A fan of the TV series West Wing was puzzled by a character’s use of the term pulchritude. It’s a pretty ugly term for a word that means “beauty.” Check out what some other commenters are saying about the word. This is part...
“Outside of a dog, a book is a man’s best friend. Inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read.” This kind of sudden, surprising turn in a sentence is called a paraprosdokian. Martha and Grant trade some examples. This is part of a...
What’s the correct adjective to describe something associated with the Democrats? Is it Democrat or Democratic? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Democrat vs. Democratic” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hi, this...
A North Carolina listener reports seeing a billboard that read, “Be Stronger Connected to Your Son.” Bad grammar or good advertising? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Bad Billboard Grammar” Hello, you have A...
Amy in San Diego has a friendly workplace dispute over supposably and supposedly. For ordinary uses meaning “as people assume” or “allegedly,” as in I’m supposedly going to the grocery store, the usual word is supposedly, built on supposed...
If someone gives you crazy props or mad props, they’re congratulating you. A Chicago college student wants to know what props means in this context. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Mad Props” Hello, you have A...