What other names could a team use if they realize it’s time to give up calling themselves the “Redskins”? Also, what should we call those people who don’t turn left as as soon as the traffic light goes green? Plus, the connection between a passage...
A chance encounter with University of California San Diego professor of history Mark Hanna, author of Pirate Nests and the Rise of the British Empire, 1570-1740, leads to a discussion of how the saying “arrr!” came to be associated with pirates...
A woman in Vancouver, Washington, wants to know the origin of the phrase the coast is clear, meaning “it’s safe to proceed.” It most likely has to do with a literal coast, whether from the perspective of a ship at sea or guards patrolling the...
silver n.— «Even the so-called better prints that pirates affectionately call silver” are not free of bloopers. One young media professional was amused to find Brad Pitt crying in Spanish in what the cover promised to be the English version of...
slotting n.— «The dynamic of these negotiations is interesting. On the one side, you have the Pirates, who have traditionally adhered to recommended bonuses, a practice known as slotting. Handing out bonuses over slot hasn’t been the norm for the...
pirata n. an unlicensed taxi; a gypsy cab. Editorial Note: This term is common throughout the Spanish-speaking world, but is recorded here because of its entrance into the everyday vernacular of Los Angeles and other communities. Etymological Note:...