Why don’t we pronounce the letter b in the word subtle? The word derives ultimately from Latin subtilis, meaning “fine, delicate,” and was adopted into Middle English from Old French as sotil. The b was later added back in so that...
podium job n.— «Gibbs is about to start a job that, like the presidency, seems to age its occupants disproportionately to the years they spend in the job. And it happens live and on C-Span. Known in Washington shorthand as “the podium...
show me run n.— «“We have what is called a show me run, where our lead plane pilot (in a smaller plane) shows us where he wants us to drop,” Colonel Barkdull said. “He describes the start point and where he wants the line to...
raisin bomber n.— «On June 26, 1948, in response to the Soviet blockade, C-47s began landing millions of tons of food, coal and other supplies in an operation centered at Tempelhof. At its peak, the airlift landed planes every 90 seconds...
scratch and dent mortgage n.— «Founded in 1996, New York-based C-Bass specializes in investing in distressed home mortgage loans. Also known as “scratch and dent” mortgages, these are loans that were either not documented properly or on...
box n.— «Capt. Corbett Bufton had figured it was going to be just another hot day in the desert. The Charleston-based airman’s C-17 was scheduled to make four stops around Iraq—”the box,” as they call it—to fly in cargo for...