The words drift and drive both come from the same Germanic root that means “to push along.” By the 16th century, the English word drift had come to mean “something that a person is driving at,” or in other words, their purpose or intent. The phrase...
If you work in tech support, you might use snarky slang for problems caused by computer users themselves. There’s the acronym PEBCAK, for example, which stands for Problem Exists Between Chair and Keyboard. And: a lush poem about the sea inspired by...
Pin vs. pen is a classic example of the vowel merger specific to the Southern dialect. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Pin vs. Pen” Hi, you have A Way with Words. Hi, this is Lori. Hi, Lori. Where are you calling from? I’m calling...
Churchillian Drift n.— «Long ago, I coined the term “Churchillian Drift” to describe the process whereby the actual originator of a quotation is often elbowed to one side and replaced by someone more famous. So to Churchill or Napoleon would be...
