The expression to go chalk has to do with rankings in an athletic tournament and harks back to when seeded teams or players were listed on a chalkboard. To pick chalk means to choose one’s favorite competitor, and you can also speak of a chalk...
Did your teacher ever make you write a sentence over and over as punishment? That task is called a pensum. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Pensum” At the beginning of every opening credit scene to The Simpsons, Bart Simpson is at...
When it comes to joining Facebook affinity groups, grammar lovers have lots of choices. Take, for example, the group whose motto is “Punctuation saves lives.” It’s called “Let’s Eat Grandma!” or “Let’s eat, Grandma!” Martha and Grant talk about...
Carol in Lawrenceville, Georgia, wonders whether nails on a chalkboard will keep its skin-crawling force as classrooms trade blackboards for whiteboards. The question came about via a Peter Sellers Pink Panther movie scene with metallic fingernails...