Obamamania, Obamabot, Obamathon, Obamamentum— the list of variations on the name “Obama” goes on and on. Is there an English word that means “the in-laws of your son or daughter”? And what does it mean when someone...
Happy holidays to everyone! Your gift is another episode of A Way with Words. It's one-size-fits-all. This week we chewed over whether "cotton-picking" is racist, unintentionally funny headlines, a holiday-song quiz...
patch-n-match n.— «The carpet in the hallway on the penthouse level was cut and cobbled together—a practice known as “patch-n-match.”» —“Eloise Sheds a Tear” by Evgenia Peretz Vanity Fair January, 2008. (source:...
“Nuke the fridge”? We kick off our series on contenders for 2008’s “Word of the Year” with a look at this new slang phrase.
It's time again for a newsletter from A Way with Words, public radio's program about words, language, and how we use them. This past weekend we plundered the Australian National Dictionary, which is now available in full online, by sharing...
In this episode, a listener says his friend Harold likes to do social phoning while driving, so he’s invented a term for mindless calling while in the car. And no, it’s not “car-pe diem.” Also, Martha and Grant also discuss...