In the U.K., they don’t count seconds as “one-Mississippi, two-Mississippi,” because, well, they have no Mississippi. Instead, they say “one-elephant, two-elephant.” Lynne Murphy, author of the blog Separated by a...
If someone is gobsmacked, they’re totally surprised. The term may come from the same Gaelic root that gave us the Everlasting Gobstopper. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Gobsmacked” Hello, you have A Way with...
Grant has an update on the jocular pronunciation of skedooly for the word schedule, following up on our original conversation. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Updates for the Skedooly” Martha, do you remember the...
Renee from Indianapolis, Indiana, asks about tickety-boo, an old-fashioned expression meaning “all in order,” “correct,” or “just dandy,” after hearing it often from a former boss at an Indian corporation in Florida. The phrase became especially...
Is it ever correct to refer to a mustache as a plural? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Plural of Mustache” Howdy, you got A Way with Words. Hi, this is Jennifer from Carlsbad. Hi, Jennifer. Hi, Jennifer. What’s...
Grant shares another weather-related word from Britain: parky. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Parky” Martha, if we were in the UK and it was cold and invigorating outside, what would we call it? Brisk? Well, parky. P...

