Mary from Greensboro, North Carolina, asks about an expression her Canadian mother used when Mary’s room looked particularly messy: A cow couldn’t find her calf in here! The more common A cow couldn’t find its calf in this room! was popularized by...
A Pennsylvanian who relocated to North Carolina notes that many people in that part of the United States tend to leave the S off of the word cent when talking about money. This well-established feature of Appalachian and Southern varieties often...
A speech pathologist in Greensboro, North Carolina, named Linda reports that when none of her coworkers offered to take up a task, their boss voluntold one of them to do it. A jocular combination of volunteer and told, this slang is often heard in...
Ever seen a bug so big it could stand flat-footed and kiss a turkey? Kathy from Greensboro, North Carolina, called to share some classic idioms her Georgia grandmother would use to describe bugs, like those gallon-nipper mosquitos and Chatham County...
Looking for a book to read with the kids, or maybe a guide to becoming a better writer? Why are leg cramps called charley horses? And where’d we get a phrase like pie in the sky? If you happen to be tall, you’ve no doubt heard plenty of...
Chillary n.—Gloss: a nickname for Senator Hillary Clinton, whose manner is perceived by some people to be too businesslike and impersonal. «Her voice faltered, her eyes glistened, and she appeared to teeter on the brink of tears.…A...
