Multiple modals, as in the phrase “I thought y’all may would have some more of them,” have their own logic and are well understood by many in the American South. The Database of Multiple Modals compiled by Paul Reed and Michael...
skronk n.— «The music touched on free jazz, especially when Krieger let forth some quick runs or hit those intense, dented notes aficionados refer to as “skronk.” He was a fiery presence onstage, often bending over an amp to...
break beef v. phr.— «Every Friday, he picks up a carcass or two from Redwood Meat, then brings the meat back to the store and cuts it into rib-eyes, prime rib, filet mignon—just about every cut you can think of. What’s not used in the...
shorty n.— «Andrew returned to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., to be fitted for his first prostheses. These “stubbies” or “shorties,” as they are called, are only about a foot in length and are...
14-er n.— «As a man in his 70s, Dr. Reed started climbing the “14-ers,” as they are called: the dozens of mountains in Colorado that rise to 14,000 feet or higher. Friends said that on those steep mountains, where the air...
lead snowstorm n.— «The head x-ray showed what appeared to be a lot of small metallic fragments inside the skull. It looked like what is called a “lead snowstorm,” small fragments of a bullet that has disintegrated when fired...