A listener wonders why his girlfriend remarks “hubba-hubba” when he’s dressing up for the night. The flirty call had its heyday in the 1940s, when World War II soldiers would see a pretty lady walking down the street. Although no one’s sure of the...
Books for language lovers include Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different in Other Languages, Guy Deutscher’s lay-friendly tour of research on language and thought, and OK: The Improbable Story of America’s Greatest Word, Allan...
Grant talks about how that great American export, the word OK, was part of the first conversation on the surface of the moon. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “OK Moon Talk” One of the books that I recommended as a gift...
Guess what! Or would that be Guess what? A Honolulu listener asks about the right way to punctuate this interjection. Should you use an exclamation mark or a question mark? How about an interrobang or a pronequark? This is part of a complete episode...
Grant recommends the new book, OK: The Improbable Story of America’s Greatest Word by Allan Metcalf. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Allan Metcalf Book Recommendation” Martha, I want to share this book with you...
A Green Bay, Wisconsin, caller is curious about her mother’s playful interjections. If someone said, “Well,” her mother would add, “Well, well. Three holes in the ground.” If someone started a sentence with...
