This lyrical entry in Wordsmith.org’s pangram contest would have been a strong contender had it not been for the fact that it includes all but one letter of the alphabet: A quivering butterfly wing conjures a zephyr that expands to a storm...
Martha reads the poem “Instructions on Not Giving Up” by the poet Ada Limón. Used with permission. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “”Instructions on Not Giving Up,” a Poem” You’re listening...
Nathan, a sailor at the United States Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia, reports a vigorous dispute among his fellow servicemembers: Is gruntled a word? Nathan feels gruntled must be a word, arguing that it’s clearly the opposite of disgruntled. But...
Martha reads Walt Whitman’s poem “On the Beach at Night, Alone.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Walt Whitman, “On the Beach at Night, Alone”” You’re listening to A Way with Words...
Noon of night is an archaism, a poetic way of saying “midnight.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Noon of Night is the Middle of the Night” I’m sure you can guess what this term means. Noon of night...
The expression on and on like Tennyson’s brook describes something lengthy or seemingly interminable, like a long-winded speaker. The phrase is a reference to a lovely poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson about the course of a body of water. This is...