If you spend any time on Facebook, then you’ve probably had the experience of knowing a whole lot about someone, even though they’re just a friend or relative of a friend. And meeting them can be a little weird, or even a slightly creepy...
This week, it’s the language of politics. Martha and Grant discuss two handy terms describing politicians: far center and snollygoster. Also, a presidential word puzzle, false friends, spendthrifts, and a long list of 17th-century insults. So...
Beware of false friends, those words that don’t translate the way you’d expect. For example, the word “gift” in German means “poison,” and the Spanish word “tuna” means “the fruit of the prickly...
gasoline siding n.— «The wood-frame home, which is adjacent to Vale Park on the south side of Eastern Avenue, also has what firefighters euphemistically call “gasoline siding”—a petroleum-based imitation brick that feeds the...
There are nearly 7,000 languages in the world today, and by some estimates, they’re dying off at the rate of one every week. What’s lost when a language dies? Martha and Grant discuss that question and efforts to record some endangered...
A Slang This! contestant guesses at the meaning of the slang terms faux po and pole tax. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Faux Po and Pole Tax” You’re listening to A Way with Words. I’m Grant Barrett. And...