Name developer and language observer Nancy Friedman tweeted this curious tracking notice from UPS: “Your package has experienced an exception.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Tracking Notice Tweet” Grant...
Nancy Friedman’s blog Fritinancy is a great source of information about how products get their names. For example, the names Twitch and Jitter were rejected before the creators of Twitter finally settled on the well-known moniker. This is part...
Does the expression petered out have to do with the Apostle Peter denying he knew Jesus? No, “petered out” may derive from the French peter, meaning to “pass gas.” Another theory is that the expression originated in mining...
maitre-dish n.— «Both worked at the Fog City Diner; Doug as bartender, Nancy as “maitre-dish.”» —“After a few years, he fit the picture” by Louise Rafkin San Francisco Chronicle (California) July...
spitbite n.— «There were lines so skilfully crisscrossed by the artist and so perfectly printed that they looked 3-D, like actual black threads. I learned a new word, spitbite, a process of mixing ink with soap (originally spit, I gather)...
doughnut effect n.— «Asters are easily propagated by division in the early spring. Simply dig the clump up once the shoots appear in early May, and gently pull the crown apart. When they require dividing, you will notice new growth around...