When speakers of foreign languages try to adapt their own idioms into English, the results can be poetic, if not downright puzzling. A Dallas listener shares some favorite examples from his Italian-born wife, including “I can put my hand to...
A North Carolina listener reports seeing a billboard that read, “Be Stronger Connected to Your Son.” Bad grammar or good advertising? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Bad Billboard Grammar” Hello, you have A...
Amy in San Diego has a friendly workplace dispute over supposably and supposedly. For ordinary uses meaning “as people assume” or “allegedly,” as in I’m supposedly going to the grocery store, the usual word is supposedly, built on supposed...
Where’d we get the expression “mind your p’s and q’s”? A Barcelona native wants help understanding exactly what it means, and shares a few other English idioms that caught her up short. This is part of a complete...
Sure, the present tense of sneak is easy, but what about the past? Is it sneaked or snuck? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Past Tense of Sneak” Hi, you have A Way with Words. Hi, this is J.B. I’m calling from...
Welcome to another newsletter from "A Way with Words"! Where the heck have we been? Working on a brand-new season, that's where. It starts this coming weekend. That's right--brand-new episodes, chock full of...