Rihanna’s hit “Umbrella” may not have had the same ring if she’d referred to being “under my bumbershoot.” Nonetheless, bumbershoot, bumberell, brolly, and bumbersol, among others, are all
Rabbit, rabbit! In this week’s episode, it’s old terms like “eleemosynary” and “logodaedaly,” and new ones like “catio.” We discuss how to pronounce “coyote,” what Brits may mean when offer you a “joint,” when “cowpie” entered English, the...
cubital tunnel syndrome n.— «Orthopedic specialists around the globe are seeing the worldwide strike of a new condition known as cubital tunnel syndrome (commonly called cell phone elbow) that can potentially cause long-term nerve damage. When the...
casher n.— «According to the FBI , ATMs from 49 cities were hit—including Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Montreal, Moscow and Hong Kong.…These people in the photos are believed to be “cashers,” low-level players, in a scheme devised from some...
french v.— «Add this to the list of terms that no one seems to know the origin of. Frenching is simply smoothing a body element into the body so it’s faired in—most often the headlights and tail-lights of a vehicle. To french headlights, the...
bumping n.— «The indictments of 50 adults last month stemmed from an undercover infiltration of a sophisticated dogfighting ring that planned fights six to eight weeks in advance. But the crime is more commonly found here among kids or young adults...