Hello, guys and dolls--it's another newsletter from A Way with Words. We aired an episode this past weekend in which we talked about the footwear known as "go-aheads," what part of the body is "possible,"...
Hockey mom, mavericky, snow machines, and—how could we forget that other memorable phrase from the 2008 presidential campaign?—lipstick on a pig. Some new and not-so-new terms leapt onto the national stage during Gov. Sarah Palin‘s run for the...
Hockey mom? Staycation? Recessionista? What’s your choice for Word of the Year 2008? Also, what expression do you use to describe when it’s raining but the sun is still shining?
It’s that time again, when people start thinking about a new or resurgent word or phrase that best captures the spirit of the past year. And what a year! We heard the words bailout and lipstick more times than we’d ever dreamed, and saw...
to-do haole n.— «In these jungled thickets, hot enough to make lipstick melt, the escapist Garden of Eden fantasies of “to-do haole,” as rich Caucasians are called, converge and occasionally collide with native truths.» —“In the Land...
futch adj.— «Apparently, there is a phenomenon that originated in San Francisco in which butch-identified women are wearing dresses. They call themselves futches. Similarly, I have heard lipstick butch. When she heard these two words...