When in Rome, do as the Romans do. We all know this proverb means to respect local customs when traveling, or more generally, to go along with a larger group. But why Rome? There’s a surprising story behind this phrase. And: Do we inherit our...
High school students in Alabama share some favorite slang terms. If someone tells you to touch grass, they’re telling you to get a reality check — but the last thing you’d actually want to touch is dog water! Also, the history of the...
Paul in Dryden, New York, says when he lived in Tennessee, he knew that when someone began a sentence with Bless his heart, that phrase would usually be followed by the word but, plus a criticism of that person. Now that he’s living in New...
The books we love as children may influence our careers more than we realize. As a child, Martha was fascinated with stories of cracking codes, and Grant loved books with glossaries–not that far from the kind of work they do today. A caller...
Office workers in Richmond, Virginia, are having a dispute: Is the appliance that makes the coffee a coffee pot or a coffee maker? This is a classic case of synecdoche, where a single part—like the pot that holds the hot coffee—is used to refer to...
Reed in Clintonville, Wisconsin, has long insisted that groceries should have an s sound in the middle, while his Montana-raised wife uses sh, as if it were grosheries. Both pronunciations are widespread. Many usage authorities prefer the s...