Obamamania, Obamabot, Obamathon, Obamamentum— the list of variations on the name “Obama” goes on and on. Is there an English word that means “the in-laws of your son or daughter”? And what does it mean when someone...
When it comes to books, some people are pack rats; others make a point of periodically culling from the word herd. In a recent New York Times essay, Laura Miller describes her own mixed feelings about getting rid of unwanted books. A full shelf of...
flipper n.— «So CNN last week replaced the crawl with what it calls the flipper—a move, Mr. Feder said, that was designed to impart information but that “doesn’t give viewers a headache.” Usually, the flipper is a line of text at the...
valedictocracy n.— «This truly will be an administration that looks like America, or at least that slice of America that got double 800s on their SATs. Even more than past administrations, this will be a valedictocracy—rule by those who...
toga n.— «In Mexico and Europe over the past two to three years, 98 patients have had the new weight-loss surgery, named Toga (for transoral gastroplasty).» —“Weight-Loss Surgery, No Cutting Required” by Denise...
packing for Perth n.— «The onslaught of unsettling news has proved too much for some with the means to flee. No reliable numbers are kept on emigration, but “packing for Perth”—a phrase used to describe white flight, not necessarily to...