Kieran in Huntsville, Alabama, wonders about the term laid an egg meaning performed badly. The expression to lay an egg goes back at least as far as cricket matches in the 1860s, where duck’s egg referred to a zero on a scoreboard. Later in...
Emily in Colchester, Vermont, asks about hark your racket, a phrase her mother heard from a coworker who called it a Vermont expression meaning “be quiet,” “pipe down,” or “stop complaining.” The exact form is hard to find in print, but Dictionary...
When was tennis mentioned in the Bible? When Joseph served in Pharaoh’s court. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Pharaoh’s Court Joke” One more preacher’s kid joke for you, Grant. We used to say this...
How do you refer to rubber-soled athletic shoes? Are they sneakers or tennis shoes? Something else, like trainers? When canvas shoes with soft rubber soles came into use, they were so quiet compared to wood-soled shoes that one could literally sneak...
“Anymore, I play golf instead of tennis.” Grant explains that this grammatical construction is known as the “positive anymore.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “The Positive Anymore” Hello, you...
Martha shares the term “hit and giggle”, a bit of sports slang term she picked up while working as an announcer at this year’s Mercury Insurance Open tennis tournament. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Hit...