We often hear that English is going to hell in a handbasket. Actually, though, linguistic handwringing about sinking standards and sloppy speech has been going on for centuries – at least as far back as the 1300’s! And: language also...
Feeling fankled? It’s a Scots English word that means “messed up” or “confused.” In this week’s episode, Grant and Martha also discuss a whole litter of synonyms for dust bunny, a slew of different terms for the...
meat-bomb n.— «When I was learning to parachute (or become a “meat-bomb,” as the pilots refer to it) the jump master told us that the horizon-wide landing zone (LZ) contained one object and one object only: a tree...
tabbing n.— «All of sudden a helicopter rises out of a valley, makes one pass over the landing site, before zeroing in and touching down.…They are returning after a night under the stars, tabbing, as they call it, around a dozen...
How about the phrase “on the ball”? A listener wonders if its origin derives from a landing maneuver on aircraft carriers. Does his theory hold water? This is part of a complete episode.
raisin bomber n.— «On June 26, 1948, in response to the Soviet blockade, C-47s began landing millions of tons of food, coal and other supplies in an operation centered at Tempelhof. At its peak, the airlift landed planes every 90 seconds...