Is there a word for @#$%!^*)!&!, those typographical symbols standing in for profanity? There is indeed. It’s grawlix—not to be confused with jarns, quimps, nittles, lucaflects, or plewds. For more on such terms, check out Mort...
hashtag n.— «What does it mean when somebody puts a number sign before a word in an online post? That’s called a hashtag, for the hash mark preceding the word (right, yet another name for the symbol we also call the number sign and the...
call centre couple n.— «The Call Centre Couple, will transform India’s family structure, markets and workplace as we know them today. Why is this Call Centre Couple (CCC) the symbol of the NMC and how will they influence markets, work and...
Martha talks about the hoopoe, that colorful, clownish, extremely smelly bird—with a likely linguistic connection to defrauded hedge fund investors.
Obama n.— «America’s 2008 presidential election loomed large over Ghana’s poll. Supporters of the two main parties talked of their dreams for an “Obama”—here meaning a first-round win—and analysts hoped that the loser would...
drain-bow n.— «“Drain-bows” (Rainbow parlance for slackers) who panhandled and shoplifted.» —“Rainbows came, camped, prayed, left” by Tom Morton Star Tribune (Jackson Hole, Wyoming) Dec. 29, 2008...