High school students in Alabama share some favorite slang terms. If someone tells you to touch grass, they’re telling you to get a reality check — but the last thing you’d actually want to touch is dog water! Also, the history of the word hangover...
Lee in Charleston, South Carolina, remembers her dad used to refer to a blue patch of sky after a rain as kitten’s britches. Similar terms include Dutchman’s trousers, old woman’s apron, and cat’s vest, all suggesting that small but promising bit of...
Samantha from Charleston, South Carolina, says her mother and grandmother are of Italian heritage, and have always advised keeping one’s neck warm as a precaution against the mal aria. That sort of consigli della nonna, or “Grandmother’s advice”...
Christine in Charleston, South Carolina, recounts a funny story about someone who was planning to go commando, meaning “to go without underwear.” What’s the origin of that phrase? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Going Commando, A...
Wilson in Charleston, South Carolina, stopped using the term conversate after being told it’s not a real word. On the contrary, conversate is well-established in Black English as a verb that suggests speaking in a register that’s warmer, more...
According to a centuries-old superstition, saying rabbit, rabbit as soon as you wake up on the first day of every month will supposedly ensure good luck. Variants of this phrase include white rabbit, or white rabbit, white rabbit, or simply rabbits...

