An anachronism is something that’s placed in the wrong time period, like a Roman soldier wearing Birkenstocks. But what’s the word for if someone or something is literally out of place geographically speaking? You can use the word anatopism, from a...
The words plethora and drastic both have roots in ancient Greek. Both were first used in English as medical terms, plethora indicating “an excess of bodily fluid” and drastic meaning “having an effect.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript...
Looking for a word that denotes being really excited for someone, but also a little sad? One option is bittersweet, but if you’d like a term that’s not quite so overused, yayboo is taking hold online. The Modern Greek word charmolype translates as...
Here’s a testy T-shirt slogan: “Polyamory is wrong! It’s either multiamory or polyphilia. But mixing Greek and Latin roots? Wrong!” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Etymological Mish-Mashery” Recently on my personal Facebook page...
If someone’s been talking about you in English, then metaphorically speaking, your ears are burning. If they were talking about you in Modern Greek, it’s said that you must have been hiccupping. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...
