TagNebraska

Not on Your Tintype!

Jen from Omaha, Nebraska, wonders about a phrase that her father used. He’d say Not on your tintype! meaning “Not on your life!” Another version is Nixie on your tintype! This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Not on Your Tintype!”...

Ye Gods!

Mimi in Plattsmouth, Nebraska, wonders about a phrase her grandmother used to express disbelief or indignation: Good grief and little fishes! Far more common is the phrase Ye gods and little fishes! or simply Ye gods! These expressions all serve as...

Perceptual Dialectology

When Liz from Laramie, Wyoming, was hiking the Appalachian Trail, some fellow hikers and locals assumed from her accent that she grew up outside the United States. The assumptions made by people she met probably had more to do with the context...

The Music Truck

In response to our conversation about the expression ding-ding man, a term used mainly in Nebraska to mean “the driver of an ice cream truck,” Greg in Auburn, California, shared that he and his wife used to call that vehicle the music truck so their...