“There’s a gazelle on the lawn,” meaning you have schmutz on your face, is a fun way to tip someone off to wipe their chin. The expression actually comes to us from Arabic, where the expression “there’s a gazelle in the garden” means that you have...
The Pantone Color Institute announced its 2015 Color of the Year, and the winner is marsala. The reddish brown hue is named for a wine from the West Coast of Sicily, which in turn may go back to an Arabic term meaning “harbor of god.” This is part...
Of all the ways to propose to your girlfriend, one way to do it is by tattooing her name and the words Will you marry me? above your knee. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Tattoo Proposal” If you’re listening to A Way with Words...
What’s the difference between borrow and lend, or between borrow and loan? The real difference between these verbs is which direction the thing is traveling. Something similar happens with teach vs. learn and bring vs. take. This is part of a...
A good Scrabble find: zarf is a cup holder, from Arabic. The small cup that sits inside the zarf is a fingen, another handy tile rack winner. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “What Goes in a “Zarf”? A “Finjan”” Grant, you know what...
We all know that the color pink is for boys and the color blue is for girls — at least, that’s how it was 100 years ago. Grant and Martha share the surprising history behind the colors we associate with gender. Plus, we go rollin’ in our hooptie...
