Former U.S. Poet Laureate Kay Ryan once observed that a poem should act like a clown suitcase, one you can open up and never quit emptying. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Poems are like a Clown Suitcase” I was reading...
If something’s right on the tee na na, it’s just perfect. This phrase from New Orleans has popped up in myriad songs from the region. One interview with the musician Dr. John suggests that tee na na refers to the rear end, or tuchis...
Rolling in the deep in Adele’s song builds on the slang expression roll deep, meaning to have loyal friends around you, people who have your back. In a Rolling Stone interview from February 2011, Adele traced the phrase to British slang, and the...
Shadowdabbled. Moon-blanched. Augusttremulous. William Faulkner often used odd adjectives like these. But why? Grant and Martha discuss the poetic effects of compressed language. Also, African-American proverbs, classic children’s books, pore...
Hi, all -- In this week's archive edition, we talked about "pooflapoo pie" vs. "Watergate salad," "more" vs. "most," "stalactite" vs. "stalagmite," weather proverbs, and tricks...
Did you ever walk in a crocodile? In Britain, a crocodile can be “a group of children walking two by two in a long file.” The phrase came up in an interview with the stylist Vidal Sassoon, who, as a child in London walked in a crocodile...