J.P. in Temecula, California, is a high schooler studying French and Spanish. He notes that the Spanish word con means “with” and English has some linguistically related words, such as congress, which suggests “coming...
Brian in San Antonio, Texas, wonders about the origin of the pinking in the term pinking shears. Such shears cut an even, zigzag pattern that keeps cloth from fraying at the edges. Pinking likely comes from French piquer, meaning to...
Is there something inherent in English that makes it the linguistic equivalent of the Borg, dominating and consuming other languages in its path? No, not at all. The answer lies with politics and conquest rather than language itself. Plus: a new...
When someone is perseverating or worrying too much, some Spanish speakers will suggest they stop obsessing with the phrase no te comas el coco. Literally, it means “don’t eat the coconut,” the word coco in Spanish being slang for...
The Latin word frivolous means “silly,” “empty,” or “trifling,” and is the source of the English adjective frivolous. A back-formation from frivolous, the lesser-known English verb frivol, means “to do...
The Spanish phrase aburrido como una ostra or “as bored as an oyster” is an apt simile. This is part of a complete episode.