Trombonist Benjamin Jacobs-El, who toured with jazz great Lionel Hampton, calls from Huntsville, Alabama, to say that Hampton regularly addressed friends and band members as gate, as in Hey, gates, how’re you doing? Is that because good jazz swings...
Don’t let your alligator mouth overload your hummingbird butt! is a more picturesque way of saying “Don’t boast!” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Your Hummingbird Butt” I came across some excellent advice the other day. Don’t let...
Linda from Wichita, Kansas, thinks we need a word for that closed-mouth little smile we give to strangers on the street — not a friendly Duchenne smile, just a polite acknowledgment of the other person’s existence. She suggests the word smurm. This...
In the 19th century, the slang term door-knocker referred to a beard-and-mustache combo that ringed the mouth in the shape of a metal ring used to tap on a door. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Door-Knocker Beard” Here’s another...
Why doesn’t an usher ush? The word goes all the way back to Latin os, meaning “mouth,” and its derivative ostium, meaning “door.” An usher was originally a servant in charge of letting people in and out of a door. This is part of a complete episode...
Someone who’s cheap or just likes to complain that they don’t have much money are said to be poormouthing. This expression goes back to at least the 1850’s, and originated in the American South, although now it’s more widespread. This is part of a...
