Why is it that what you say to your family and what they hear are different? If you say “no,” your child hears “maybe,” and if you say “maybe,” she hears “ask again and again,” and “yes” is...
Stabby describes an urge to stab something, or more often, a comic, benign way to say you’re intensely irritated, as when the internet goes out or traffic tests your patience. The adjective has had a recent vogue in informal writing, but it isn’t...
Quiz Guy Greg Pliska drops in with a word game called “False Opposites.” They’re pairs of words whose prefixes, suffixes, and other elements make them appear to be opposites, even though they’re not. For example, what seeming...
Indian country n.— «As an embeded journalist in Afghanistan last winter, I traveled hundreds of miles with soldiers through what they refer to as “indian country”—hostile regions teeming with Taliban sympathizers in black...
chicken cutlet n.— «A product called Intrigue, silicone-filled “breast enhancers,” fits in a bra, heats up to body temperature and promises increased cup size. (One drawback: The enhancers look and feel like raw chicken...
Tingle table n.— «The engineers devised a new, improved Tingle table.…To get a feel for working at a Tingle table, imagine you are a giant at a baseball stadium in Lilliput. As you sit at home plate looking out toward center-field...