Has your boss ever used the expression “Let’s put the moose on the table”? This management buzzphrase, meaning “let’s address the problem everyone’s been avoiding,” is relatively new, showing up in print around the early 1990s. The phrase pops up in...
What do you call someone who doesn’t eat fish? A caller wants to know, but not because of dietary requirements. He’s a string bass player who plays in an ensemble that’s tired of being asked to perform Schubert’s famous composition, the Trout...
What do you call an expert speller? A “Words With Friends” enthusiast wants to know. Martha tells her that a great speller is called an orthographer or orthographist, from the Latin roots ortho- meaning “straight” or “correct”, and -graph meaning...
A listener reports that when her cat starts whining, she tells it to shut its kibble-hole. If only cats understood wordplay– or English. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Kibble-Hole” Grant, I love this email that we got from...
“Whoever makes it tells it not. Whoever takes it knows it not. Whoever knows it wants it not. What is it?” Martha shares this old riddle. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Counterfeit Riddle” Riddle me this, Grant. I never...
A Yankee transplant to the South says that restaurant servers are confused when he tells them, “I’m all set.” Is he all set to continue his meal, or all set to leave? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “I’m All Set” Hello, you have A...
