Martha from Tallahassee, Florida, remembers hearing older relatives announce they were going for their constitutional, a term that traces back to Latin constitutio, meaning “character,” “disposition,” “nature,” or “the essence of a thing.” Its...
The athletic-shoe brand ASICS takes its name from the initials of the Latin motto anima sana in corpore sano, usually rendered “a sound mind in a sound body.” That wording echoes the older phrase mens sana in corpore sano, from a satire by the Roman...
When we’re not feeling well, we might say we’re “under the weather.” But then, given that weather happens above our heads, aren’t we always under it? The idiomatic phrase under the weather simply means the weather’s affecting our bodies. This is...
Looking for something that curls your hair, cleans your teeth, and makes childbirth a pleasure? A listener’s mother used that saying in reference to every miracle potion from WD-40 to vinegar. Grant explains that the first known version of this in...
During the health care debate in Congress, there was lots of talk about an “up-or-down vote.” A Montana listener finds this expression annoying. What’s wrong with plain old “vote”? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Up or Down Vote”...
A medical transcriptionist who majored in English reports that her co-workers are squabbling over a sentence: “The patient was brought to the operating room, and laid supine on the operating-room table.” This is part of a complete episode...