Taglamb

Mary Had a Little Problem

“Mary had a little lamb, its fleece was black as ink, it chewed the paper off the walls and spit it in the sink.” There’s a variation you probably missed on the playground! This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Mary Had a Little...

A Roberta of Flax

We have collective nouns for animals, like “a gaggle of geese,” “a pride of lions,” and “an exaltation of larks.” So why not collective nouns for plants? How about a “greasing of palms,” or a “pursing of tulips”? Also, the difference between further...

On The Lam

To go “on the lam” means “to flee” or “attempt to elude capture.” But why lam? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “On The Lam” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hello there. This is Colleen Walsh from Lake Dallas, Texas. And I’d like...

1661

1661  n.— «I’ve always detested the expression “mutton dressed as lamb.” It’s misogynist, mean and women are not meat; even Sam Kekovich would concur with that. But there’s a new version of it that describes women who retain hairstyles or wardrobes...

purp

purp  n.— «Gov. Andrews related a Texan practice in training dogs with sheep. “A purp is taken from its mother before its eyes are opened and put with an ewe to suckle. After a few times the ewe becomes reconciled to the pup which follows her like a...