text us.

Our toll-free number is open to you in the United States and Canada, 877-929-9673, or email us, words@waywordradio.org.