Which is correct to describe “a morally upright path” — straight and narrow or straightened arrow? The latter is picturesque, but the vastly more common term is straight and narrow. The original expression was strait and narrow, a reference to a...
When Tony from Fort Worth, Texas, ordered chicken fajitas at a restaurant, the server replied Perfect! He’s pretty confident that his order was hardly outstanding, much less perfect. He’s noticed that the response Perfect! doesn’t literally mean...
A popular Hindi proverb about blaming everyone but oneself translates as “One who knows no dance claims that the stage is tilted.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Hindi Dance Proverb” Here’s a proverb in Hindi that I like. It...
Evan from Dallas, Texas, asks whether decimate should only mean destroying one-tenth of something or whether it can mean generally destroying it. The word goes back to a Roman military punishment in which one in ten mutinous soldiers was killed, but...
grot spot n.—Gloss: “Grot” means “dirt” or “rubbish” and rhymes with “spot” and is not commonly found in North American English. «The cul-de-sac has been branded as one of five dilapidated grot spots in the city up for a vote by members of the...
de-policing n.— «Crime rates are up from last year. Arrests, traffic stops and gun recoveries are down. And while there is dispute over the precise reasons, the union representing police officers in this city says it is partly because officers are...