“If I had my druthers…” A former Texan says the youngsters he works with in his adopted home of Ohio don’t understand this expression meaning “If I had my way.” He wants to know its origin. If you still...
heritage artist n.— «The revival of ABBAmania again points to the power of visual media rather than radio to fuel a new generation’s discovery of what the industry politely calls heritage artists, which translates as singer-songwriters of...
Welcome to another newsletter from A Way with Words, public radio's lively language show! Next week's show will be brand new, but this past weekend's show was a juicy repeat in which we talked about the demise of the typewriter, surfing...
Discover the joys (and temptations!) of two new books of collected wisdom: “The Yale Book of Quotations” edited by Fred Shapiro, and James Geary’s “Guide to the World’s Great Aphorists.” Grant explains why leafing...
skeet
v.— «Now stop the teasin’ and start the pleasin’/Just fuck me good until I skeet.» —“C’mon Babe” by 2 Live Crew As Nasty As They Wanna Be , 1989. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
kiss-and-cry area n. at a sports competition, a place where athletes and coaches wait while scores are tallied. Editorial Note: There are many variations: kiss-and-cry room, booth, spot, seats, zone, platform, corner, box, etc., and occasionally...