Mick in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, shares that a co-worker from Texas used to advise him when lifting heavy objects to heave carefully because You don’t want to strain your milk. The origin of this expression is uncertain, although it may simply be a...
A listener reports that when his Kentucky-born grandmother heard anyone say Who, me? she’d respond Your feet don’t fit a limb. It’s a pun on the sound an owl makes. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Your Feet Don’t Fit a Limb” We...
The word mermaid shares a common linguistic ancestor with several salty words, including marine, maritime, marinate, and the Spanish word for “ocean,” mar. The Netflix documentary MerPeople, directed by Oscar recipient Cynthia Wade, is a remarkable...
In this week’s puzzle, John Chaneski imagines the possibilities in several alternate universes. For example, what show would have hired him as the Quiz Guy if he’d answered an ad to create games involving nuthatches, northern flickers, and ospreys...
In the 1940s, the slang phrase You shred it, wheat! was used to express complete agreement with something, a punning variation of You said it! The phrase was sometimes also used as a retort meaning “Figure it out yourself.” This is part of a...
Pun alert: What’s the best thing about Switzerland? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “What’s the Best Thing About Switzerland?” Hey Grant, what’s the best thing about Switzerland? St. Bernard’s, mountains, snow, lovely lasses. Yeah...
