Black-hearted buzzard isn’t a standard expression, but its parts have long histories. Black-hearted has meant having ill will or bad intentions since the 1600s, and buzzard has been an insult since the 1300s, likely a polite substitute for...
Gabriel Ray from Virginia Beach, Virginia, wonders about the history of something his grandfather used to say in a shoulder-shrugging way: Everything’s duck but the bill. The origin of this phrase is unclear, but it’s similar to a couple...
Tara in Westby, Wisconsin, says her family asks for just a shlook of milk, meaning only a sip or tiny bit more. The word comes from German Schluck, “a swallow,” related to schlucken, “to swallow.” That tracks with her grandmother’s German background...
A kid’s misunderstanding of the word Pentecost leads to a family celebrating the religious holiday of Polka Dots. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Pentacost Polka Dots” We love talking about words that kids say...
In response to our conversation about names we call grandparents, John Polk tweeted about a grandfather in his family named Uh-Huh and a grandmother named Who-Who. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Odd Grandparent Names”...
The name Jacuzzi comes from the Jacuzzi family, seven Italian brothers who emigrated to California and opened a Berkeley machine shop in 1915. Their work included propellers and irrigation pumps, and one pump became personally important when Candido...