Omar in Wilmington, North Carolina, says that when he was growing up in Pakistan, he and fellow cricket players referred to their team captain as the skipper. The term skipper, or skip, originated in seafaring terminology and now applies to the...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski’s game involves clues about the names of countries. For example, a cylindrical container, plus an abbreviation on the back of a tube of toothpaste, combine to form the name of what neighbor to the north? This is part of a...
Let’s play a round of linguistic Would You Rather: Would you prefer that everyone talk in language that uses only verbs or only adjectives? Grant and Martha both had the same preference. See if you agree. This is part of a complete episode...
If you thought cummerbunds served no purpose today, wait until you hear of their original use. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Original Use of Cummerbunds” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hello, this is Hamida from San Antonio...
In American English, khaki has come to connote “business casual,” but it comes from the Farsi word for “earthy.” In the 1840s, the British picked it up in the north of India as a descriptor for their sturdy soldiers’ pants that matched the color of...
The word zarf means “a metal cupholder,” but a Scrabble enthusiast says other players always challenge his use of that word. He wants to know its origin. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Zarf Origin” Hello, you have A Way with...