How do you pronounce pecan? Is it pee-KAHN or PEE-kan? And why are there different pronunciations of the name of this nut? The word pecan was borrowed into English more than once, and from numerous Native American languages that had variations on...
A psychiatric home health worker is curious about the use of nuthouse to mean “a mental health facility.” This term goes back to the turn of the 20th century. The word nuts itself once had an extremely positive connotation, referring to anything as...
If you’re madder than a peach orchard boar you’re angry indeed, or otherwise engaging in wild, unrestrained behavior similar to boars or pigs being let loose to gorge themselves on fallen fruit. Variations include crazier than a peach orchard boar...
A traffic-light sundae is a dish of vanilla ice cream decorated with red, white, and green cherries, topped with nuts, crushed fruit, or whipped cream. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Traffic-Light Sundae” Grant, have you ever had...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski puts us in a bind with a puzzle about “Common Bonds,” and a challenge to guess the word that often appears with each of three others. For example, what word often accompanies these three: slide, golden, and five-second? This...
In ancient Rome, kids played games with nuts — specifically walnuts. In a Latin poem from that era, “Nux,” a walnut tree describes some of those games. Nux is Latin for “nut,” the source also of nucleus, or “kernel of a nut” and eventually the core...