Rose in Edmonton, Kentucky, notes that many people in her area pronounce the word idea as if it were ideal. That’s a common dialectal feature in the Southern United States, as well as Appalachia and the Mid-Atlantic. In parts of New England...
Some words and phrases you just love to hate: “Your call is important to us.” “Do I mind if I put you on hold?” And how about those annoying mid-dinner announcements like “This is a courtesy call”? Martha and...
Martha reviews the new book, Dreaming in Hindi by Katherine Russell Rich, a memoir about setting out to learn a second language in mid-life. Rich spent a year in India to learn Hindi, and became so fascinated with the process that she went on to...
yellow flash n.— «A Purdue University agronomist said that many farmers over the last several years have observed a mid-season yellowing of their soybeans, commonly called “yellow flash,” which is caused by a manganese...
In Ireland you’ll find that some folks have an odd habit of gasping in mid-conversation. A Texan who lived in Dublin for years says he found this speech trait disconcerting. The hosts explain that this “pulmonic ingressive” is...
menoPorsche n.—Gloss: a play on “menopause” which refers to the supposed tendency of men going through a mid-life crisis to buy impractical sports cars. «Ah, the male menoPorsche (what was that about “style over...
