Our conversation about the phrase I beg your pardon reminded Patricia in Greenville, North Carolina, of a playground taunt from her childhood. If one kid said I beg your pardon, another would respond I grant your grace, I hope the cat will spit in...
Carol in Williamsburg, Virginia, wonders why if you bake something and don’t rely on pre-mixed ingredients, you’re said to bake it from scratch. This expression originally referred to a line scratched into the ground to mark the starting...
The words we choose can change attitudes — and change lives. A swing-dance instructor has switched to gender-neutral language when teaching couples. He says that using words like “leader” and “follower” actually works better...
Choosing language that helps resolve interpersonal conflict. Sometimes a question is really just a veiled form of criticism and understanding the difference between “ask culture” and “guess culture” can help you know how to...
Ever try to write a well-known passage in limerick form? It’s harder than you think. How about this one: “There once was a lady who’s sure / All that glitters is golden and pure/ There’s a stairway that heads up to heaven...
Savannah from Richmond, Virginia, heard a home video in which her great-grandmother from rural Central Texas called a male relative someone’s old scratch, then seemed embarrassed. Old Scratch means the devil or Satan, and in that family context, it...
