TagPilot

Etymology of Aptronyms

There’s the late CNN broadcaster William Headline, the preacher named James God, and the physician named Dr. Hurt. Names like these that match the person’s profession are called aptronyms or aptonyms. We talk about the man who coined the term...

gangloading

gangloading Β n.β€”Β Β«Yesterday I joined 14 students in the altitude training chamber at the Eighty-ninth Physiological Training Flight at Andrews Air Force Base in Camp Springs, Maryland. Wearing helmets and oxygen masks that covered everything but our...

mill and fill

mill and fill Β n.β€”Β Β«Colo. 131 was on CDOT’s short-list in the region for repaving, Shanks said. β€œIt needed it somewhat badlyβ€”when they have to do a full-blown β€˜mill and fill’ as they call it, the road clearly needed some rehabilitation,” Shanks said...

jumpseat

jumpseat Β v.β€”Β Β«Someone at my company was jumpseating on FedEx and he said the crew told him he was on a flight that would do what was known as sweeps. Staying in the air for about an extra hour in case a plane broke down somewhere at an outstation...

sweep

sweep Β n.β€”Β Β«Someone at my company was jumpseating on FedEx and he said the crew told him he was on a flight that would do what was known as sweeps. Staying in the air for about an extra hour in case a plane broke down somewhere at an outstation...

hot

hot Β adj.β€”Β Β«UPS has β€œhot” crews at maybe five or six airports across the country. There is one in ONT, DFW, RFD, SDF, PHL, and probably a few others. The crews show up, preflight the plane, and then are on a 30 minute launch window for an 8 hour...