The British publishers of the Collins dictionary have announced 24 words on their endangered species list. They’re words like “vilipend,” which means “to treat with contempt,” and “nitid,” that’s n-i-t...
sleepover n.— «Ohio’s elections chief is reconsidering a plan to prohibit poll workers from taking voting machines home for safekeeping in the days before the November presidential election. Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner announced...
Sharpen those pencils! Martha and Grant are doing crossword puzzles on the air again, preparing for their appearance with NPR Puzzlemaster Will Shortz at the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament in New York City.
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...
Welcome to another newsletter from A Way with Words! This week we kicked off our online-only summer minicasts. There are *two,* one announcing the minicasts and explaining the term "estival," and another digging into the brilliant...
gut-and-stuff n.— «If a marine reserves legislative sausage comes out of the other end of the February session grinder, it won’t look anything like the initial concept. “It’s going to be almost a gut-and-stuff,” Krieger said...