TagEnglish

These Ones vs. These

The owner of a yarn store in Juneau says a customer corrected her when she pointed out a special collection of buttons and said, “You should check out these ones.” Is it incorrect to say these ones instead of just these? This is part of a complete...

Zed, Not Z

In Britain, Canada, and some other English-speaking countries, the last letter of the alphabet is not zee, but zed. A caller who grew up in Guyana wonders why. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Zed, Not Z” Hello, you have A Way with...

A Real Blinger

A woman who grew up in Detroit remembers her mother saying, “This one’s going to be a real blinger!” whenever a big storm was coming. What exactly is a blinger? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “A Real Blinger” Hello, you have A Way...

English Down Under

This week, Martha and Grant discuss terms from Australia, including aerial ping-pong, pumpkin squatter, and…kangarooster? They explain the connection between stereotypes and stereos, and why we call the person clearing tables in a restaurant a...