Zack in Santa Barbara, California, is curious about what’s happening when someone interjects the expression Right? in the middle of a sentence or explanation without allowing time for the listener to respond. Expressions like Right? and You know...
Brian from San Diego wonders whether forte, meaning a strength or strong point, should be pronounced as one syllable, “fort,” or two, “for-tay.” The word is skunked: sticklers may object to the common two-syllable pronunciation, but most speakers...
Hip-hop is high art. If you don’t understand that, you’re missing out on some of the best poetry being created today. Grant talks about the new book by English professor Adam Bradley called Book of Rhymes: The Poetics of Hip-Hop.
coconut telegraph n.— «SSB networks are simply an organized meeting place on a particular radio frequency at an established time, where an unlimited number of boaters can meet and share the latest weather forecasts and local news. Nets are usually...
dry-needling n.— «Radiologists first applied a local anesthetic to the patients” affected heel area, and then repeatedly poked the region with a solid needle—a procedure known as dry-needling—to provoke more blood flow to the area.» —“New Twist on...
nuclear winter n.—Gloss: A period in which investment capital is very hard to come by. «I invest in Silicon Valley companies. In 2001-2004 there was a nuclear winter for deal flow dried up almost 100%. Lots of people going back to business school...