A man in Huntington Beach, California, ponders his teenager’s frequent use of the words fail and epic fail. Grant explains what this has to do with semantic bleaching, and discusses some funny fails on failblog.org. This is part of a complete...
Charlie, an SAT prep teacher in Santa Cruz, California, reports that local high-schoolers are using legit not just in the older sense of “genuine” or “acceptable,” but to mean “cool”: That’s legit. One student even uses it as a stand-in for an...
Where do we get the phrase “be there or be square”? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Be There or Be Square” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hi, this is Lorraine. I’m calling from Benita, California...
Quiz Guy Greg Pliska offers a colorful variation on his ever-popular “Odd Man Out” puzzle. In this series, for example, which one doesn’t belong: Imperial, Shasta, Kings, and Orange. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript...
What’s a round-heeled woman? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Round-Heeled Woman” Hi, you have A Way with Words. Hello, hi. Hi, who’s this? This is Everett Allen. Where are you calling from, Everett...
A San Francisco man confesses he routinely pronounces the word both as “bolth.” Grant gives him the results of an informal online survey that shows the caller he’s not alone—some 10 percent of respondents said they do the same...