What’s the common bond that links the names Vanessa, Cedric, and Pamela? They’re all names coined by famous authors. Vanessa was invented by Jonathan Swift as a pet name for his lover Esther Van Homrigh.The 16th-century poetSir Phillip Sidney coined...
Grant and Martha discuss a new collection of college slang compiled by UCLA linguistics professor Pamela Munro. Learn more about it and order a copy here. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “College Slang Collection” You’re listening...
gross room technician n.— «Grant became a deiner/ gross room technician at Laboratory Corporation of America (LabCorp), a company which offers diagnostic testing. “A deiner or a gross room technician is just another term for autopsy assistant...
scooter hoot n.— «President of the Defiers M.C. Stone, Ky. chapter “Super Red” said scooter hoot is really another term for a biker party. Super Red is his biker name and he told the Daily News this is how he wished to be addressed.» —“’Scooter...
pink n.— «In what has become a ritual on weekend nights in that part of the city, drivers gather at a convenience store in the early morning and the challenges are made. The races often take place on straight stretches of roads and may be done for...
hip hike n.— «Over the last three decades, Selmer was resigned to feeling pressure on his upper leg when he walked. He never imagined it could be different. The “hip hike,” pain, as it is called, is corrected by the PROPRIO’s more symmetrical and...
