Scientists have named some recently discovered species of tree frogs after characters from Star Trek. Why? Because of the boops and trills and other sounds that these frogs make. And: naming your children with the virtues you hope they’ll develop as adults, like Patience and Hope. But in Puritan and Quaker tradition, so-called virtue names were often far more elaborate. Plus, the phrase fight the good fight may seem modern, but it goes all the way back to biblical times. Also: meteoric rise, one side or a leg off!, polyptoton, a hugger-mugger of a puzzle, main strength and stupidity, pronouncing sixth as “sikth,” omadhaun, the marvel of lachryphagy, walking in tall cotton, and more.
This episode first aired November 23, 2024.
To Boldly Croak Where No Mantellid Has Croaked Before
Scientists decided to name some newly discovered tree frogs in Madagascar based on the boops and trills they make, which reminded the researchers of Star Trek. Among the scientific names for these critters that belong to the rare Boophis frog genus of the Mantellid subfamily (not the Bufo genus, which is toads) : Boophis kirki, Boophis picardi, Boophis janewayae.
Fight the Good Fight
The phrase fight the good fight, which means to “try one’s best” and “attempt to do what’s right” is inspired second of the epistles to Timothy attributed to the apostle Paul: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” It’s an example of polyptoton, the rhetorical device in which different forms of a word are used in the same sentence. The hortatory phrase Keep the faith! also echoes that verse.
“Meteoric Rise” Is About Speed and Duration, Not Direction
Why would we describe something as having a meteoric rise when meteors fall to the ground? The adjective meteoric refers to the speed and duration of a meteor, not its direction.
Er. Er. This Quiz is a Real Stinker of a Thinker
Quiz Guy John Chaneski came across the term hugger-mugger, which inspired a puzzle with answers that involve two words, each ending in -er. For example, in the past these were attached using a sticky surface, but these days they’re made from magnets. What -er -er are they? (E-r E-r? Oh!)
One Side or a Leg Off!
Brenna, a nurse in Rapid City, South Dakota, says she was on a hospital elevator full of people and when the doors opened and someone in the back was trying to get off, she piped up with One side or a leg off!, but no one understood that phrase. It means “Gangway!” or “Step aside!” Nelson Algren used it in his book Chicago: City on the Make (Bookshop|Amazon), describing the city as a bustling metropolis full of people shouting “One side or a leg off, I’m gettin’ mine!”
One Word Followed by Another Word Followed by Another Word…
In an interview about her magisterial history of the Great Migration, The Warmth of Other Suns (Bookshop|Amazon), Isabel Wilkerson noted that her own writing process poses the same challenge any writer has: “One word followed by another word followed by another word as evocative, as poetic, as lyrical, as vibrant as you possibly can make it. And there you go.”
Main Strength and Awkwardness
Sherman from Harrodsburg, Kentucky, says her grandfather used to speak of accomplishing something physically challenging through main strength and awkwardness–in other words, through brute force and sheer determination. In the 1500s, English speakers used the expressions main force, main courage, and main logic, to suggest this idea of managing to do something through pure willpower or muscle, and without much finesse. By the mid-1800s, they got across the same idea with such phrases as main strength and stupidity, main strength and prodigious awkwardness, main strength and pure awkwardness, main strength and ambition, main strength and ignorance, main strength and stubbornness, main strength and roughness, and main strength and determination.
Virtue Names and Grace Names
Nora in Rock Hill, South Carolina, says her great-great-grandfather’s name, Workman Hardlabor Honeycutt, reflected the family’s Quaker religious belief in the sanctity of hard work. It’s an example of what are called virtue names or grace names that parents bestow on their children in hopes that they’ll grow up to embody those qualities. More elaborate ones include Hate-evil, Be-courteous, and Search-the-scriptures. In the 19th century, a man with the three-syllable first name Preserved (/pri-ZUR-vid/), as in “preserved from sin,” rose to become a prominent New York shipping merchant. He and his relative, the future New York State governor Hamilton Fish, shared the same last name, which meant the merchant’s full name was Preserved Fish.
“Sixth” Pronounced as “Sikth”
Why do some people pronounce the word sixth as “sikth”?
I Tell You What’s the Truth
A Kentucky listener says her father often prefaced statements with the phrase I tell you what’s the truth. This regionalism appears in the Dictionary of Southern Appalachian English (Bookshop|Amazon). A shorter version is I’ll tell you what, as you might recognize from the character Hank Hill on the television carton King of the Hill.
In Tall Cotton
Eric often drives past cotton fields near his home in Tucson, Arizona, which has him wondering about the phrase He’s walking in tall cotton, meaning “Things are going well.” Variants include to be in tall cotton and to walk in high cotton.
Lachryphagy
Lachryphagy is literally “tear-eating,” and refers to the way some insects crawl up to the eyes of much larger animals to sip their protein-rich tears. The name of the wine Lachryma Christi means “tear of Christ,” and someone tearful is said to be lachrymose.
Omadhauns, Amadáns, Irish for Fools
Diana from Tucson, Arizona, reports that when she was young, her Irish grandmother would chase her and her misbehaving siblings around the house yelling, “You omadhauns!” Also spelled amadán, this word of Celtic origin means “fool” or “idiot” or “simpleton.” In Frank McCourt’s Angela’s Ashes (Bookshop|Amazon), one character dismisses another as a diddering omadhaun.
Sing with Celine
Prepare for a groaner: If you say all the vowels in the name Celine Dion, you just may be inspired to sing a song yourself.
This episode is hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett, and produced by Stefanie Levine.
Books Mentioned in the Episode
| Chicago: City on the Make by Nelson Algren (Amazon) |
| The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson (Bookshop|Amazon) |
| Dictionary of Southern Appalachian English (Bookshop|Amazon) |
| Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt (Bookshop|Amazon) |
Music Used in the Episode
| Title | Artist | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moanin’ | Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers | Moanin’ | Blue Note |
| Cornbread | Lee Morgan | Cornbread | Blue Note |
| Kool Is Back | Funk Inc | Funk Inc | Prestige |
| Sabrosa | Beastie Boys | Ill Communication | Capitol |
| Sister Janie | Funk Inc | Funk Inc | Prestige |
| Idle Moments | Grant Green | Idle Moments | Blue Note |
| The Other Side | Sure Fire Soul Ensemble | Step Down | Colemine Records |
