David from Plymouth, Wisconsin, wonders about the expression a cord of wood. The phrase goes back to the 17th century and has to do with using a cord to measure a specific quantity of stacked wood. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...
Joseph in Houma, Louisiana, serves in the Coast Guard, shares a story about asking for directions when he was en route to an oil spill deep in Cajun Country. A local crawfisherman told him to go down the turning, twisting bayou for about four...
Andrew in Fort Worth, Texas, says a customer in the paint store where he works was a bit taken aback when Andrew filled his order, waved goodbye, and said, Preesh!, meaning “I appreciate your coming in!” or “We appreciate your...
Vivian, a high-schooler in Indianapolis, Indiana, asks why number becomes no. instead of something with a u. The abbreviation comes through Latin numero, an ablative form of numerus, and scribes shortened it with an o plus a mark showing that...
Why are distances at sea measured in knots? In the 1500s, sailors would drop a chip log off the side of the boat and let out the rope for about thirty seconds, counting how many knots on the rope went out. Eventually, one knot came to mean one...
Why is the word pound abbreviated lb.? A listener from Tijuana, Mexico, learns that the answer relates to his native Spanish as well as the Latin term for “weighing.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Lb...
