Why are the names of cars so unimaginative? Grant argues that auto manufacturers might take inspiration from ornithology to build a better car name. (Then again, would you be any less aggravated if you were rear-ended by a lazuli bunting?) Also this...
Where’d we get the expression “to get someone’s goat”? A caller suspects it comes from a Sicilian folk tale. But does it? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Get Your Goat” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hello, this is Joyce. I’m...
mush n.— «This may be giving the game away as to where I work but the slang names our scummy club patrons use really do grate on me.…The ones that really get my goat and raise my heckles are “Mush” and “Gadgee.” “Mush” becoming more popular than...
gadgee n.— «This may be giving the game away as to where I work but the slang names our scummy club patrons use really do grate on me.…The ones that really get my goat and raise my heckles are “Mush” and “Gadgee.” “Mush” becoming more popular than...
goat’s mouth n.— Note: According to G. Llewellyn Watson’s Jamaican Sayings, “A person is said to have a goat’s mouth when he/she wishes another evil, and the wishes are fulfilled. It also applies to one who has the foresight to discern impending...
flake n.— «After goat-proofing the yard with a substantial fence, all it requires is letting them mow the lawn and eat up to one flake of hay a day each. Connie feeds half a flake in summer and a full flake in winter. There are about 20 flakes in...
