It’s hard to remember how to spell the names of some cities. Tallahassee, Florida, for example. Then there are towns with very few letters to remember. Y, a tiny town in northern France, has only two main streets, which come together to form the...
Since the late 19th century, the word scrumbunctious has been used to describe someone who is energetic or high-spirited. Scrumbunctious is probably a portmanteau of scrumptious and rambunctious. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...
Diana from Tucson, Arizona, reports that when she was young, her Irish grandmother would chase her and her misbehaving siblings around the house yelling, “You omadhauns!” Also spelled amadán, this word of Celtic origin means “fool” or “idiot” or...
Scott in Madison, Wisconsin, is curious about the word invoice. It’s related to the English word envoy, and comes from French, envois, literally “things sent.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Invoice and Envoy” Hello, you have A...
Generally speaking, the color that’s a blend of black and white is most often spelled gray in the U.S. and grey in the UK, although both spellings existed side by side for many years, and in fact, 18th-century British lexicographer Samuel Johnson...
Joan from Buffalo, New York, wants to know how to spell a particular word that means to spiff up, clean up, straighten, or fix. The word is zhuzh, which has had dozens of different spellings over the years because it’s primarily transmitted orally...